PEOPLE BEHIND THE POUR: INSPIRED BY AFRICA, MADE IN WASHINGTON — MVINYO WINERY
We are thrilled to open the WeRise doors and say “Karibu! Welcome!” to one of our newest collaborators, Nelly Some (pronounced so-may) of Mvinyo Winery.
Two decades ago, when Nelly arrived in the Pacific Northwest, becoming a winemaker and winery owner was nowhere on her radar. In her native Kenya, she was a tour guide—a skill that wasn’t in great demand in South King County, where she settled.
As an entrepreneur and activist, Nelly is able to see opportunity everywhere. Now, after founding several successful companies, Nelly has turned her focus and particular palate to food and wine, opening Mvinyo Winery and Nelly’s African Kitchen.
“I wanted wine that would pair well with African food, so I made my own,” Nelly says, noting that African food needs wine with high acidity. “You can’t have good food without good wine!”
The road to wine was very curvy. When she first immigrated, Nelly became a caregiver, earning a credential as a Certified Nursing Assistant, and working in assisted living facilities. Having been raised since infancy by her grandmother, Nelly had a strong affinity and appreciation for community elders. She took on tasks in the back office, learning what it took to run a senior care home.
“I did not think they were being well-taken care of, so I opened my own senior home to make my own decisions and have control.” Nelly says, “How you take care of them is like how you take care of your own parents.”
Over the next 16 years, Nelly opened multiple senior homes, becoming a real estate broker so she could easily purchase and renovate houses to her specifications. Due to an overwhelming number of requests for help, she became a consultant and motivational speaker, assisting others to open their own senior care homes.
“Everything I do comes with a passion,” Nelly says. “All is related in one way or another. Wherever I see a need, I see business potential.”
Not too long after her fourth child was born, Nelly decided to retire from her caregiving and real estate businesses to spend more time with her husband and four kids, who range in age from 4-14.
This interlude gave her time to cook which led her to establish Nelly’s African Kitchen as a catering business and online recipe instruction to bring African food to the American table.
Nelly began studying Washington wine, seeking wines that would complement her recipes. “I am a very good drinker who knows good wine when I taste it,” she says, explaining how she drove all over Washington and parts of Oregon to researching, tasting, and teaching herself about what the region offered. “I took myself to winery after winery.”
When she didn’t find what she was seeking,Nelly soon established Mvinyo Winery (“Mvinyo” means “wine” in Swahili) to create the elegant, African-inspired wines she imagined.
Working with two wine consultants in Walla Walla at a custom crush facility, she has produced the first 2,400 cases of Mvinyo Winery with grapes sourced from Red Mountain, Rattlesnake Hills, Horse Heaven Hills, and Columbia Valley.
Mvinyo Winery currently boasts six wines: the tropical Samaki Sauvignon Blanc, a smooth and peachy Rift Valley Riesling, the floral and citrus-scented Rafiki Rosé, the light-bodied Eldoret Cabernet Sauvignon, the spiced bold Gogo Merlot, and the berry-forward Calabash Cabernet Sauvignon.
WeRise is currently featuring Nelly’s Gogo Merlot and Rafiki Rosé in our wine bar. Meet Nelly at our upcoming African wine and food pairing pop up on August 16. Check out all of our upcoming events and sign up for the WeRise newsletter to be the first to hear about our latest news and upcoming events at WeRise Wines.
To learn more about Nelly and her delicious ventures, visit her website and follow her on Instagram at @nellysafricankitchen and @mvinyowinery.
A version of this article first appeared in Sip Magazine.
