Each year The Wine Show likes to raise money for charity. We’re also all about “stripping away the snobbery” that so often surrounds wine. So when the idea was presented to hold a photographic competition for breast cancer around the theme “wine laid bare” we couldn't resist! We had entries from some of SA’s leading photographers through to groups of charity workers and even just members of the public who had themselves been touched by breast cancer.
It costs just R50 to enter a photo, and the best 12 photos are selected to feature in a calendar which we sell at The Wine Show for R100. All proceeds are donated via www.cansa.org.za
We’re expecting an even bigger response this year, and to promote the contest 40 people volunteered to pose together at Overture restaurant at Hidden Valley winery in Stellenbosch. Maryna Strachan was there to join in and report on the evening.
After Robyn’s dogged insistence that the Taste Team do a shoot for “Wine Laid Bare” (see this months photo) we figured they would have had their fill of “visual stimulation” and decided on a blind tasting for this month.
3 white blends and 3 red blends were selected from amongst the numerous possibilities lurking in the cellars of our exhibitors. For both, wines from 3 different price points were picked. With the line-up assembled the wines were air-freighted overnight to Simonnes house, where Sims husband took charge and ensured no “peeking” occurred.
The bottles were duly wrapped for secrecy, with special care to remove even capsules should they give away the identity. The Team then tasted the 3 whites first, then the reds.
We asked them to honestly review each wine in its own right, then to say if they thought it was the cheapest, middle or most expensive in its colour-category. The results were something of an eye-opener! Read More
J&B Met & Wine Cocktails at Avontuur! Every October I go to the J&B Met website to see what fashion theme the organisers have come up with, for what is surely the biggest event of the year on the social scene and it is then that I start thinking about my own little ensemble.
This year’s theme, ‘Life in Full Colour’, saw a spectacular array of brightly coloured outfits come out and paraded around by the peacocks of Cape Town’s society.
I was lucky enough to be invited to Snaith Racing’s hospitality tent where I was rubbing shoulders with the likes of Schalk Burger and later in the day, snuck my way into the Pocket Power supporters box, which was a little more subdued compared to the year before.
So, in the spirit of horse racing and sophistication, I decided to visit one of South Africa’s top stud and wine farms, Avontuur, and what an adventure it was! Read More
KWV shifts their global marketing focus online. The activity will include the launch of a new website, with closely integrated social media elements such as online videos and content on Facebook and Twitter. Click here
Asara maintains realistic pricing for World Cup. During the FIFA World Cup Asara is offering its superb five-star accommodation facilities in Stellenbosch at the standard high season rate. Click here
UK wine columnist Olly Smith Picks Star out of Africa on a recent trip to the SA Winelands. Click here
Fleur du Cap has just released a new vintage of one of the stalwarts in its popular Bergkelder range, the lightly wooded Fleur du Cap Chenin Blanc 2009. Click here
Poach Salmon in your dishwasher! Yep that’s right, Bob Blumer over at US Wine X magazine explains how to wow guests at your next dinner party by cooking fish in your dishwasher. If you give it a try be sure to take a photo and email us to let us know how it worked. Click here
Aussie wine blog “theguzzle” has also had its fair share of nudity, all in aid of tasting clear-skin wines (unlabelled wines sold at discount prices). With tasting notes like “f**ked up apricot soap on a rope” it makes entertaining reading and there’s a photo of mass nudity. Click here
A lack of wineries locally in JHB doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy wine tasting. Here are 3 great ideas for tastings at home with friends. Did you know music affects how wine tastes? Apparently it does, and there research to prove it. Click here
Ever been caught-out with no corkscrew? No problem! Here’s a few helpful tips for removing that pesky cork with pliers, pocket-knife, hammer and even just a tea towel! All a lot easier and less messy than the often employed “just thumb it in” method. Click here
Fin24 is asking the question “can you make money from wine” and takes a look at the possible arrival of “En Primeur” sales for SA wines. It’s big business in the world of French wines and could signal a great step forward for our own leading estates. Click here
Wine magazine columnist Michael Fridjhon asserts that “cheating, lying and cover-ups are rife in the wine industry” and reminds us of some pretty convincing examples and their ultimate consequences. Click here
Jeanri-Tine van Zyl interviews former Miss Universe Michelle McLean for Wine magazine and hears how Prince Albert took her to dinner in Monte Carlo and she knocked her red wine over the table. Click here
At wine.co.za Neil Pendock wonders if expensive wines could be under threat with some great examples of the best in the industry being stumped in blind tastings by otherwise “cheap” wines. Not unlike our own Taste Team in this months issue. Click here
