Each year the label for
the bottle is changed. This is the bright and fun painting of the label done by
artist Frans Groenewald. They will fill
in the names of the winners when the label is printed
A welcome glass of
Blaauwklippen White Zinfandel
Some interesting canapés:
Duck in puff pastry
Tiny feta and spinach
quiches
The best were pancakes
filled with smoked salmon and topped with a dot of cream cheese and salmon
caviar with a sprig of dill
Alan Mullins, one of the
originators of the blending competition with PR whizz Nicolette Waterford
Prizes? No, gifts for all attending, which included
some beautiful Vitria wine glasses and a magnum of the winning wine
Two long tables sit down
for lunch and the awards
The menu for the day
Wine Maker and GM of Blaauwklippen
Rolf Zeitvogel tells us the history of the competition and that the wine we
will drink with our lunch will be the as yet unidentified winning blend
Our starter of chicken
ballontine stuffed with olives, peppers and chicken farce, accompanied by a
bangle of crisp cheese, atop a moist mushroom and feta quiche. The chicken was
a little dry, but the stuffing was deliciously complex. Served with
Blaauwklippen 2013 Chenin Blanc
Walter Finlayson, past
winemaker at Blaauwklippen, tells us about his role in the formation of the
competition before he went on to Glen Carlou
Anel Grobler of Spit or
Swallow tweeting the awards to her followers
Rolf Zeitvogel and
Walter Finlayson
Rolf chats to John, who
was from the first wine club to win 30 years ago. They are also from Durban
Dave Hudson of Cape Town represented another previous winner
 |
Cape Wine Master Clive
Torr has been a judge of the competition over the years
|
Angela Lloyd tells us
how the competition mushroomed from the original entries. They never imagined how
long it would last and how enthusiastically it would be supported, by
the sponsors and the wine clubs
Natalie Campbell of
Blaauwklippen, PA to Rolf Zeitvogel and co-ordinator of the competition
Nicolette Waterford. Her
public relations company, Waterford Communications, organised this very well run event
Media making notes: Chris von Ulmenstein and Norman McFarlane
Suzette Biermann, representing finalist Oude Molen Wynkring from Potchefstroom in the North-West Province
Nominee Laurence Davies of the
Natalia Wine Society thought the wine tasted a bit familiar
Dwayne and Helen Embery, represented Web Wine Society from Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape
Alan Mullins enjoying
lunch and the awards
Sasha van Zyl of winemag.co.za, who won the media award
Blaauwklippen's assistant winemaker, Albert Basson
And here is the winning
wine for us to taste
Our main course was an
extremely tender roasted lamb rump on a smoked potato purée, (thank heavens not
over-smoked) with a deep and rich black olive jus and perfectly cooked baby
vegetables This was served with an
anchovy and caper butter, which Lynne felt added too much salty contrast to the
rich sweet lamb, so she added only a tiny dab
Denise Huff of Vitria Glass, one of the
sponsors of the awards
Seated at the end of the
table are the four most valuable members of staff from the cellar. They have to
organise all the bottling of the wines to be blended, their packaging and
dispatch to the clubs. Then they have to assemble the blends which are entered
for tasting, as well as make up the final winning blend. Work well done
Walter and Jill Finlayson
First award is the Media
award to winemag.co.za. Receiving it from Rolf is Sasha van Zyl
And the award for the
best blend 2013 goes to Laurence Davies of Natalia Wine Society in Durban
He is delighted and
amused that he spotted it when he tasted the winning wine with lunch
Lots of smiles from the
award winners
Here, assembled, are all
the finalists and the winners with Rolf and Albert
Laurence and Jenny Davies with Rolf Zeitvogel
Rolf with Helen and Dwayne Embery
and with the Biermanns from Potchefstroom
Laurence and Jenny, proudly taking the
trophy home
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2013
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