The event was held in the ballroom of the Cape Town International Convention Centre
Canapés and Cap Classique in the foyer
Mini boerewors rolls
Lynne with Diane and Johan Malan of Simonsig wine estate
The ladies were all elegantly dressed, as were some of the men
The ballroom, ready for the Awards and dinner
Bread Basket
Homemade Rosemary Focaccia, Mini Ciabattas, Blue Cheese Surprise, Mosbolletjies, Mini Brown Sultana Rolls
and Olive Rustic Lavashe, served with butter and velvety hummus
A welcome from Bennie Howard CWM who chairs the Veritas Awards
Christo Pienaar presented the awards
Bennie Howard announced three new Legends of the wine industry
The Veritas tradition, since 2009, of honouring industry leaders, is being continued.
Thereby, three eminent personalities received the 2025 Living Legend Scroll of Honour
for their dedication to and enthusiasm for the local wine and brandy industries,
namely Charles Back (owner of Fairview Wine & Cheese),
Michael Back (former owner of Backsberg Estate)
and Johan Malan (owner and former head winemaker of Simonsig Estate)
You can read the accolades on https://veritas.co.za/veritas-living-legends-awards-2025/
Michael Back of Backsberg
and Johan Malan of Simonsig
The third, Charles Back of Fairview was travelling overseas and could not be present to receive his award
The menu
The Starter
Sesame-crusted tuna fillet served atop a rich tomato smoor, finished with a delicate poppy seed dressing,
shaved parmesan, and a hint of truffle essence, all on a bed of peppery yuzu salad, crunchy carrot
and tangy pickled radish. Fresh, spicy and delicious
Some of the wines on our table, where we had quite a few white wine drinkers and just four drank both white and red wine
The Vondeling Babiana white blend (Chenin blanc, with Viognier, Grenache blanc, Roussanne went very well with the Tuna
Arno Carstens was the entertainment and was well received
Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen with his wife, Terry and Western Cape Premier Alan Winde and his wife, Tracy
Rico Basson, CEO of South Africa Wine, and Geordin Hill-Lewis, mayor of Cape Town
A chicken dish as a hypoallergenic alternative main course
The Main Course
Tender best end of
lamb paired with a slow-cooked, pressed Iamb shoulder,
served With
a creamy baked leek custard, caramelized spring onion, and a
crisp potato pavé,
accompanied by sautéed King oyster mushrooms
infused with the subtle aroma of thyme, served with edamame beans and fresh peas
Another good dish which went so well with the De Wetshof Nature in Concert Pinot Noir. A delight
Lynne chatting to our table mates, the Cellarmaster Magnus Kriel from Merwida in the Breedekloof,
who has been there for 25 years, and his wife Chelley
Gemma and Stuart Botha of Tokara
Bennie Howard announced the Gold medal winners and there were many
If you'd like to taste the wines, you can buy tickets to the public tastings
Stuart Botha gets his Double Gold medal from Christo Pienaar for his 2022 Tokara Shiraz
Happy smile!
The entries were adjudicated by 88 authoritative international and local judges during five days’ blind tasting sessions
The judging panels comprised five members each
The international judges were Adero Achola (Kenya), Christine Austin (UK), Treve Ring (Canada),
Bernard Stramwasser (Canada), Yoshiko Takahashi (Japan) and Joe Wadsack (UK)
Time for the top awards
The KWV team achieved remarkable success at the Veritas function this year
and, echoing last year, was named Best Wine Producer, with most Double Gold medals, a record eight Double Gold
as well as 13 Gold awards. KWV also won the laurels for brandy, followed by Backsberg's Sydney Back Brandy
and, echoing last year, was named Best Wine Producer, with most Double Gold medals, a record eight Double Gold
as well as 13 Gold awards. KWV also won the laurels for brandy, followed by Backsberg's Sydney Back Brandy
Top Achiever Award to the cellar with 10 entries or fewer went to Graham Beck,
the Best Achiever in the class for ten wine entries or less with four Double Gold medals and a Gold award
Cederberg Wines excelled with four Double Gold medals and one Gold,
while three wineries achieved three Double Golds each, namely Nederburg Wines, Perdeberg Wines and Spier Wines
Seven cellars bagged two Double Gold each – Bellingham, Beyerskloof, Flagstone, Kleine Zalze, Recast Wines,
Van Loveren Family Vineyards and Diemersdal Estate, the latter that added a superb 11 Gold awards to their two DGs
Alan Winde, Graham Beck marketing manager Lisa Keulder, and Christo Pienaar
Next, the Duimpie Bayly Veritas Vertex Award for the best wine on show
And the audience waits to hear who has won it this year
The Duimpie Bayly Veritas Vertex Award went to Izele van Blerk
for her 2022 KWV The Mentors Perold Cape blend, a Pinotage, Shiraz, Cabernet sauvignon, Malbec red blend
Presented by Agriculture Minister John Steenhuizen,
who is also head of the Democratic Alliance party in the coalition Government of National Unity
Dessert
Decadent vanilla ice cream and black cherry compote-filled Baked Alaska, enveloped in a smooth, silky meringue,
served alongside a lightly poached seasonal fruit salad, garnished with an artistic flourish of rich chocolate,
adding a touch of elegance to this indulgent dessert experience
A Double Gold Nuy Muscadel to accompany the dessert. It was quite a celebration
The KWV team with their medals and awards
Izele van Blerk with her award. Lynne told her she would do a double at Veritas with her Pinotage and she did a triple!
Izele is a very talented winemaker indeed
Winners of multiple medals stand with Bennie Howard CWM
All the stories we have produced since 2012
can be opened from the archive list near the top of the column on the right of this page
