An invitation to cover the induction of the four new Cape Wine Masters at Nederburg saw us head for Paarl last Thursday. Attendees met in the garden in front of the manor house, which allowed us good social distancing. These events are always well attended by Cape Wine Masters, many of whom act as mentors to those studying to be a Cape Wine Master. It is a very rigorous process that can be done over five years or less. We were the only media attending, with one social media girl. Here is Jenny McQueen in front of the Nederburg manor house
The welcome drink was the Nederburg Cap Classique. Cape Wine Masters are expected to: Promote wine and spirit education in South Africa at all levels, Promote the growth and responsible use of wine, Promote the image of the ICWM by enhancing its credibility, visibility and recognition and be an ambassador for wine
There were other Nederburg wines to taste. We enjoyed this 2020 Sauvignon Blanc later with lunch
So good to see Dave Hughes CWM looking so happy and fit
Jeff Grier and Peter Ferreira, two Cap Classique masters
Allan Mullins and Dave Hughes were having a jolly time enjoying the beautiful weather
Neil Groenewald, MD of Nederburg, welcomed us all and told us what is happening at Nederburg
They are doing things to reconnect the public with Nederburg wines and concentrating of Cabernets
plus a new release of another wine, soon
Pieter Badenhorst, Nederburg white winemaker, told us more about the wines we were tasting
He came here briefly as a Stellenbosch student and is now back at Nederburg, after several years at Fleur de Cap
Two more of the Nederburg wines we tasted in the garden and with lunch. The 2018 Cabernet is a blend of grapes from different vineyards and is hand harvested. 10% goes to barrel for 12 to 16 months. It has intense wood, cherries and violets, is soft and silky on the palate with cherries and amaretto notes, very, very enjoyable with some soft chalk and wood just supporting on the end
Lizelle Gerber, Nederburg Cellarmaster, spoke about the reds and described the 2003 in Afrikaans;
she said it translates as a "big boobs wine"! (as in buxom, not a mistake)
All the Cape Wine Masters who were attending
Time for lunch in the fantastic Nederburg Old Barrel Cellar. Some of the foudres are very old,
from the beginning of Nederburg’s life, and some are imported from Germany with carved frontages
Bennie Howard was the MC for the day and he began proceedings with the induction of the new Cape Wine Masters
A quote from Bennie: "Wine feeds the body, soul and spirit of man and stimulates the mind"
One of our favourite Nederburg wines, The Anchorman 2018 Chenin blanc, served with lunch; full of cooked apple and cream, it is crisp and tongue tingling and it went beautifully with the starter, as did the 2020 Sauvignon Blanc - an amazing green nose with hints of pine and eucalyptus, and some of that Sauvignon cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush. Full on the palate; very satisfying with long crisp flavours of granadilla and English gooseberry with some minerality
The menu
The starter of good smoked salmon roulade, served with a lime dressing, sliced ginger and a salad
Could have eaten several, this was so good
New Cape Wine Masters Lisha Nelson de Villiers, Wanda Cronje, Karen Bloom, Boela Gerber
Students have to write a dissertation which adds value to the wine industry
Dissertation Topics: Lisha de Villiers: Wine and Health
Wanda Cronje: Ovoid and Alternative Wine Vessels in South Africa
Karen Bloom: The rise of Prosecco
Boela Gerber: Understanding Brettanomyces for Improved Management in the Cellar
Heidi Duminy, the new head of the Cape Wine Academy, our alma mater
We both qualified to start the Cape Wine Master programme way back in the late 1990s but, instead,
opened our boutique wine and food shop, Main Ingredient, in Sea Point after we left our corporate jobs
Two special wines with lunch, The Manor House 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon and a very special unlabelled 2003 Cabernet,
17 years in the making. It is amazing; it has lasted so well and still has life to go further
Intense fruit and wood, in layers of dark berry fruit. Mouth watering and warm alcohol remains
A rather enormous, tender and flavourful herb crusted beef fillet, charred pickled baby onions,
parmesan potato gratin, a little under cooked, and a delicious red wine jus
There are two extra awards presented to graduating students who have received excellent marks in their examinations
The first award is one from La Motte of a four bottle ice bucket presented to Boela Gerber
by La Motte Senior farm manager Jaco Visser for viticulture excellence
Jeff Grier of Villiera
Jeff Grier presenting Boela with the Villiera sabre
which is awarded for outstanding achievement in the Sparkling wine tasting exam
Jeff Grier and Boela Gerber with Kathy Grier-Brewer
Jeff and Kathy were the first brother and sister to qualify as Cape Wine Masters
Dessert was a vanilla bean Crème brulée, topped with chocolate soil, atop a berry compote,
served with Nederburg's Winemasters 2018 Noble Late Harvest; the perfect match
Amber, honey and stone fruit on the nose, apricot, honey peaches and cream on the palate
Jacques Steyn, who is Chairman of the ICWM, made the closing speech and said what a bizarre year this has been
The younger members are now taking over from older members
Thank you all for a most enjoyable day,
spent with such influential, erudite and friendly members of the Institute of Cape Wine Masters
This luncheon was followed, the next day, with a special black tie dinner at which special awards were made:
(Information from Jenny McQueen of Mactracs). At the annual Institute of Cape Wine Masters Dinner held on Saturday 28th November 2020 at Jewell's Restaurant at Spice Route, the annual Wine Personality of the Year was announced and a new annual floating trophy introduced – named after Dave Hughes, the founder of the Cape Wine Academy in 1979 and Honorary Cape Wine Master. The Dave Hughes award honours the CWM who has made a notable contribution to the Institute of Cape Wine Masters (ICWM), wine education or the wine industry in general.
Philip van Zyl was designated Wine Personality of the Year – in recognition of his major contribution to the South African wine industry as the longest serving editor of the Platter’s wine guide for the past 23 years. A journalist since leaving university for a number of newspapers, he and his wife, Cathy, started their wine journey by signing up for the Cape Wine Academy courses in Johannesburg. Since he took over from Erica Platter in 1998, the guide has continued to grow in stature and has become the most comprehensive database of producers and their wines in South Africa. He dedicates six months of his life every year to editing this amazing guide and the volume of work he handles for this mammoth task is difficult to comprehend. He has been widely praised for his precise and thorough editing of this information-packed and reader-friendly wine guide.
The first recipient of the Dave Hughes award is Bennie Howard, who was one of the original Cape Wine Masters to qualify, in 1984. Since then he has overseen every CWM award ceremony and been heavily involved in promoting the CWA and the Institute of Cape Wine Masters.
Dave Hughes appointed him as wine ambassador for the ambitious Wine Plan in 1979, set out by the Stellenbosch Farmers’ Winery Group (SFW) which later became Distell. In 1989 he became SFW’s Group Corporate Affairs Manager. This included managing the Nederburg Auction, which he did for 16 years until he left the company in 2004. He has also been vice-chairman of Veritas for 30 years, the longest running and most prominent wine and spirits competition in South Africa. He is currently marketing and sales manager for Meerendal Estate in Durbanville, where he is very involved in wine education for the Meerendal Wine Academy
John's plate proved how much he enjoyed it, it was "Jardined"! George’s sauces are so good
