The Cape's two major wine auctions - Nederburg and the Cape Winemakers' Guild - have very little in common, although they both serve as markets for wines of excellent quality.
The Nederburg Auction is open to licensed buyers only and is staged as an elegant social event for invited guests. The wines on offer are mostly from Nederburg's own cellars, with an added selection of rare and often old wines from other producers, chosen by a panel of judges.
Officially, all the wines sold at the Nederburg Auction are for resale.
The Cape Winemakers' Guide Auction, on the other hand, is open to the public and the wines on offer are specially made by guild members for the annual auction.
The Guild Auction is aimed at private buyers who wish to add special wines to their own collections.
If you're interested in tasting some of these guild wines, make a diary note to attend the Guild Auction Showcase on August 20.
The event takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) and starts at 6pm.
These pre-auction events are always fun and offer an opportunity to taste some fine wines and meet the people who made them. Visitors can taste at their own pace, wandering from stand to stand, chatting to winemakers, enjoying snacks and sushi and listening to live music.
Tickets for the event cost R100 each and bookings can be made by calling 021 852 0408 or e-mailing [email protected]. Tickets can also be bought at the door.
The actual auction will be held at Spier on October 3.
One feature in common with both auctions is that part of the events are devoted to raising money for charity. At Nederburg they hold a separate charity auction of donated rare wines and at the guild auction there is a 'silent auction' of collectors' wines in aid of education and training of young people from previously disadvantaged wine farming communities.
- One of the Cape's most unusual wine competitions is the annual Terroir Wine Awards contest, which is aimed at promoting wines that are unique to a specific area.
Entrants submit wines they feel best reflect the soils and climate of one specific estate or vineyard.
This year's competition attracted a record 205 entries and it was interesting to see which areas produced the most distinctive wines.
Walker Bay and Elim, for example, produced no fewer than seven of the 20 national certificate winners. Hermanuspietersfiontein Swartskaap 2007 was judged the top Cabernet Franc wine for the second consecutive year, with Wildekrans winning the award for the best MCC sparkling wine.
David Nieuwoudt's Ghost Corner Semillon won the certificate for the top Semillon for the second year running as well.
An award was given to a rosé for the first time this year, and it went to Avendrood Blush Pinotage Rosé from the Goudini area.
An unusual sweet wine, the Red Muscat d' Alexandrie from Prins Albert in the Little Karoo, was awarded a national certificate.
Other top award winners were De Grendel for their Winifred 2008 (white blend) and Diemersfontein Thokozani 2008 (red blend). The best Malbec was entered by Doolhof (Welklington ward) and the top Viognier was from Fort Simon.
The three wines which received the highest scores of all were the Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 2005, Springfontein Jil's Dune Chenin Blanc 2008 and Diemersfontein Thokozani 2008.
For more information and the full results, contact Marius Labuschagne at tel. 021 975 8166 or e-mail [email protected].