June 30: Cape Wine 2018, the internationally acclaimed triennial wine fair showcasing South African wines opens on 12th September for 3 days at the Cape Town International Convention Center with 352 South African wine producers putting their best foot forward to showcase how the quality of their wine produced has improved exponentially over recent years
A stone's throw from the city, international hotels and the famous V&A Waterfront, the show is held every 3 years since 2015 (earlier every two years) at the spacious venue which is only 25- minute' drive from the nearby winery areas. One can meet trade visitors and journalists from all over the world and network with the South African winemakers and producers.
One can get the complete picture of the status of the South African industry apart from discovering a huge variety of wines, from value-for-money wines to garage wines and also icons in the making.
The show will kick off with an opening seminar at 9:00 on September 12, titled “Creating a sustainable future” with both local and international speakers, including Rick Tigner from Jackson Family Wines, Charles Back from Fairview and Raymond Ndlovu from Black Elephant Vintners, to name a few. Interestingly, Bhai Analjit Singh (BAS), Founder Chairman Emeritus of Max India Ltd., addressed the delegates about investment potential in the country and more specifically Western Cape at this seminar in the previous Show held in 2015.
Visitors may also attend four additional seminars over the following two days with subjects surrounding climate change, the value of preserving older vines, a showcase of how well their white wines can age and a look at how their young winemakers are learning from their fathers- and vice versa.
Cathy van Zyl MW, who specializes in South African wines and is one of the associate editors of John Platter South African Wine Guide, says 'This has become the most important trade event on the South African wine calendar. Anyone who is anybody exhibits here. If you are interested in importing South African wines or adding them to your wine list, this is a not-to-be missed show.'
Amorim Speakers’ Corner
Once again, the Speakers’ Corner, sponsored by Amorim Cork, the leading world cork producer in Portugal, will see several exciting ‘soap-box-style’ sessions that purport to be fun, informative and interactive for those who would like to learn more. For more information on the times and themes of these sessions and also the formal Seminars, visit https://www.capewine2018.com/Programmes.
Visitors are invited to the Theme Tasting area, located within the exhibition hall. During two daily sessions from 10:00-13:00 and 14:00 until close, there will be both varietal tables and themed tables showing some of the local wines that best represent that specific varietal or theme. Wines of South Africa (WOSA), the organisers of the Show, are working in collaboration with professional sommeliers from the Black Cellar Club to guide the guests in this section.
Hannuwa
Taking into account this year’s show theme, Hannuwa, a 200,000-year old African word, which describes the holistic connection between their people, their land and the soil, the JF Hillebrand stakeholders area will provide a platform for guests to familiarize themselves with a number of industry initiatives such as The Pebbles Project, the Wine Industry Ethical Trade Association, the Integrated Production of Wine, the Anna Foundation, the VinPro Foundation, WWF and the Pinotage Youth Development Agency and more.
If you plan to visit South Africa around this time and would like to visit the Show, it’s best to visit www.capewine2018.com and get instructions to register.
For related Articles for the previous wine shows in 2015 and earlier, please visit:
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Cape Wine for South African Wines
Subhash Arora
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