Awards in the annual regional Breedekloof Worcester Young Wine Show competition were announced on Wednesday, 23 August. This competition, which recognises the quality of unbottled, young wines in barrel or tank, provides the industry with a blueprint of the quality available in a winery, and is, therefore, one of the wine trade’s more important wine competitions.
Out of the Breedekloof and Worcester wine regions, 16 wine cellars entered over 400 wines to be adjudicated, with recognition awarded in various categories.
Chairman of the Breedekloof Worcester Young Wine Show, Christo Pienaar, commentated that the quality of wine continues to rise year-by-year and that this is an indication of healthy vines and knowledgeable cellar practices – and overall a very promising future.
This year the Alice Malan Trophy, for the Overall Champion Wine, was awarded to Aan de Doorns, for its Red Muscadel Jerepigo – the same wine which also received the First National Trophy for Muscadel.
The state of white wine in the regions was positively reflected by Badsberg Cellar, with this cellar claiming no less than three trophies in various white wine categories. These are the Beveratec Champion Dry White Blend Trophy, for a Chenin Blanc / Chardonnay blend, the F.S Smit Trophy for Champion Noble Late Harvest Wine. This cellar also claimed the JCR Du Toit Transport Trophy in one of the strongest categories, the Chenin Blanc group – an appropriate winner for a region where most of the area under vine is planted to this cultivar.
Botha Cellar received the Laffort S.A. Champion Chardonnay Trophy, as well as the Wine Machinery Trophy for the niche variety, Nouvelle.
De Wet Cellar was presented with the Bacchus Trophy in the Natural Sweet White Table Wine category, for an off-dry Chenin Blanc. The same cellar was also awarded the Kloppers Steelworks Trophy for Champion Semillon.
Merwida Cellar, who has an established reputation for quality Sauvignon Blanc, won the Enartis SA Trophy for Champion Sauvignon Blanc.
In addition to its wins in white wine categories, Botha Cellar also claimed the heavily contested Pietman Hugo Trophy for the Five Best Nominated Wines. The GV Tec Trophy for Merlot was also awarded to this cellar, for a wooded Merlot.
Proving that it’s a serious contender when it comes to quality red wine, uniWines was awarded with no less than four trophies: the Sanlam Agricultural Trophy for Champion Red Blend for a classic Merlot / Cabernet Sauvignon Blend, the FJ J Rabie Trophy for its Pinotage, the Maurivin Trophy for Shiraz and the Strydom’s Rewinders Other Red Trophy for a Ruby Cabernet.
Nuy Cellar raised the bar with its Cabernet Sauvignon, a high-end barrel-fermented wine, worthy of the F Hayes Panels & PLC Trophy.
The acclaim for the sweet wines from the regions was once again justified with Botha Cellar’s Hanepoot Jerepigo wine, which took home the ABSA Trophy for Champion Dessert Wine. The stunner sweet fortified from Merwida Winery was awarded the Protea Chemicals Port Trophy.
The SA Young Wine Show's championship wines, in which the Breedekloof and Worcester wineries are also competing, will be announced on Friday during a prestigious gala dinner hosted by these regions and held at ATKV Goudini Spa.