KWV's wines have again won gold at the Veritas Awards, South Africa's most prestigious wine competition.  The 2004 KWV Steen received a coveted double gold medal and the 2000 Cathedral Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon, a gold medal, at this event.

This is a great achievement for the 2004 KWV Steen, which is a wine from the current vintage.  It is a blend of Steen grapes from the Stellenbosch, Malmesbury and Breede River Valley areas of the Western Cape.

It is the fourth time that the 2000 Cathedral Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon has won a gold medal.  It received gold at last year's Veritas Awards, as well as at the 2003 Hong Kong International Wine Challenge and at this year's International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) in London.

The KWV Steen exhibits the best varietal characteristics of its three areas of origin.  The body and structure of the wine result from the grapes coming from low-yielding, high quality vineyards in Stellenbosch and Malmesbury, while the lively fruitiness on the nose is imparted by the grapes of the Breede River Valley.

Sterik de Wet, KWV's chief winemaker, said that "this is a crisp wine with intense aromas of tropical fruit.  It is well-structured and elegant on the palate.  The Cathedral Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon has an excellent tannin structure with berry, spice and oak flavours.  This full-bodied, complex wine will age well."

Johan Bestbier, managing director of KWV International, is delighted with these results and stated that "the quality of the Veritas Awards is higher than ever, with an increase in the number of international judges and participating cellars, and an overall improvement in the quality of wines.  Thus, winning gold and double gold medals has become more difficult and more prestigious.  

"I am particularly pleased that the KWV Steen, a wine from our major volume KWV brand, received double gold."

KWV's wines received a further 11 silver medals and 6 bronze medals at this competition.

Media enquiries: Penelope Horwood      
Telephone: +27-21-807 3353
E-mail: horwood@kwv.co.za