This week’s competition is to identify the truly spectacular red blend called DNA, shown below.  It has nothing to do with DNA SA the ill-fated “toolkit for marketers that represents WOSA’s thinking on how we should present Brand Wine South Africa, and the vocabulary we should use to project an image of quality” launched in 2009 just as SA wine exports blew up.

Still producers will be pleased to see WOSA devoting scarce resources from their R35 million honey pot to publicizing the bombshell that CEO, Su Birch, was recently fingered as one of the top 30 most influential wine personalities by a UK marketing company Wine Intelligence that probably hopes to attract WOSA as a client, if they are not one already.

Perhaps they were involved in DNA SA?  Be that as it may, we’ll certainly be watching for the usual quid pro quos: business class tickets to Cape Wine 2012 including attendance at WOSA’s R1 million bash that will raise the green coloured  velvet curtain on the controversial tasting from which the wine-drinking SA public is excluded.

This vinous DNA is much more fun than anything from WOSA.  It comes from the tricky 2006 vintage and tasted quite Bordeaux-like.  Although when an MW in the 2012 edition of the Platter sighted wine guide called Lace from Almenkerk a Bordeaux blend when its largest component is Shiraz, this could mean anything at all!

It is competitively priced at a new restaurant which opened without media fanfare on 3 February.  Interior design is by Christo Barnard who is responsible for the new all-singing, all-dancing La Motte that is the talk of Franschhoek.  My lips are sealed until later this month as to the identity of the venue, but suffice to say, try the crème brûlée and if it’s the best you’ve tasted in the Cape, you’re probably at the right address.