Does Gerard Holden, owner of Holden-Manz (along with art dealer Migo Manz) have a French Connection?  His juicy Big G Cabernet from Franschhoek has a steely, svelte companion called Le G (de Château Guiraud, one of the local estates here in Bordeaux).  I was enjoying it at a braii thrown by Planète Bordeaux which seems to be a French version of WOSA – an organization dedicated to oysters, sea snails, sushi, cheeses and tasty cocktail sausages washed down with some Bordeaux wines – plenty of them.  I wonder if Bordeaux has considered a braii boek as marketing tool?  Probably not, as with wines of the quality on offer last night, there is no need to distract the public with red herrings on the coals.

Le G

Our reception ended an enjoyable and informative workshop on Sauvignon Blanc animated by David Cobbold, who in addition to making sensible comments about the wines being showcased, is a translator of note switching effortlessly between French and English.  A handy man to have in this Tower of Babel called Europe.

UCT may wish to consider offering a sabbatical to researcher Axel (shown below) who presented the first wine of the workshop, the 2010 Château Reynon made by Denis Dubordieu who is something of a Sauvignon Sage in these parts.  Not only is Axel far more presentable that their own wine academic Tim James, he knows what he is talking about, performs well in public, has great teeth and even wears shoes.  What more do you need in a wine academic?

Bordeaux wine academic Axel