Remember the flash mob phenomenon? Described as a group of people assembling suddenly in a place to perform an unusual and seemingly pointless act for a brief time before dispersing, the flash mob’s purpose ranges from entertainment, via satire to ‘just-for-the-heck-of-it.

A couple of events I’ve attended recently brought to mind a flash mob, with Twitter being the ‘place’ where the groups have gathered, bombarded and departed. Both were great fun and the use of Twitter was entirely appropriate; as Twitterese puts it, both trended, the events themselves very trendy. If both can do with a bit of tweaking, I can see much more of the same in future, especially as they hold appeal for wine novices of any age, who like their wine with some fun attached, rather than the boring geeky stuff.

The Box Wine Awards is the brainchild of Anel Grobler and Jan Laubscher; this year’s third edition rocked with Freddie Mercury look-alikes (some women as well as men!) with moustaches too (Movember was a help to the genuine hairy upper lip!). Logically, the event was held at Mercury night club with a loop-de-loop video of a live Freddie Mercury concert.

While guests had gone to some trouble to dress in character (see Facebook photos here), Grobler and Laubscher also ensured appropriate attire for each of the 33 boxes (and one pouch), i.e. a plain black covering to allow for totally objective judging.

Grabbing smart phones or iPads, a small tasting tumbler with a glow stick (no, I’m not sure what that was for either, but then I left before the lights went out), and logging into Twitter, everyone found an extra hand to twist open the tap, or with more difficulty press the knob, of the 33 boxes lined up for inspection.

Actually, no one was expected to taste them all; a coloured sticker on the list of instructions handed out indicated which seven or eight boxes each individual should concentrate on. Voting was completed by entering the Twitter handle @boxwineawards followed by the box number and a rating out of 10. Somewhere down the line the scores of all 100 odd guests were calculated and the results announced.

Many tasted more than the few assigned to us. I nobly worked through all for interest’s sake, though scored only my allotted number, a cinch as far as my judging history goes.

It was indeed an informative exercise, as I rarely drink box wine. Like others, I was pleasantly surprised by the white wines; the winner, Du Toitskloof Winery’s Chenin Blanc 2012, is exactly the same delicious juice as in the 750ml bottle. If others weren’t quite so fruity, there was far less raw acid or cloying sweetness than I remember used to describe the contents of boxes. Reds were a mixed bunch, some dire, a few pleasant, with the winning red, Robertson Shiraz setting an example of drinkability to the rest. The full results are here

No prizes, no entry fee for the wineries, just the kudos of winning and, hopefully enticing the wine drinkers present to buy box wine that defies previous perceptions. Bring on Box Wine Awards 2013.