On Saturday 31st of August 2013 the inaugural South African Wine Tasting Championships took place at the Hilton Cape Town City Centre. This contest is the very first event in South Africa aimed at putting the wine lover in the lime light.

Open to all, amateurs and professionals, the championship tested the ability of the participant to recognize wines they had been exposed to in a previous sighted tasting. Creation, Slaley, Steenberg, Jordan, Signal Hill, Stellenbosch Vineyards, Marianne and Spice Route presented their respective ranges to the contestants who had to then recognize a limited selection in the blind challenge arena, where wines were re-served in anonymous decanters.

Out of the 204 contestants who actually returned their examination papers when leaving the Blind Tasting Arena, the best 50 will receive their certificates, validating their ability to trust in their palate. The Top 10 tasters will constitute Team South Africa. This team will train together, and 4 representatives will be sent to the World Championships, taking place in France on the 12th of October 2013.

Based on the availability of each Team South Africa member for the trip, and the compliance with regulations, the best four tasters will fly our national colors at the World Championship. It will be the first time that a South African team takes part in the event.

Demystifying wine tasting, opening the wine world to all wine lovers, empowering a new generation of South African wine fans, these are the goals the SAWTC is aiming at. This new yearly event is intended to make wine tasting popular and promote wine education, not only among the wine geeks, but to a larger public across all communities.

THE TOP TEN TASTERS FOR THE 2013 SOUTH AFRICAN WINE TASTING CHAMPIONSHIP ARE:

By alphabetical order.
Bernard CLASSEN
Lauren COHEN
Tawanda MARUME #
Ryan MOSTERT #
Khuselo MPUTA – Preselection for Team South Africa
Roland PEENS – Preselection for Team South Africa
Stephan STEYN
Chantelle SWANEPOEL – Preselection for Team South Africa
Anton SWARTS – First replacement
Gavin WHITTAKER # – Preselection for Team South Africa

(# means non SA Citizen, so only one can be part of Team South Africa going to the World Championship)