SA Terroir Wines Being Judged This Week

The SA Terroir Wine Awards, now in its 21st year, have firmly established it as a very unique wine competition in South Africa and the judging is being done this week (23 June to 26 June) at the SA National Wine Show tasting venue in Paarl.

Six trophies are at stake, namely for overall Top Wine, Top Estate, Top Single-vineyard Wine, Top Heritage Vineyard (Old Vine), Top Producer and Top Ward. In addition, national winners of all the cultivars and styles entered for this year’s Terroir Awards will be named.

This growing and thriving competition, where wines deriving from grapes in specific wine terrains are judged – hence the term “terroir wine awards” – represents something special for the Cape winelands and for wine lovers with a passion for the country’s excellent and diverse terrains.

Only wines certified as single-vineyard wine, estate-produced wine and wine from a ward or district not divided into more than one ward, are judged.

The SA Terroir Wine Awards are presented in collaboration with the financial partners SA Litho and WinField United SA, while the OntbytSAKE programme on KykNET acts as a media partner.

As industry leaders with over 120 years’ expertise, SA Litho Label Printers seamlessly combines advanced technology with unparalleled knowledge to deliver top-tier packaging solutions. “Partnering with the SA Terroir Wine Awards demonstrates our shared commitment to celebrating authenticity, craftsmanship, and the unique character of South African wine,” says Dawrian Salies, general manager of SA Litho Label Printers.

WinField United SA provides innovative solutions and is involved with projects that help drive advancement and progress in agriculture. WUSA CEO Jan Vermaak says, “Our partnership with the SA Terroir Wine Awards reflects our commitment to supporting excellence in South African agriculture. It is important for us to be involved in celebrating wines that express a true sense of place, recognising the journey from the vineyard to the final product in the bottle, and the people who make it possible.”

With regards to OntbytSAKE as media partner, Louis Mclaren, owner and executive producer, says, “We continue to champion the finest in South African wine, giving top-performing estates and winemakers the national spotlight they deserve. Celebrating excellence is not just a value – it’s our passion.” Winning wine producers, including new entrants in South Africa, will be given airtime exposure on OntbytSAKE on kykNET. The Terroir Wine Awards embody a standard of excellence that OntbytSAKE is proud to share with audiences across the country.

The judging panel comprises five Cape Wine Masters: Jeff Grier, Wine Consultant; (Chairperson): Conrad Louw, regular lecturer at the Cape Wine Academy and judge at wine competitions; Lieza van den Heever, Marketing Manager at Merwida; Anton Swarts, senior winemaker and wine purchasing manager at Spier and Janine van Zyl, a qualified sommelier.

The results and winners will be announced at a luncheon on 12 August at the Lanzerac Hotel and Spa and will be televised on OntbytSAKE shortly afterwards on channels 144 and 145.