Kanonkop was judged South Africa’s champion Bordeaux Blend cellar at the Calyon Trophy 2008. Winemaker Abrie Beeslaar was awarded the Calyon Trophy for the Paul Sauer 2004 at a gala dinner on 6 March in Johannesburg. Duncan Woods received the gold medal award on behalf of winemaker Louis Strydom for the Ernie Els 2004 – the first runner-up, while the silver medal was awarded to second runner-up Julian Johnsen of Bowwood Mountain Vineyards for the Bowwood Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2004. In 2005, the Kanonkop Paul Sauer 1999 won the silver award at the inaugural judging.
The fourth Calyon Trophy Bordeaux Blend Challenge was held at the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg on 4 March. A panel of experts tasted 87 entries from 61 producers with vintages ranging from 2006 to 2001. Results were audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The Trophy winner receives R10 000 cash from Calyon and an air ticket for travel to Bordeaux – home of some of the world’s top red wine producers and the place of origin of the famous Blend.
The other seven wines making the Top Ten were (in alphabetical order):
Dombeya Samara 2005; Eikendal Classique 2004; Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2003; Klein Constantia Marlbrook 2006; Môreson Magia 2003; Saronsberg Seismic 2005 and Stellenrust Timeless 2004.
Competition sponsor Calyon Crédit Agricole CIB operates in capital markets, structured finance, corporate banking and finance with South African and French corporates, parastatals, multinationals and financial institutions. In line with its commitment to empowerment, Calyon will donate the competition’s entry fees, matched by an equal sum of its own, to a bursary fund for students wishing to advance their studies in the wine business. Two students of the University of Cape Town's Graduate School of Business Wine Business Course, Zanele Xaba and Gerard Martin, were the 2007 beneficiaries of the bursary worth R50 000. The programme is a joint venture with the University of Adelaide in Australia and offers its students the opportunity of studying at two world-class institutions.
Calyon Crédit Agricole CIB has produced bottle stickers for the Trophy, Gold and Silver winners, as well as “Top Ten” stickers for the runners up. Said Serge de Beaufort, Senior Country Officer of the Bank:” We share with the wine industry the same values of excellence, dynamism and creativity – that is why we are proud to sponsor such a competition.”
The panel was chaired by leading wine authority Michael Fridjhon, and comprised: Yegas Naidoo, international wine judge from KZN; Carrie Adams, partner and wine buyer at Norman Goodfellows; Tim James, editor of independent web publication Grape; Christian Eedes, editor of WINE magazine South Africa; Howard Booysen, distinction graduate of the Wine Tasting Academy and Cape Winemakers Guild 2007 Protégé ; and Carolyn Barton, wine buyer for Makro. All competition entries comprised a blend of at least two of the Bordeaux varietals exclusively, i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot.
In support of the initiative to train up South African wine judges, two associate judges were included in the first round of judging, namely Catherine Rebel of Makro Liquor Division and Thato Goimane, sommelier and assistant manager of Sandton restaurant, Auberge Michel.
Show Chairman Michael Fridjhon commented on the high standard of the entries. "Almost all of the country’s top red wine producers entered their Bordeaux-style blends. Vintages currently in the trade range from the still very youthful 2006s to the now fully mature 2001s - with most of the wines coming from the highly reputed 2003s, 2004s and 2005s. As a result the judges were treated to a splendid array of wines and were left with the impression that this may be one of South Africa's best performing categories."
Tim James commented: “I was pleased again that there are so many South African wines of this genre that are still aiming at a level of profundity and showing the need for a bit of bottle-ageing, rather than trying for a facile fruity charm."
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