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Best Gin of Show for Imagin Classic
RUSTIC: The 2023 results of annual The Trophy Spirits Show, sponsored by Investec, were announced in Johannesburg on Wednesday night. As in previous years, spirits vying for the awards came in from producers in places as far afield as the USA, England, Scandinavia, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Sri Lanka, the sun-washed islands of the Caribbean, the highlands of Scotland, the deserts of Mexico, the villages of Cognac and so on. Included among these exotics were at least 50 different brandies, liqueurs, whiskies and gins from the Cape and Gauteng.
TROPHY WINNERS
* Trophy for Best Cognac
* Vinolok Trophy for Best Premium Spirit
* Investec Trophy for Best Brandy of Show
Martell XO Cognac
* Investec Trophy for Best Distilled Gin
* Riedel Trophy for Best Gin of Show
Imagin Classic Gin
* Investec Trophy for Best Malt Whisky
* Investec Trophy for Best Whisky of Show
Aberlour Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky 18 Years Old – Double Sherry Cask Finish
* Investec Trophy for Best London Gin
Gordon’s Special London Dry Gin
* Investec Trophy for Best Blended Whisky
Johnnie Walker Blended Scotch Whisky Aged 18 Years
* Investec Trophy for Best Single Pot Still Whisk(e)y
Redbreast Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey Aged 12 Years
* Trophy for Best Pot-distilled Brandy
Van Ryn’s Single Potstill Brandy Aged 12 Years
* Trophy for Best Grain Whisky
Bain’s Cape Mountain Single Grain Whisky
* Trophy for Best Rum of Show
Red Heart Original Imported Rum
* Trophy for Best Tequila of Show
Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal Chichicapa
GROOT CONSTANTIA PAYS HOMAGE TO 17TH CENTURY ROOTS
LONGEVITY: SA’s oldest wine-producing farm celebrates 338 years of history-laden existence…
By WSAM Reporter
July 13 marks the 338th birthday of South Africa’s oldest wine-producing farm Groot Constantia, which has an uninterrupted record of producing wine since 1685.
Groot Constantia was founded on July 13 1685 by Simon van der Stel, the then Governor of the Cape, and since then became one of the country’s most iconic wine farms. No stranger to accolades, it has garnered local and international awards as far back as 1855. To mark this birthday milestone, Groot Constantia is celebrating by opening the Vintage Vault on the estate to make a limited amount of their famous and collectable wines available to taste and purchase.
In addition, from July 13 to the end of August, Groot Constantia is rolling out a unique Vintage Vault Experience on the Estate that will see guests treated to an exclusive tasting of these coveted wines in the alcoves of the historical Manor House – an experience never offered to the public before.
Among the Vintage Vault’s rare treasures is a bottle of Groot Constantia’s iconic Grand Constance wine produced in 1821 (the oldest bottle stored) produced and bottled in the famous Cloete Cellar; JP Cloete’s Pontac wine, which achieved acclaim at the International Exhibition in Paris in 1855; as well as a few bottles of wine that were originally produced for the Duke of Northumberland.
One of the oldest surviving trademarks in the world, the estate’s wines have been favoured and sought out over the centuries by dignitaries such as Louis Philippe (King of the French); Frederick the Great of Prussia; the French military commander and political leader, Napoleon; British noble, The Duke of Northumberland; German statesman and diplomat, Otto von Bismarck; and British monarch, King George V of England. To add to its notability, Charles Dickens celebrated Groot Constantia’s sweet wines in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Jane Austen’s character recommended it as a cure for a broken heart to heroine Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility and Charles Baudelaire compared Constantia wine to his lover’s lips in his most famous volume of poems, Les Fleurs du Mal.
