Even though those of us who live and work in the Cape Winelands know that our industry and day-to-day living are very much about community and not glamour, the beauty of the countryside, the standard of our wine tourism offerings and the lifestyle of quality food and wine can cause a different perception.
And it is by creating beautiful Winelands experiences that we create revenue for the upliftment of our communities. This is one of the reasons why I am so passionate about wine tourism – creating another avenue of income and more opportunities for employment as well as skills development. It is also the reason why I am so excited to be an Ambassador of the Cape Wine Auction.
The Cape Wine Auction is South Africa’s annual charity wine auction and the opportunity to raise funds for education in the Winelands. The focus is on local education, while the benefiting charities are all about providing children of the Winelands with better opportunities and a brighter future.
The charities supported by the Auction therefore are involved with all aspects of education from infant development, through nutritional education all the way to the provision of a leadership academy and tertiary educational endowments. The charities involved are:
The Pebbles Project: The Pebbles purpose is to enrich the lives of children from disadvantaged backgrounds with special educational needs, through providing support and training to local wine farm and township créches and establishing after-school provision for older children living in the South African Winelands. www.pebblesproject.co.za
MAD CHARITY™ (Make A Difference): MAD CHARITY™ strives to give academically talented but economically disadvantaged youth in South Africa an opportunity to reach their full potential as leaders and role models by providing exceptional educational and related opportunities. In the words of former President Nelson Mandela: “Education is the most powerful weapon which can be used to change the world.” www.madcharity.org
The Click Foundation: The Click Foundation is an educational skunkworks set up as a response to the educational crisis in South Africa. Their aim is to innovate and test non-conventional, out of the box, technology-based solutions that have potential to scale and meaningfully impact education for individuals. www.clickfoundation.co.za
This highlight on the Cape Winelands’ calendar kicks off on Friday morning, 14 March with the auction of lots consisting of exclusive wine experiences taking place on Saturday, 15 March.
The Auction lots as per the Cape Wine Auction website consist of: “Special wines not available to the public, winery experiences and personal interactions with top chefs and winemakers in incredible locations. Ever wanted to buy a barrel from your favourite winery and follow its maturation through to bottling? Ever wanted a top chef and winemaker to partner for a dinner party in your home? How about a personally curated wine tour of iconic wineries and restaurants with a group of friends? Have you ever wanted access to the Napa Valley Wine Auction or Hospice du Beaune?”
The glamorous lunchtime auction event has been sold out to an international audience but you are still invited to bid online. Visit the online auction site to place your bid for some of the best collections of wines and exclusive and otherwise inaccessible wine experiences. In this way you can contribute to the upliftment of our communities as well as the development of human potential in the Cape Winelands. Download the Auction Catalogue.
Our lot for the Auction:
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- An amazing tasting of some of the world’s finest Shiraz
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- A private dinner with Francois Pienaar and myself
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- An astounding collection of six magnums of 2007 Hanneli R, signed by Hanneli Rupert-Koegelenberg