Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*     South Africa has two of CNN Travel Top 10 golf courses in Africa:  The Gary Player Country Club at Sun City, and the Fancourt Links course.

*   All Gold is South African’s best loved brand, and the top 10 brand list includes nine FMCG household brands and the Clicks Club Card.   No beverages other than Coca Cola feature on the Top 10 list, and no wine nor beer brands feature on the Top 30 list, in a study conducted about 8000 brands amongst 15000 South Africans.

*    Durbanville Hills is offering a tasting on 22 August of Sauvignon Blancs and Merlots, from Durbanville Hills, Chile, France, New Zealand and Australia,  led by cellar master Martin Moore.  The tasting will be followed by a Thai green curry dinner. (via De Kock Communications)

*   Madame Zingara’s ‘The Miracle Tour’ is extending its run in the V&A Waterfront to include the rest of winter, the company has announced by e-mail today.

*   The Table Mountain Cableway annual maintenance, which commenced yesterday, will take five weeks instead of the usual two.  The Table Mountain Cableway will be closed for an extended period, from Monday 22 July to Sunday 25 August, while undergoing maintenance with seven highly skilled experts flying in from Switzerland.  ‘The Cableway is required to do annual maintenance to meet the highest global cableway standards set by the Swiss Governing Body for Cableways (BAV). However, the usual two-week closure has been extended to five weeks as the main DC (direct current) drive will be replaced by an AC (alternating current) drive. In addition, the mechanism that moves the cable car up and down the track ropes, will undergo a six-yearly overhaul, and the heel rope will be replaced‘, says the website of the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway Company.

*   Rijk’s has launched its maiden vintage of Shiraz Reserve 2009, and its 2009 Reserve Pinotage vintage. (via e-mail from the wine estate)

*    The Nedbank Green Wine Awards has added two guest wine bloggers Maggie Mostert of Batonage Blog and Clayton Howard of I ♥ My Wine  joining the judging panel of  Chairman Fiona McDonald,  and panelists Christian Eedes , Francois Rautenbach,  Howard Booysen, and Greg Garden of Nedbank.  Results will be announced on 17 October. Once the winners have been announced, wine lovers will be able to buy the winning wines at www.greenwineawards.com and have these delivered to their door via Cybercellar.   They will also be showcased at selected Checkers outlets.  The Nedbank Green Wine Awards were launched five years ago,  Nedbank being the natural partner for the awards because of its ongoing involvement with conservation projects, including supporting the Biodiversity & Wine Initiative (BWI) through the WWF-Nedbank Green Trust.  Judging is in three categories: best wine from organically grown grapes, best BWI wines, and best environmental practices. In the first two categories, producers are asked to submit wines that are either part of the BWI or made from organically grown grapes. The wines are  tasted blind by the panel.

The objective of the third category is to recognise the effort being made by South African wineries to farm with a view to long-term environmental sustainability. Producers are asked to provide comprehensive details on farming practices, which are judged according to guidelines set out by the Integrated Production of Wine (South Africa’s internationally recognised voluntary sustainability scheme, established in 1998) and the Biodiversity & Wine Initiative.  This category will be judged by Daniel Schietekat of IPW, Getaway editor Cameron Ewart-Smith, and Cape Winemaster Duimpie Bayly.  The winners will be published in the Nedbank Green Wine Awards Guide, inserted in the November issue of Getaway. (via Ramsay Media media release).

*   Zomato, an international restaurant booking app, was launched in Cape Town yesterday.  It highlights the closest restaurants, shows an average user rating out of 5, and lists reviews, shows the menu, provides directions and photographs.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com   Twitter: @WhaleCottage