One of the shock decisions by the Government during the State of Disaster during the Corona Virus Lockdown has been to make it illegal to export South African wines, and to transport wines from wine estates to the ports, just nine days after exports were allowed, and despite the export of fresh fruit and other agricultural products being allowed. The export wine ban means a loss of R200 million per week to the wine industry, says industry body VinPro. Continue reading →
Despite a hugely challenging year for the wine industry due to the drought, CapeWine 2018 is an impressive showcase of optimism, friendliness, and proudly South Africaness, running at the Cape Town International Convention Centre until tomorrow. I attended yesterday, with my Parisian friend Aurelié Jullien, and we were both impressed with the magnitude and professionalism of the exhibition, held every three years, and attended by the local and international wine trade. Continue reading →
Yesterday I attended the launch of the new Flagstone Tasting Room in The Rockwell hotel in Green Point, a facility designed to capitalize on the tourists visiting Cape Town during the summer season.
Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines
* Lufthansa is now allowing unlimited use of electronics by its passengers.
* SAA has received delivery of six A320 aircraft this year, benefiting the airline on African routes and in being more environmentally friendly.
* TripAdvisor is once again under suspicion, with its China website causing concern about false reviews by prolific reviewers, a KwikChex analysis has found.
* French air traffic controllers are reported to be on a 24 hour strike tomorrow, affecting air traffic across Europe.
* Accolade Wines has redesigned the packaging of its Kumala brand, ‘most loved South African export Continue reading →