NEWS     JANUARY 2008

TastingBuddy, the wine list company, has joined forces with Brintex, organisers of the London International Wine Fair (LIWF), to provide an eCatalogue for the 2008 show. With an estimated 30,000 wines expected at this year's LIWF, 'The List' will enable show visitors to plan, search and select wines to taste from the entire catalogue of exhibiting companies as part of their preparation.

An invitation is extended to all wine producers in South Africa to submit their wines for judging in the 2nd edition of the Women and Wines of the World International Competition.

A carbon footprint calculator which works out the effect of emissions from waste management, fuel use, refrigeration and other winery operations is being tested.

As harvest 2008 slips into gear, Kim Maxwell does a headcount of recent cellar hops.

The wine industry as a whole has not yet arrived at perfect closure but what seems evident is that there will no longer be a single closure. Wineries producing more than one varietal wine or wines from multiple appellations will be able to choose a closure that controls the wine's best development and expression in the bottle.

The figures on table wine consumption, researched by the German Viticultural Association on behalf of the German Wine Institute, show 16.9 million hectolitres of domestic and imported still wines were sold in Germany in the period August 2006 to July 2007.

Elsenburg graduate and aspirant winemaker Praisy Dlamini, has been chosen as the first woman to join the Protégé Programme of the Cape Winemakers Guild.

The Cape Winemakers Guild (CWG) representing South Africa's most respected winemakers, has announced its committee for 2008, with Johan Malan of Simonsig Estate, making his re-entry as an office bearer.