Their names were announced at the virtual AGM of the Institute of Cape Wine Masters (ICWM) on Saturday, 29 May. They are Gavin Whittaker, export manager for Asia & Middle East markets of Van Loveren, Rene Groenewald, product developer for Woolworths Dairy, and Lieza van der Merwe of Merwida Family Wines, formerly winemaker and currently manager of the tasting facility and marketing.
The dissertations of the three new CWMs cover topical issues affecting the South African wine industry. Gavin Whittaker’s dissertation is on the availability, choices and production methods of no alcohol and lower alcohol (NOLO) wines in South Africa and whether there is a market for them. Rene Groenewald’s paper looked at environmental sustainability in the South African wine industry, while Lieza van der Merwe tackled drought, and how the extreme climatic conditions of the years 2015-2018 have affected the South African wine industry.
Dissertations will be available in full on the websites of the CWA, www.capewineacademy.co.za and the Institute of Cape Wine Masters www.icwm.co.za on 1 July 2021. Bound copies will be available from the CWA library from 1 September 2021.
According to ICWM chairperson Jacques Steyn, general manager at Jordan Wine Estate the diplomas will be handed to the new CWMs at a formal awards luncheon to be held in August this year.
A new exco of the Institute was elected at the AGM. Chairman Jacques Steyn continues his tenure since last year; the new secretary is Debi van Flymen, with Heidi Duminy as vice-chair and Educom representative and Tom Blok as treasurer. The Southern representative is Harry Melck and the Northern representative is Kristina Beuthner.
In 2003, the Cape Wine and Spirit Education Trust granted the Cape Wine Academy the right to award the Cape Wine Master (CWM) qualification and confer the Cape Wine Master’s title, in collaboration with the Institute of Cape Wine Masters.
More than 200 000 wine enthusiasts have attended the lectures and training programmes of this wine education and industry service (CWA) which was instituted as part of the Stellenbosch Farmers' Winery (SFW) Wine plan in 1979.