Taj Cape Town premieres an exclusive World of First Growths wine list
October 9, 2013,
Cape Town, South Africa
In a first for the South African hospitality
industry, last night saw the unveiling of the Taj-First Growths
Wine List – a series of wines considered to be the most sought-after in the
world that are now available for enjoyment by guests at Taj Cape Town.
Against
the backdrop of Table Mountain bronzed in the amber light of a setting sun,
estate owners and cellar masters from the cream-of-the-country’s-winemaking
crop, together with members of the media, gathered on the roof terrace of the
Taj Cape Town’s famous Presidential Suite to be welcomed to the auspicious
occasion by the hotel’s GM, Michael Pownall, Malene Meisner and Rene Dehn of the White
Club, and Waterford Estate’s Kevin Arnold.
In his
address, Pownall confirmed the exclusivity of the collaboration between the Taj
and The World of First Growths: “This bespoke list comprises access to 36 of
the top performing wines from the best wine-producing countries on the planet,
which makes the Taj Cape Town one of the only locations in the country where
they can be publically enjoyed.”
Dehn, who
is The World of First Growths Ambassador, expressed his organisation’s support
of the local wine industry. “South African wines are highly underrated on a
global platform,” he said. “The wines being produced in this country can more
than hold their own against the very best in the world.”
Speaking
via live satellite link from Switzerland, The White Club’s CEO Malene Meisner
confirmed Dehn’s views: “The launch of this special wine list will allow local
and foreign visitors the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to enjoy these very rare
and special wines, professionally served and in the correct conditions. As such
Taj guests will go onto become dedicated ambassadors for South African wine
around the world.”
Arnold,
meanwhile, urged those assembled from the winemaking fraternity to embrace the
challenge set by The White Club: “By benchmarking South Africa against the very
best in the world, The White Club is encouraging us to band together to promote
our country’s wines, not at local level, but on a global stage.”
Adding that “there is no greater challenge than what is
in the glass”, Arnold then urged guests to enter the designated tasting room in
order to “allow the wines to speak for themselves.” Here, under the expert
guidance of the Taj’s Head Sommelier, Tatiana Marcetteau, they were given
the privilege of tasting a selection of the extraordinary wines on the new
list, among them the immensely covetable Château Haut Brion, Chateau Lafleur and Chateau
Leoville Las Cases.
Written
by hand and bound in white leather, the
Taj-First Growths Wine List is presented separately to the hotel’s regular
wine offering and includes full pedigree and tasting notes of each vintage. “These
wines are so scarce that many consumers will never have the chance to ever
taste them,’ said Dehn. ‘Now, at Taj Cape Town, guests have the unique
opportunity to try not only the very best in South African wine, but to compare
these with a unique selection of offerings from the globe’s most iconic
estates.”
ends
About The
World of First Growths
A series of the most coveted vintages from the globe’s
top wine-producing countries, The World of First Growths is an initiative of
international members-only wine society, The White Club. Although traditionally
used when referring to a classification of wines from the Bordeaux region of
France, the term “first growth” (“premier cru”) here refers to a collection of
wines of unparalleled quality, the blue-chip stocks of the wine world, meticulously
chosen by an independent a panel of wine professionals, sommeliers, hotel
directors, media experts and local consumers through a series of blind
tastings.
Compiled under the guidance of Malene Meisner of The
White Club, the First Growths collection includes 42 wines – six each from
France, Italy, Spain, Australia, the United States and South Africa, with the
only exception being Bordeaux, where six from both Left Bank and Right Bank
have been selected="true"="true" – plus two stand-alone sweet wines, the outstanding Château
d’Yquem from Sauternes and South Africa’s award-winning Vin de Constance. Only
wines whose origins are 100-percent traceable and where consistent quality is
guaranteed feature on the list. ?
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