'What Food What Wine? SA' Attracting Leading Brands

Wednesday, 11 December, 2013
John Woodward
Without doubt the great and the good of wine marketing are agreed on one thing: matching good wine with great food is the key to increasing wine sales. So it’s no surprise then that many of SA’s leading names have been early entrants in the inaugural competition… and the entries haven’t closed yet!

Proudly brought to you by The IWSC Group and local wine marketing leaders TWS Media, this competition is without a doubt setting a new standard of wine judging.

As SA’s first (and only!) major food and wine matching competition, it differs from other wine competitions in that all wines are judged specifically and only on the suitability of the match. Judged true blind the only details the judges will know is whether a wine is retail priced under or over R100 – i.e. an everyday bottle or a special purchase.

With a selection of 12 dishes ranging from Bobotie to Skilpadjies via Milk Tart, producers are sure to find the right wines in their cellars to pair with these popular and easy to prepare dishes from the recipes designed by celebrity chef, Jenny Morris.

18 Highly respected judges form the formidable judging panel, including members of both wine and food media and professional organizations alike, including Allan Mullins, Olive Hamilton-Russell, Bertus Basson, Norman McFarlane, Winifred Bowman and Jorg Pfutzner to name but a few.

“What Food What Wine? is what we’ve all been waiting for – a competition which properly connects food and wine for the consumer”, says Allan Mullins, wine buyer for Woolworths and WFWW? SA Judge.

With the majority of wine being bought by the bottle, to be drunk within a few hours of purchase, it stands to reason that clear alignment and information on what food pairs best with your wines will encourage consumers to buy.

A comprehensive PR plan, fully interactive website, partnership with leading magazine WineExtra and beautiful Winners Kit’s designed by the IWSC Group all add up to this being perhaps the most sensible competition for producers to enter this year.

For more information and to enter What Food What Wine? South Africa, visit www.whatfoodwhatwine.co.za. Like the Facebook page www.facebook.com/WhatFoodWhatWineSouthAfrica and follow on Twitter @WhatFoodWine.