Judges
The judges are experts who are regularly exposed to all the wines from our districts.
The experienced panel initially taste blind to quality and then ranked in the finals when regional winners complete. The judging is done at Elsenburg Agricultural College led by Charl Theron.
“Because it’s all about terroir, the wines are judged according to quality combined with distinctive characteristics created by the soil and climate in the specific area. It was clear that the winemakers did a lot of work with these wines to portray their origin without sacrificing quality. Only the terrain and a dedicated viticulturist and winemaker can produce these results,” Charl Theron.
2011 panel of judges comprises of seven qualified local experts:
Charl Theron
Technical Coordinator
Lecturer US Tasting Course; part time tutor US Oenology.
Regular judge on various panels, including Wine and Spirit Board. First local presenter of accredited course in wine evaluation on the internet, on behalf of the University of Stellenbosch.
Erika Obermeyer
Qualified winemaker and judge on various panels, including Veritas Awards and Wine and Spirit Board. She was selected as the 2008 Landbou Weekblad South African Woman Winemaker of the Year.
Pierre Marais
For many years the cellar master of the Bergkelder, Distell´s maturation cellar and production cellar of reserve range wines and top range wines. Serves on various panels, including the Wine and Spirits Board for the evaluation of certified wines.
David Biggs
Wine writer, author of wine related books, taster for Platter’s SA Wines, Veritas Awards judge, qualified wine judge, founder member of the Wine of the Month Club tasting panel.
Dave Hughes
Honourary Cape Wine Master, Life Member of the International Wine and Food Society, International judge (including International Wine and Spirit Competition), a founder of the Cape Wine Academy and the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.
Andrea Freeborough
She is the cellarmaster of Die Bergkelder in Stellenbosch, including the Fleur du Cap range of white wines, red wines and dessert wines. She was selected as 2009 Landbou Weekblad South African Woman Winemaker of the Year.
Altus Le Roux
A 24 year long journey with Boland Kelder which lead to iconic status in the wine industry, as Managing Director and Cellar Master. His biggest achievement was the prestigious Robert Mondavi Trophy for International Winemaker of the Year awarded to him in 2001 at the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in London.
Guy Webber
Winemaker of Stellenzicht since 1998. During this time build up a name as one of South Africa´s top winemakers with several local and international awards. He has produced six Absa Top 10 Pinotage winners, of which four was consecutive winning entries from Stellenzicht.
