"We are privileged to have John and Erica, the founders of and visionaries behind the successful Platter's wine guide," commented founder of the Cape Wine Auction, Mike Ratcliffe of Warwick Estate.
This global showcase of South African wines is committed to changing people's lives through the powerful tool of education. Charity beneficiaries to date include the Pebbles Project, the MAD Charity, the Click Foundation as well as 10 other charities, all of which are focused on education in the winelands from many different angles: from infant development through to technological innovation, the provision of a leadership academy and tertiary educational endowments.
The Cape Wine Auction Trust, established in 2014 with a clear mandate to raise funds for education in the winelands, is made up of a board of five individuals who bring a broad spectrum of business experience to the Trust. Michael Jordaan, Ken Kinsey-Quick, Wendy Appelbaum, Siobhan Thompson and Michael Ratcliffe are all experts in their own field and are united by a common philanthropic goal. Their mandate is to ensure that all funds raised by the auction are made available in their entirety for charitable purposes, without offset or deduction, before the next auction. They guide the allocation and the channelling of funds, maintaining complete transparency in all of the procedures within the mandate provided to the Trustees in the Trust Deed.
After each auction, a comprehensive report on the allocation of the funds to various charitable organisations is released. The Trustees thoroughly deliberate the merits of each beneficiary, the respective charities submit proposals for consideration by the Trustees, and funds are allocated, based on maximum impact, to charities that have shown that they are sustainable, properly managed and audited and that their administrative costs are in order. Follow ups are conducted by the Trustees to ensure that the money is well utilised in the manner for which it is intended, and to develop long-term partnerships with the selected charities and grow with them over time.
This event launches on the evening of Friday 13 February 2015 with a 'Barrel Tasting & Auction Preview' and has the auction at lunch the following day. Iconic South African winemakers and celebrity chefs are invited as hosts to make a difference when the bidding opens to prominent wine aficionados from around the globe.
AfrAsia Bank is back as the headline sponsor of the Auction, Iain Banner is again the lead auctioneer and PricewaterhouseCoopers is the international auction partner of The AfrAsia Bank Cape Wine Auction Trust.
There are only 300 tickets to the auction available on the website, therefore online bidding is the key to the auction. The 35 auction lots can be viewed at the website www.thecapewineauction.com and the 2015 Auction catalogue will shortly be available in print and for download from the website.
