The first, entitled 'Regional Diversity: South Africa', led by master sommeliers Wayne Belding and John Blazon, exemplified South Africa's unique terroir followed by 'Varietal Focus: Chenin Blanc', led by master sommeliers Andrew McNamara and Melissa Monosoff.
The wines included producers such as Ken Forrester, Raats Family Wines, Mulderbosch, Indaba, De Morgenzon and Kanu.
"We received praise on the approach (not to mention the wines), as it allowed the sommeliers to try a myriad of styles from crisp and clean, stainless steel fermented offerings, to rich oak-aged bottlings on to noble late harvest dessert selections. Most importantly for Texsom, Chenin Blanc plays well with food, which is key for this audience of tastemakers," said Molly Choi, Cape Classics senior VP.
Despite the fact Chenin Blanc is South Africa's most widely planted varietal and available nationally in the US, it has remained in the shadows of other varietals and struggled to gain recognition as a standard offering. "As we work towards making Chenin Blanc a household staple asked for by name, as are Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay, we felt this successful showing helped us along that road.
"The conference ended with a sense of collective enthusiasm for South African wine, and Chenin Blanc in particular. We could not have asked for more from this group of influencers," concluded Choi.
