My Introduction to you.

My journey into the wine world started some 15 years ago when the industry was booming, I was included in a venture and had the opportunity to uproot my entire family and move to Cape Town to bottle wines on the many Estates the wine lands had to offer. It was the biggest eye opener as i had never really ventured out of KZN.

Having the opportunity for a fresh start in life I jumped at the challenge and before long I was standing behind a bottling machine trying to make sense of this volatile product they call wine. The high point for me was the fact that i was never in the same place for too long. Most Estates rarely book mobile bottling for more than a week at a time which meant I was being exposed to three sometimes even four or five a week, different places,different faces, who could get bored of that? Before long and many questions later i was starting to understand wine and the complexity of trying to get the same quality product from the cellar into the bottle, For this I am eternally grateful to some of the most awesome personalities in the wine industry, no need to mention names, they know who they are, for those who don't, If I have ever provided a service to you then you fall in that category.

Six years later i had started to develop a deep love for the SA wine industry, I found myself buried in wine books, I wanted to understand my new found passion,and was rather disappointed that the only people I could share it with was those working with wine or in the marketing thereof, the general population just seemed to be switched off the minute you mentioned anything other than it tasted good, If i mentioned anything elitist when describing a wine it was followed by this blank look and the typical SA phrase "JA RIGHT" and I soon learnt that's why so many South Africans prefer a relaxing lubricant that they understand and enjoy without having a chemistry degree to understand what a wine smells and tastes like,my opinion is lets leave that to the winemakers and people working with wine, If you eat a cookie from Woolies you don't sit and discuss its complexity with your neighbor over afternoon tea, You say it tastes good, why should wine be any different? Dont get me wrong, wine terminology is a must for those crafting wines as its a natural product that is based on chemistry, I just believe that's where it should stay, it has no ground in the market place.

To back my theory look at one of the most effective media campaigns in post democracy,this campaign immortalized its brand with the simple, diverse and easy to understand phrase "MET EISH", I don't think there is a South African who doesn't understand it, it fits in with our culture, people can relate to it! I bet my bottom dollar or overtaxed Rand, whichever you prefer, that if it was something technical or elitist it would have never been as effective, to me this makes a whole lot of sense.

This is why i started networking with wine minded people, my facebook wine group (The Wine World Network) grew to 3250 members in 7 short months confirming a general interest in wine on a elementary level, I was trying to find a way to effectively market South African wines to South Africans and even those deprived taste buds overseas without driving them away with the snobbishness so often perceived as part and parcel of our beautiful wine culture,Wine is part of our culture, Our History is based on the vine,I believe that every South African should embrace it, discover a sense of pride, for it belongs to OUR country, these my glass tipping friends are our wines. Join me as we move from one Wine estate to another and discover the shear beauty that lies withing the Western Cape Wine Industry and the personalities that bring SA wines to life.

Peter.