Three-day wine show kicks off at Stadium today

By Louise Liebenberg

ONE of the country’s biggest wine shows is heading south today (Friday) in the form of an interactive road show at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. According to show director John Woodward, the three-day wine extravaganza is returning to Port Elizabeth thanks to the “overwhelmingly positive” response from both visitors and exhibitors when it was held here for the first time last year.

The Wine Show has become a highly successful event in Johannesburg, where it has been staged for the past six years. But the smaller Port Elizabeth version – known as the Wine Show Road Show Nelson Mandela Bay – surprised organisers and exhibitors alike with sales significantly outstripping that of the largest wine show in Cape Town in December last year.

“We had more than 2000 Eastern Cape visitors and the exhibitors achieved sales of more than R300000 – nearly 70% higher than sales reported by WineX in Cape Town last year,” said Woodward. “These are really impressive figures for a new show and proved to us the Eastern Cape was starved for attention from wine marketers.

“The show statistics also revealed Eastern Cape audiences were also eager to experiment with and taste new wines.”

This year’s show takes place from today (Friday) to Sunday, June 10 to 12, and will see nearly 50 of South Africa’s leading estates – representing every major wine-producing region in the country – showing off their vintages.

Winemakers and representatives from the various estates will also present free tutored tasting sessions throughout the weekend. Visitors may also buy wines at the venue. The show will feature wine producers ranging from boutique wineries to some of South Africa’s biggest estates and co-operatives.

Exhibitors will be located on both levels of the stadium’s World of Windows. Access Management, which operates the stadium, will provide catering, including sushi, on the top level and at the inner-bowl food court. Simonsberg will also have cheeses to taste and buy.

The show is backed by Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism and is open from 5-9pm today (Friday), noon to 9pm on Saturday and noon to 4pm on Sunday. Tickets are available from Computicket at R90 per person or at the door. Weekend passes cost R150 per person and special group rates of R80 per person apply for bookings of 10 or more people. All minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Access’s  marketing head  Buli Ngomane said secure parking next to the North End Lake could be accessed from the entrance at the corner of Fettes Road and the lake, next to the Boat Club. The cost is R15 per day.