Since its establishment in 2006 under the auspices of the Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Trust, the Protégé Programme has mentored five aspiring winemakers.
“This year (2011) marks the 16th year of Nedbank’s sponsorship of the Cape Winemakers Guild. The length of our involvement with the Guild is evidence of the mutually successful relationship we have established over the years, and the establishment of the Protégé Programme has allowed us to also contribute towards the transformation of this industry,” said Kone Gugushe, Divisional Executive for Corporate Social Responsibility at Nedbank.
“This reinforces the bank's commitment to the South African agricultural sector and the wine industry in particular,” she added.
In addition to the donation from the Nedbank Foundation, the members of the Guild also raise funds through various silent and charity auctions at Guild events throughout the year. This year a special 18-litre bottle of 2009 Cape Winemakers Guild Auction Reserve, a blend of top wines from the members of the Guild, will go under the hammer in aid of the Protégé Programme at the 27th Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction at Spier on Saturday, 1 October 2011.
Wines made by the first two Protégés to graduate from the programme, Howard Booysen and Praisy Dlamini, are also bringing in vital funds for the programme. Two special collector’s packs comprising three bottles of Howard’s much lauded 2010 Weisser Riesling, and three bottles of Praisy’s 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon, which fetched a whopping R12 000 at a recent Guild charity auction in Johannesburg, will be on offer at the Silent Auction at the 2011 Guild Auction.
At a recent dinner showcasing this year’s Auction wines at Auberge du Lac at Brocket Hall, England, hosted by Paul Plant, a regular Guild Auction buyer from the UK, the grand sum of £3 000 was raised in aid of the Protégé Programme.
One of the goals of the Protégé Programme is to assist in bringing about transformation in the wine industry by cultivating, nurturing and empowering promising individuals to become winemakers of excellence. The CWG Protégés have the rare opportunity of learning the art of winemaking over a three year period from true masters of their craft who are all members of the Cape Winemakers Guild. Guild members are responsible for mentoring their protégés for a minimum of six months and providing them with essential hands-on skills and experience.
The three protégés who are currently in the programme are Sacha Claassen who works with Bernhard Veller at Nitida, Tamsyn Jeftha who is at Villiera with Jeff Grier and Elmarie Botes who is at Steenberg under the watchful eye of John Loubser. All three will in turn be making a substantial contribution towards the Protégé Programme when their wines, made during their mentorship, are sold at various Guild charity auctions.
In addition to supporting the Protégé Programme, the Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Development Trust is instrumental in providing finance for infrastructure projects at local schools, school tuition fees and study bursaries for potential protégé students.
The 27th Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction is open to the public and will beheld at the Spier Conference Centre in the Stellenbosch Winelands on Saturday, 1 October 2011. Prospective buyers who are unable to attend the auction on the day, can register in advance with the CWG and take advantage of their telephonic and proxy bidding facilities.
