Rust en Vrede History

The 'Trophy White' award was won by Fleur du Cap for their 'Sauvignon Blanc Unfiltered Limited Release 2005'. Winemaker Kobus
Gerber recieves the trophy from Winemakers Choice general manager, Robyn Toombs.

The second edition of the annual Winemakers' Choice awards was responsible for a couple of surprising selections by the men and women who make the industry tick.

According to the awards co-ordinator Robyn Toombs, the selection by the panel of winemakers came as an unexpected surprise. "The aim of the competition is to show a true reflection of wine perfection judged by a panel of industry peers in a blind tasting that adds enormous credibility to this unique awards system. It has already created great interest and excitement in the wine industry and the format of the competition arguably delivers the most accurate and unbiased assessment of South African wines," mentions Toombs.

Ettienne Malan of Rust en Vrede recieves the "Trophy Red" from Robyn Toombs, Winemakers Choice general manager for their 'Estate 2003'.

25 Top South African wine makers were invited to join the panels, which were divided in teams of five. The winemaker judged to be most expert in the respective category convened each panel. With this year's entries on a par with 2005, and judges who were not as lenient as previously, in the 18 categories only 25 wines received the prestigious Diamond Award. In an industry where small boutique wineries and single varietals have been receiving much critical acclaim and accolades, the results are due to cause quite a shake-up with the top awards being awarded to the bigger volume cellars. Simonsig came out at the top of the log with the title of Best Producer with five Diamond Awards, while industry giant Distell's Fleur du Cap Sauvignon Blanc Unfiltered Limited release 2005 was awarded the Trophy White Wine award. Rust and Vrede continued their stellar reputation as top red wine producer when they walked off with the title for Trophy Red Wine for the Rust and Vrede Estate 2003. Other wineries which received the nod from the judges included Clos Malverne, Groote Post, Kleine Zalze, Durbanville Hills, Backsberg, JP Bredell, Wamakersvallei, Rustenberg, Blaauwklippen, Avondale, La Couronne, Bon Courage, Conradie Family Vineyards and Steenberg.