As this year's event looks back on 36 years of passion, style and artistry, shaped by over 300 years of South African wine making, it is fitting that the first of the 12 items to be auctioned is a singular micro-cuvée, created in 2009 by celebrated Nederburg winemaker Razvan Macici, to mark 350 years of winemaking in the Cape. Just 300 litres of the 2007 Shiraz, produced from a single vineyard block in Philadelphia, have been made and labeled Tribute to honour all the legendary names in winemaking who preceded Nederburg's current cellar team and who have served as their inspiration. The second of three special sets, each totalling 65.25 litres, will be auctioned this year.
Also of historical significance is an item that comes from one of South Africa's oldest wine brands. Zonnebloem, a leader in the time-honoured craft of winemaking since the early 1700s, has donated three magnums of the 1978 Cabernet Sauvignon, which, according to current cellarmaster Deon Boshoff, is the first vintage to be bottled by Zonnebloem in magnum bottles.
The oldest item to be included in this year's charity line-up is a bottle of Madeira 1840 "The Rebel", made by Newton, Gordon, Cossart & Co. and donated by veteran Nederburg auctioneer Patrick Grubb. The story surrounding this wine is that it arrived in New York the February of 1889 and was bottled by William H. Fearing at 24 Broad Street. It was re-corked on April 16, 1919 and again in 2002, when Patrick bought it. The identity of this wine is not known, and, having made a double crossing of the Equator, it has some cachet.
This year's auctioneer, Anthony Barne, has donated a special bottle of Chateau Latour 1986, a vintage that has been slow to mature due to the richness of the tannins, making it perfect to drink in 2016.
The item to be auctioned last this year has an interesting story attached to it, having featured on the Nederburg Charity Auction before. A 5-litre bottle of Chateau Lagrange 1986, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, was donated in 2000 by the guest speaker that year, Mr Shin Torii, president of Suntory, Japan, and purchased by Mr Mark Norrish for R10 000. It was, incidentally, the very last item auctioned that day. Now ten years later, Mr Norrish has generously donated this wine once again in his personal capacity and it will also again be the last charity item to be auctioned.
Other auction participants who have generously donated items for the charity sale include Fleur du Cap, Annandale, Rustenberg, Vilafonte, MC Square – owner Jean-Luc Sweerts has donated four special bottles from his private cellar – and Stellenzicht.
Last year, the Nederburg Charity Auction raised close to R210 000. The proceeds were shared equally amongst the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa, the Organ Donor Foundation and an AIDS-HIV-support NGO, Mothers2Mothers. The Auction organizers are evaluating several projects in and around the Drakenstein area before deciding on the beneficiaries of this year's Charity Auction.
A full listing of this year's charity items is included in the catalogue, available for download on www.nederburgauction.co.za
