Ken Forrester, affectionately known as “Mr Chenin”, was named the 2025 Wine Personality of the Year at the Institute of Cape Wine Masters’ (ICWM) annual black-tie dinner at Beyerskloof in Stellenbosch on Saturday (23 August).
The recognition honours Forrester’s extraordinary contribution to the South African wine industry and his unwavering dedication to championing chenin blanc. As chairperson and founding member of the Chenin Blanc Association since its inception in 2000, he has been instrumental in transforming perceptions of the cultivar from a workhorse grape to one of South Africa’s most celebrated varietals.
Forrester’s vision has driven pioneering research, preservation of old vineyards and a shift from volume production to quality, while his infectious energy and global advocacy have elevated South African chenin blanc’s reputation worldwide.
The weekend’s celebrations began on Friday (22 August) with the naming of four new Cape Wine Masters (CWM) at a prestigious luncheon at Lanzerac Hotel and Spa, hosted by the Pinotage Association, Lanzerac and the ICWM. Pinotage’s 100th anniversary and the first bottled pinotage under the Lanzerac label were also marked.
Making history was Jacques Lombard, who became the first-ever blind graduate of the CWM programme. Having lost his sight at age 26 in 1996, Lombard entered the wine industry through a tasting group for visually impaired wine enthusiasts, founded by Hermann Kirschbaum. In 2016 he founded Winebrands Pty and pursued formal studies with distinction at the Cape Wine Academy. Lombard’s dissertation examined biogenic amines in wine, dispelling common myths about sulphates.
Fellow graduate Bradley Wood, a Johannesburg urologist, scored a hat-trick by receiving trophies for sparkling wine, viticulture and research paper excellence. His dissertation explored whether South Africa’s Cape South Coast offers optimal terroir for quality Syrah production.
Riaan van der Spuy, currently cellarmaster at Swartland Winery, reviewed high-altitude viticulture internationally and in South Africa, while Janine van Zyl, a sommelier and FirstPour account manager, investigated how South African wineries can harness digital marketing and social media collaborations.
During the black-tie event Dr Winifred “Winnie” Bowman received the sixth Dave Hughes Trophy, instituted in 2020 to honour the late co-founder of the Cape Wine Academy. She was recognised for her dedication as an international and local judge, wine writer and mentor in the ICWM educational sphere.
The ICWM’s Vision 2030 programme continues advancing with three candidates who joined in 2024: Narissa Pieters (junior winemaker at Rustenberg), Kelsey Shung-
king (assistant winemaker at Mullineux & Leeu Family Wines) and Lerato Molekeki (Beck Family Estates Gauteng territory manager). International funding and industry partnerships ensure sustainable candidate development.
During the past year nine new candidates entered the CWM programme, bringing total enrolment to 29 students in the five-year self-study programme, the highest figure ever. Including the latest four graduates, 120 people have obtained this elite qualification in the Cape Wine Academy’s 46-year history.
The weekend’s festivities included a special Grand Pinotage tasting led by Beyers Truter, concluding with Lanzerac Commemorative Pinotage 2021, a tribute to the world’s first bottled pinotage from 1959.
