The week in pictures

Photo: Sullivan Photography

Firefighters dramatically charge through vineyards in the Simonsberg area of the Western Cape region in South Africa, one of many areas that have been subsumed in flames this week as wildfires wreak havoc on the wine industry.

Photo: Sullivan Photography

A fire crew watches from Simonsberg vineyard as a a helicopter attempts to douse the encroaching flames.

Meanwhile, Caledonia Best, official beer sponsor of Scottish Rugby, is celebrating the recent announcement of a three-year extension of its deal with the Scottish Rugby Union by launching a full programme of promotional activity for this year’s RBS Six Nations tournament. The brand will support customers with a variety of consumer incentives including the chance to win a money-can’t-buy trip to Japan to meet the Scotland team.

South African wine brand Nederburg has confirmed a three-year sponsorship agreement with Africa-based cycling team Dimension Data Qhubeka (formerly known as MTN-Qhubeka). The team will represent Africa in Le Tour de France 2016.

  Caspar and Victoria Bowes, founders of the online wine auction site GrapePip, scooped this year’s Benevolent Award for their “outstanding commitment” to the wine trade charity. The pair were presented with the award by CEO David Cox at The Vintners’ annual wine trade lunch in aid of The Benevolent at Vintners Hall in London, which raised £14,000 for the charity.

Kicking off 2016 in style, db headed to Oblix bar in the Shard to road test its new American-themed cocktail menu, which delivered a lot of exciting twists and turns. First out of the blocks was the ridiculously pretty American Beauty, a pink-hued sparkler made with Tanqueray Ten, rose, lychee and Champagne.

Things then got a little retro when our bartender brought out these glowing “Kiss the Rainbow” cocktails. Twisting on a Cosmopolitan, they featured Ketel One Citron vodka, lime, grapefruit, Aperol, raspberry and peach bitters and would no doubt make Carrie Bradshaw weep with delight.

Midway through our cocktail journey we stooped to admire the stunning view of the Big Smoke in all its illuminated glory.

The highlight of the night came in the form of this terrifying looking cocktail – the Voodie Vie, made with Zacapa 23 rum, lime, caramel, banana, spices and walnut bitters served with a white chocolate skull and spun sugar spikes in a crazy cup with chicken feet.

Keen to make it a double, the following night we took to the skies again, only this time to Duck & Waffle in the Heron Tower to try out some of Rich Woods’ crazy concoctions on his new menu that pits decadent anti-resolution cocktails featuring truffles, oysters and foie gras with virtuous non-alcoholic cocktails. No prizes for guessing which side of the menu we gave our attention to.

Saints vs sinners – kicking the night off with one of the most delicious cocktails we’ve ever had, salted caramel and foie gras Manhattan, round two saw us try a couple of the non-alcoholic drops including a butternut squash virgin Bellini (centre) and a virgin Pimm’s, which tasted spookily similar to the boozy original.

Though soon we were back on the sauce, enjoying this twist on an Old Fashioned featuring butter washed Patrón Tequila, coffee bitters and salted maple, which had an incredibly smooth, creamy texture. The dark chocolate Negroni also went down a treat, sending us off into the night with a warm glow.

On a recent visit to Chile with Concha y Toro, the drinks business paid a visit to Casa Marin, located in the town of Lo Abarca in the San Antonio Valley. Here, winemaker Felipe Marin demonstrates the estate’s complex soil composition, which includes a high proportion of marine deposits which give its wines a saline quality. During our visit, Marin revealed plans to release Chile’s first Riesling Sekt, to be made using the traditional method.

Winery pooch Charlie poses in front of Casa Marin’s decorative wine barrels, just a taste of the colourful artwork art on display throughout the estate.

Concha y Toro’s historic casona in the Maipo Valley proved a stunning setting to enjoy lunch with Isabel Guilisasti, the producer’s fine wine marketing manger.

Dessert! A delicious mango and meringue creation

During the lunch, Guilisasti shared her belief that while Chile’s most promising point of difference is its diversity of soils and ability to produce a vast range of styles, the country still suffers from a lack of identity. Guilisasti said Chile was yet to capitalise on its two biggest geographical assets, the Andes and the Pacific, which together represent all corners of Chile’s diverse wine offering and cuisine, suggesting a campaign highlighting the country “from the mountains to the sea” could help the country build a stronger national identity.

A full picture round up of db’s tour of Chile will be published soon.

New Zealand’s 35th London Annual Trade Tasting drew more than 500 trade and members to the Royal Horticultural Halls on Monday to sample the nation’s winegrowing diversity. As well as the usual excellent Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir other perhaps more surprising varieties and expressions were showcased – among them an Albarino from Gisborne, a Wurzer (a Gewurztraminer/Muller-Thurgau cross) from Siedfried, and a Cote Rotie-style Syrah fermented with Gruner Veltliner skins from St Clair winemaker Matt Thomson’s own brand Blank Canvas.

The New Zealand Winegrowers London tasting, now in its 35th year, also included two insightful masterclasses hosted by Peter McCombie MW: one on the ‘Changing face of Sauvignon Blanc’ and this one on ‘New Zealand’s Trophy Winning Wines’.