Soweto Wine Festival gains banking support

“Our involvement in the festival gave us the opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to the wine industry, and to assist in unlocking the economic potential of Soweto,” said Standard Bank's Director of Agricultural Banking, Bertie Smith on Friday, 28 March 2008.

The 2008 Standard Bank Soweto Wine Festival is scheduled to start in September is the fourth consecutive wine festival in Soweto organised by the Cape Wine Academy.

It is considered the most popular wine and lifestyle festival of its kind in Soweto, with a 300% growth in visitor attendance.

This vibrant festival is setting trends that are representative of Soweto as a burgeoning suburb of Johannesburg.

“We are pleased that the Soweto Wine Festival has extended the invitation for us to be involved in 2008 and 2009, an opportunity we intend to use to once again reflect our support of the wine industry and our involvement in the broader agricultural industry," Smith said.

During the 2008 festival, we estimate more than 5,500 consumers will be enjoying in excess of 850 different wines from 115 wineries.

This allows visitors to taste and savour a wide range of styles: red and white, sweet and dry, as well as fortified, sparkling and Cap Classique.

Festival co-founding member and organiser Marilyn Cooper confirmed that the festival provides economic value to the South African wine producers by introducing South African wines to new markets via education and interaction, which in turn increases local consumption and sales.

Article published courtesy of BuaNews