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gRANT’S CELEBRATES DISCOvERY OF THEIR oLDEST WHISKY BooK

Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador Katlego Moloto at the Grant’s 1912 Stand Fast Media Tasting

A hundred years later, the Grant’s Master Blender, Brian Kinsman, has recreated 100 bottles of the original Stand Fast whisky using the same records handwritten by William Grant, and the same whiskies from the 1912 original blend for a unique taste. This followed the discovery of the company’s oldest whisky book in the family archive, by Paul Kendall, showing the exact whiskies that founder of Grant’s Whisky, William Grant, used to create Grant’s Stand Fast in 1912.

Conducting the media tasting from the distillery in Scotland via a video conference at the Michelangelo Hotel in Sandton, Grant’s Global Brand Ambassador, Ludo Ducrocq, said the new Grant’s Stand Fast is a rare and special whisky and they wanted to celebrate the remarkable skills of the Master Blender and the fascinating discovery of their ancient whisky book.

Up until now, the instructions to make Grant’s have been passed down as a verbal tradition through the generations through its six Master Blenders, who with their own intuition and knowledge would create Grant’s Blended Scotch Whisky. Using his expertise, our current Grant’s Master Blender, Brian Kinsman, has interpreted the old records to recreate the 1912 blend, a Speyside style of whisky that has slowly evolved over the years as distilleries have come and gone. Today’s Speyside whisky is undoubtedly more fruity, rich and less peated or smoky tasting than what we enjoy today, but the resulting whisky is still recognisably Grant’s, says Ducrocq.

The bottles won’t be sold, instead they will be included in the family archive alongside the blending book for future generations to raise a glass to Master Blenders past and present. Eight years ago in Soweto, what began as a small gathering of winemakers trailblazing a new market, and a smattering of curious Sowetans, has now grown into a major highlight on the Gauteng calendar. The TOPS Soweto Wine Festival was founded by Mnikelo Mangciphu and Marilyn Cooper eight years ago. The festival, in association with Food Network, is growing from strength to strength and adapting year on year to continuously attract more people from in and around Soweto, South Africa and globally. Speaking at the festival Cooper said, “Now in our eighth year we are a tried and trusted wine festival worthy of the many fine wine exhibitors and big brands that we attract, so much so we are 90% to capacity. I would love to see more wineries dip their toes into this responsive market. It’s unbelievably important and will contribute to sustainable sales now and most definitely in the future. Primarily due to educating this middle market, wine sales and consumption has increased for the first time after years in decline and it all starts here.” Commenting on the festival, Mangciphu who’s also the owner of Morara Wine and Spirit Emporium based in Soweto and Johannesburg’s city centre, said wine consumption was on the increase but also in a responsible manner. “The TOPS Soweto Wine Festival plays a large part in growing this new market of responsible wine consumers as they are concerned about the etiquette of wine drinking and the responsibility of not getting drunk at wine tastings; this has everything to do with wine education, which is one of the primary objectives of the festival.”

This year’s festival was an exhilarating experience as visitors found their love of wines, be it red, rosé, white or sparkling! Guests were in for a right royal treat with more than 900 of South Africa’s wines to taste, from firm-favourites such as Nederburg, Fleur de Cap, 4th Street, J.C. Le Roux and Four Cousins to the upmarket wines such as Alto, Meerlust, Plaisir de Merle, Rupert & Rothschild and Ernie Els to empowerment wines that compete with the best in the market such as Kumkani, Ses’fikile and Tukulu.

ExHILARATINg ExPERIENCE AT SoWETo WINE FESTIvAL