ABSA Top 10 Pinotage Competition Judges

It is that time of the year again - the prestigious ABSA Top 10 Pinotage Competition. 

There are seven judges including several with extensive international experience:

David Molyneaux-Berry - after completing his education in Bristol, England he joined  the wine merchants Harveys of Bristol but in 1970 he moved to Sothebys auction house in London to help set up the wine department. His last important sale there was part of the Tsar’s cellar that had been removed from Crimea.

David resigned to start his own consultancy in 1990 and had many international clients. In 1994 he conducted the first wine auction in New York (since prohibition in the 1920s), after regulations changed, and since then he has done more than seventy including a benefit auction  for the families of New York policemen and firemen after the 9/11 disaster.

David is an international guest judge, serving on wine judging panels throughout the world and in the last two years has been heavily involved in research into wine fraud and counterfeiting. He is currently based in Egypt.

Gert Boerssen - studied B.Sc. Viticulture and Oenology at the University of Stellenbosch. After completing his degree and practical experience, his first permanent working position was at the Nietvoorbij Research Institution of Viticulture and Oenology. In 1976 he was appointed as winemaker at Boland Kelder in Paarl.

In November 1979 he was appointed as cellarmaster of Nuwehoop Wine Cellar in Rawsonville. In 1980 Gert was appointed as the executive manager of Wellington Wine Cellar in Wellington and today still is.

Besides being a co-opted member of the Pinotage Association's Management Committee, he also serves on the Executive Committee of the Association.

Susan Erasmus - 28 has a BSc in Viticulture and Oenology from Stellenbosch University. She is currently the winemaker at Vrede en Lust Vineyards but also assists with marketing and exports. She has been there since 2006. Previously she was the Assistant Winemaker at Neethlingshof where she was also involved in marketing, research and development. She has assisted in harvests on various other South African wine estates and one at Chateau La Fleur de Bouard in France.

In 2007 she was awarded the Landbou Weekblad Woman Winemaker of the Year award. She also tastes on numerous wine panels and judges for various prestigious  wine competitions.

She is married with a large family of animals, a ginger cat, Krummel, a Boxer, Sheila, a Boerboel, Achilles and a Boxer puppy, Brie. She is a keen runner doing one to two half-marathons a year and her other great love is scuba-diving. She and her husband really enjoy cooking and love to entertain at home with friends.

Hannes Storm - has been interested in wines since a young age. He studied Viticulture and Oenology at the University of Stellenbosch. After a compulsory university internship period at Hamilton Russell Vineyards in 2000, he was offered a permanent cellar position. After a two year period there, he worked as the winemaker and vineyard manager for Sumaridge winery.

Hannes re-joined the Hamilton Russell Vineyards team as winemaker in September 2004. and is also employed as winemaker for Southern Right Cellars, an entity owned by Anthony Hamilton Russell that specializes in classically styled Pinotage and Sauvignon Blanc.

He often travels to France, Oregon and California to taste wines and broaden his horizons regarding wine styles. His brother, Ernst, is a winemaker in the Santa Barbara region of California, USA. He loves the outdoors, adventure and music to name but a few interests and hobbies.

Dave Hughes - was the Marketing Manager Consumer Relations at Stellenbosch Farmers Winery (now Distell) until 1989 before he became a freelancer and independent spirit. Since then his career has covered many facets of the wine industry including judging nationally and internationally, guest speaker at various industry and other functions throughout the world, tastings and as a wine auctioneer. He is a prolific wine writer and has been published in magazines and newspapers both locally and overseas, besides writing a number of books. He is also a consultant to Nederburg Annual Wine Auction, to Veritas National Wine Competition, South African Airways Wine Selections, and to the International Wine and Spirit Competition in Britain.

Founder of the Cape Wine Academy and the Cape Wine and Spirit Education Trust (with Godfrey Du Bruyn) he is also a distiller and winemaker.

One of his great hobbies is walking. He has walked through places like the Fish River Canyon and Camino de Santiago in Spain, (From St Jean Pied de Port in France to Santiago in Spain). Here in 2004 after the 500 kilometre mark, he was unable to continue due to an accident, so in 2006 he went back to walk the last 200 kilometres. He has also done various other Pilgrim walks in Britain and Europe and through the Scottish Highlands.

He is married to Lorna who grows grapes for award winning wines in Devon Valley.

Jonathan Steyn - 39, co-owner of Belthazar Restaurant and Wine Bar at the V & A Waterfront, has been involved with wine for over 15 years and has travelled extensively locally and abroad – mainly to sample food, wine and restaurants. He holds a degree in Business Administration and tastes for various magazines.

Belthazar is a multi-award winning restaurant. It has been part of the American Express Fine Dining Awards program for the last three years. It arguably, has the largest Wine-by-the-glass selection in the world, numbering over 250 selections of Premium South African Wine and a small selection of international wines.

Duimpie Bayley - completed his BSc at the University of Stellenbosch, an MS at the University of California (Davis), and a PMD at Harvard. He began his work career in the laboratory at Stellenbosch Farmers Winery in 1962 and went on to become Group Operations Director.  He still serves on the Board of Distell, South Africa's largest Wine & Spirit company that incorporated the old Stellenbosch Farmers Winery.

Duimpie has been involved in the Wine Industry for more than 40 years.  During that time he has served on and chaired many industry committees and societies.  He has served as president of the South African Society of Enology & Viticulture and is an honourary life member of that association.

He is currently Chairman of Veritas, the largest wine show in South Africa.  He enjoys his position as Chairman of the South African Demarcation Committee (appellation contrôlée) - a position that takes him throughout the wine growing regions of South Africa. Duimpie was one of the first three to qualify as a Cape Wine Master in 1983.

He continues to serve on wine judging panels both nationally and internationally.