'Tainted' wine to bite the dust
2004-12-08 23:27
Nellie Brand
Cape Town - How does one dispose of 56 000 litres of wine? You simply pour it into a trench and cover it up.
Many a wine-lover's heart will be broken on Thursday when a chemical-waste company, 24-Hour Spill Response, disposes of a tank of wine from Laborie winery in Paarl.
The wine - two different types - is due to be destroyed after an illegal flavourant was found in one and greenpepper extract in the other.
Meanwhile, the flavouring scandal is set to turn the wine industry upside-down.
The waste-disposal company will simply pump the wine into a mobile tank and take it to a dumping site in Vissershok. There, it will be pumped into a trench and covered up, according to KWV.
This is believed to be the largest dumping of wine in South Africa to date.
The move has unleashed widespread reaction, however - especially among winelovers who say they have no objection to a few greenpeppers.
Offers of 'help' pour in
Apparently the flavourant found in one of the wines was as little as one teaspoon in a 45 000-litre tank.
This, however, apparently increased the wine's piracine level a hundredfold.
Reaction was widespread and in an e-mailed chain letter that originated in London, one person, Carel Cronjé, said that he "knows a few people who could help"; with the disposal of the wine.
The letter calls on people to add their names to the list to help with the Laborie Sauvignon Blanc's disposal.
They also are asked to pass the letter on to others who are "qualified" to help with the process.
A letter sent to Die Burger, by Vossie from Bloubergrant, said "no one who can dispose of two tanks of wine worth R1m will get away with it without being punished".
But the decision to destroy the wine was taken by KWV.
KWV managing director Dr Willem Barnard said on Wednesday the company wanted to get rid of the wine as quickly as possible to prevent any risk of further contamination.
The wine could have been sold off as another product, but because KWV did not deal in anything but wine they decided to dispose of the offending liquid.
Will be unbottled and 'buried'
The 2004 vat of Laborie Sauvignon Blanc - about 12 000 litres - that was contaminated with greenpepper extract was to be disposed of on Thursday.
The other wine, a 2004 KWV Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, had already been poured into about 57 000 bottles.
These were to be opened on Thursday and poured into a tank and the wine would be disposed of on Monday.
The wine is being disposed of under the eye of officials from the SA Wine and Spirits Board.
- Die Burger