Wine and travel: arguably two of life’s greatest pleasures. It’s not surprising then that savvy wine-makers have had the foresight to package them as one: Wine-tasting with a dash of game-viewing anyone? Or, hold the wine altogether, and enjoy a vineyard adventure while cruising along a river! This is wine tourism at its best and is the impetus behind the annual Klink Awards, a celebration of industry innovation as voted for by its harshest critics, you, their discerning customers.
South Africans are spoilt for choice when it comes to things to see and do. We have among the best beaches in the world, hotels and restaurants that rival many Riviera’s and food & wine that is unquestionably world-class. With so much option and quality on tap, this makes you – the wine lovers and intrepid travellers – the perfect judge to rate and review the wine industry’s tourism endeavours. – Monika Elias, The Klink Awards founder.
Now in its third consecutive year, the awards works by encouraging locals to visit and review its 79 award nominees – pre-selected by a panel – across 16 categories between September and October 2014. “Then, using your one vote per person, per category, you can cast it on Klink’s website,” explains Elias.
And just as the nominees vary, so too do the categories. There’s the ‘Comfort Zone’ which awards casual dining on a wine farm, the ‘Wild Card’ for most unusual wine farm attraction or the “Tread Gently” for the greenest wine farm. “Vineyard trail runs or mountain bike events are now so popular that we’ve also added a Tracks & Trails category. It seeks to award the most memorable outdoors experience that requires wine lovers to expend some energy on a spectacularly scenic vineyard hike, a challenging wine farm bike trail or a spirited wine route horse ride.”
Klink 2014 Award Categories
- Award for Most Unusual Attraction on a Wine Route
- Award for Great Food and Excellent Wine
- Award for Most Memorable Wine Route.
- Award for Most Green Wine Farm
- Award for Best Accommodation on a Wine Farm
- Award for Best Deli on a Wine Farm
- Award for the Best New Cellar Door Attractions
- Award for Welcoming Cellar Door Experience
- Award for casual dining on a Wine Farm
- Award for Best Gourmet Restaurant at the Cellar Door
- Award for Best Wine Route Event
- Award for Best food and wine pairing at the Cellar Door
- Award for Best Cellar Tasting Experience
- Award for Accommodation on a Wine Farm
- Award for the most memorable outdoors experience
- Award for Best Child-Friendly Venue on a Wine Farm
Voting closes on 31 October so as to give Klink a few days to crunch the numbers and find out who its 16 winners are as well as the overall Supanova “aka the one wine-related experience that trumps all others with regards to its total votes, popularity, ingenuity and innovation!” explains Elias.
“Now it’s up to you, their customers, to visit, review and vote for your 2014 favourites,” concludes Elias. All 17 Klink Awards winners will be revealed on 13th November at an event attended by the who’s who in the wine and tourism industry.
Start voting now! Visit www.klinkawards.co.za.
