Like previous guides, the new edition will include an A-Z directory, where producers are listed and their brands described and star-rated. Typically an A-Z entry will consist of the following: an overview paragraph; winery/distillery contact detail and general information such as location, name of owner and winemaker/distiller, tasting room opening hours etc; and tasting notes and ratings for wines, brandies, husk spirits and/or sherry-style wines available during the currency of the guide (November 2024 to November 2025). To be featured in Platter’s 2025, at no charge, we request that you use the Producer Information document emailed to you earlier to do the following:

1. Read Section 1 and then complete Sections 2 to 4. We depend on your input to create an accurate and informative depiction of your business.

2. Sign and email the document to Ina de Villiers at inadv@wineonaplatter.comno later than Monday 3 June 2024.

To have the Producer Information document resent, email Ina de Villiers at inadv@wineonaplatter.com.

1. The names of the tasters allocated to your winery/distillery appear in the body of the email sent to you earlier. To view a short biography of your allocated taster/s, click here.

2. You are welcome to contact the allocated tasters if you wish. Do so via the editor, Philip van Zyl (pvz@wineonaplatter.com). Do not contact the tasters directly.

3. You may challenge your allocated tasters if you have compelling reason/s to believe that in assessing your products, they will contravene any of the provisions of the Declaration of Interest which each Platter judge is required to sign. Provide your reason/s in writing to Philip van Zyl and nominate three (3) possible replacement judges from the team list. Note that unfortunately we cannot accommodate taster changes after Friday 28 June 2024.

4. Newcomers to the guide, and producers returning to Platter's after a break, are allocated two tasters; producers featured in the previous edition are allocated one taster.

5. Decide which products you wish to enter for tasting:

Wines

• We require tasting samples of the wines that will be available during the currency of the guide (November 2024 to November 2025). Refer to the Expected Products & Vintages spreadsheet attached to the email sent to you earlier for the wines and vintages we are expecting to receive this edition.
• Include any wines you make for Woolworths,The Butcher Shop & Grill or Sandstone.

Brandies, husk spirits & sherry-style wines

• We look forward to receiving any brandy, husk spirit and sherry-style wine which you produce.

6. When completed, email the Expected Products spreadsheet to the Platter’s Logistics Team at wines@wineonaplatter.com. A member of the team will contact you regarding the delivery date and documentation to accompany your tasting samples.

7. Send us the completed spreadsheet as soon as possible but no later than Monday 3 June 2024.

8. Note: we do NOT need the actual tasting samples by Monday 3 June 2024, only the spreadsheet, so we can set up our database accordingly. If you need more time to decide on which wines/spirits are to be tasted, and therefore cannot send us the spreadsheet by Monday 3 June 2024, contact Amanda Ferreira at af@wineonaplatter.com or on her mobile phone +27 84-763-0221 to arrange an extension.

9. You and the Logistics Team member will jointly decide on the date for delivering your products.

1. Each product entered for review must be accompanied by a Wine, Brandy, Husk Spirit or Sherry-style Wine Information sheet. The Information sheet will be emailed to you by a Logistics Team member.

2. NOTE: If you already have data sheets covering the information we require, feel free to submit these instead of filling out the Information sheet. However, be sure you cover all the information we need, and include the winery name, plus the name and mobile phone number of the person responsible for Platter’s tasting samples at your winery/distillery.

3. If you do choose to use the Platter’s Information sheet, complete a separate one for each product in your range/s.

4. Also be sure to enclose a complete and up-to-date price list.

5. For any wines not reflected on your price list, indicate the envisaged inclusive recommended retail price per bottle (in ZAR).

6. We require 2 (two) bottles of each wine, including any wines you make for Woolworths, The Butcher Shop & Grill or Sandstone, clearly marked as such.

7. We require only 1 (one) bottle of each brandy, husk spirit or sherry-style wine.

8. Pre-bottling products (i.e. samples drawn from tank or barrel) are accepted, but you must

• Identify these very clearly to ensure they are prioritised accordingly, and
• Declare whether or not the tank/barrel sample is representative of the final bottled product.
• Note: we reserve the right to analyse the bottled versions and compare the results with data supplied for the previews.

Very important:

9. A member of Platter’s Logistics Team will contact you regarding the delivery date for your tasting samples. You and the Logistics Team member will jointly decide on a convenient date for delivering your tasting samples.

10. The Platter's Logistics Team member will also email you the finalised list of the products we expect to receive. Print out this "picklist" and include it, along with your price list and hardcopies of the completed Information sheets, with the tasting samples.

11. If you produce products for the CWG Auction, include them with your tasting samples. Do not send them to the CWG Office.

12. The delivery address is Vineyard Connection, cnr Santhagen and Devon Valley Roads, Stellenbosch 7599. Clickhere for directions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which products should I enter for review?

Bear in mind that Platter’s goal is to provide its readers with ratings and descriptions of products and vintages that will be available during the currency of the new edition (November 2024 to November 2025). It makes no sense therefore to enter products which will come onto the market only several years in the future or, conversely, products long sold out ex cellar or no longer readily available in the trade. Refer to the Expected Products spreadsheet for the products and vintages we are expecting to receive this edition.

May I enter more than one vintage of a product?

Yes, we taste multiple vintages.

May I enter a combination of market-ready products and pre-bottling previews?

Yes, we will taste a combination of market-ready products and pre-bottling previews.

When and where do I deliver the tasting samples?

You and a member of the Logistics Team will jointly decide on a convenient date to deliver your tasting samples to Vineyard Connection. Clickhere for directions to Vineyard Connection. The address is: cnr Santhagen and Devon Valley Roads, Stellenbosch 7599.

May I ask for a different taster?

Yes. See paragraph 3 on this page under the heading How to have your products tasted and rated in Platter's.

Amanda Ferreira • Coordinator (wine) • T +27 84-763-0221 • af@wineonaplatter.com

Ina de Villiers • Coordinator (information) • T +27 21-852-6854 / +27 82-854-3172 • inadv@wineonaplatter.com

Philip van Zyl • Editor • T +27 82-896-9685 • pvz@wineonaplatter.com

1. Any winery/distillery, merchant or individual producing own-brand wine, brandy, husk spirit or sherry-style wine in South Africa may be featured in Platter's.

2. Companies or individuals who intend making wine, brandy, husk spirit or sherry-style wine in the future, and are still gearing up for that purpose, may be mentioned briefly at the editor’s discretion.

3. If you know of producers who would like to be featured in the new edition, please ask them to email Ina de Villiers at inadv@wineonaplatter.com.

4. There is no charge for an entry in the guide.

5. The factual information we publish is based on data supplied by producers as well as industry bodies, and our ratings are based on our considered expert opinion. All reasonable care will be taken in the preparation of this book, but the publishers and authors accept no liability whatsoever for any consequences, or loss, damages, whatsoever and howsoever incurred, or suffered resulting or arising from the use of the book (or digital extensions) or any information contained therein.

6. The cellar emergency telephone number (in the Producer Information document) and the mobile number of the person/s responsible for Platter's tasting samples (in the Wine, Brandy/Husk Spirit or Sherry-Style Wine Information sheets) will be regarded as confidential and only be used internally (not published). All other information, including general email addresses and telephone numbers, will be regarded as "on the record" and may be used for editorial purposes. Clearly mark any further information that is not for publication as confidential.