Oude Meester Reserve 12 Year Old has won the 2012 Brandy Trophy at this year’s Michelangelo International Wine Awards, when it was judged the best brandy of the event by a panel of South African, European and US judges.
The connoisseur potstill is one of South Africa’s fastest-growing specialty brandies and has developed a following locally and across Africa, notably in Kenya and Nigeria.
All three Oude Meester potstills earned Michelangelo medals, making it the most awarded contender in the brandy component of the competition. Both the 12 Year Old Reserve and 18 Year Old Souverein earned Grand d’Or medals, the highest medal honour bestowed, while the Demant received silver.
“This is a full house of awards for the potstill brandies in the Oude Meester range,” said brand manager Genius Mnywabe. “Benjamin Franklin would have been proud of the accomplishment,” he added, referring to the famous US statesman, whose profile features prominently on the brand packaging.
A self-made man, the multi-talented Franklin was one of America’s founding fathers, who excelled as a scientist, inventor and a diplomat and was responsible for the establishment of America’s first public lending library.
“He worked hard to build principles of excellence in American intellectual circles and in commerce, and the standards he set have inspired the Oude Meester team.” Earlier this year, Oude Meester won two Gold Outstanding medals at the International Wine & Spirit Competition in London, for the 12 and 18 year old potstills, when Demant came home with a gold.
Master distiller Brink Liebenberg, under whose direction Oude Meester brandies are produced, said the consistency of results across two very different panels was affirmation of the high regard in which these hand-crafted potstills were held.
“Oude Meester is a regular international medallist and its reputation has played a key role in the exciting sales growth of the potstills both in South Africa and on the African continent.”
