This is the 43rd year that Blaauwklippen has been running its wine blending competition, and this year they had a record number of entries from wine clubs across South Africa and Namibia! On Friday, 18 September 2026, Blaauwklippen hosted an awards luncheon on the estate to announce the competition's finalists and winning team. From the 79 valid entries, there were 4 finalists: Carignan My Wayward Son, Gauteng (what a fabulous name), the WINNING TEAM! DeVine, Western Cape Lyttleton, Gauteng Ongava International Wine Tasters, Namibia The winning team, Carignon My Wayward Son, walked away with a case of their fabulous blend and the floating trophy with their club name engraved. The finalists were spoilt with a weekend at Blaauwklippen in their newly revampted Manor House, which must be the best prize ever! What was the challenge? For the 43rd Blaauwklippen Blending Competition, the challenge was to blend a luminescent Cape Bordeaux style blend with 3 of Blaauwklippen’s greatest red cultivars namely: Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. Participants received four samples (one Cabernet Franc, two Cabernet Sauvignon and one Malbec), and all four wines needed to be included in the final blend. The winning blend was to really represent the best of the 2025 vintage. A maximum of 60% of each cultivar could be used (thus the two Cabernet Sauvignon components could be a maximum of 60% together) and a minimum of 5% of each component had to be included in the blend. We enjoyed the winning wine with our delicious lunch. Do yourself a favour and go the farm and get yourself some, beautiful label and bottled in a magnum (1.5L). Our wine.co.za team participated in the blending this year, which was great fun. I would highly recommend it as a fun activity with mates or a team-building exercise next year!