Upclose And Personal With The Best Of The Best

A steadfast commitment to creating memorable food & beverage occasions has seen Tsogo Sun purchasing some of South Africa's most prized wines at the country's leading auctions and serving them to guests at prices that are not far above their auction purchase price. "You won't find these wines at a better price anywhere else," says Tsogo Sun Group Sommelier Miguel Chan. "We want our guests to be able to enjoy a great bottle of wine, at the best price which is only marginally higher than the spend on the bottle."

An intimate group of foodies were recently hosted at the Sugar Club of the Beverly Hills hotel, uMhlanga to experience a selection of five wines from Tsogo Sun's Auction selection, paired with sublime dishes created by guest chef, Wandile Mabaso and Executive Sous chef, Sandi Richmond.

Says Miguel Chan, Group Sommelier of Tsogo Sun, "Our objective was to showcase a diversity of styles in both white and red wines, covering the full spectrum of flavours.

We have over 90 auction wines in our collection, which have been accumulated over three years at the Nederburg and Cape Winemakers Guild auctions, and which are available at key properties within the group, with the Beverly Hills being one of the chosen hotels."

Making the afternoon more exceptional was the appearance of guest chef,

Wandile Mabaso who collaberated with Executive Sous Chef, Sandi Richmond.

Chef Wandile is an SA born Dynamic, Young, and Talented Chef ready to disrupt the culinary scene in South Africa He has a lot of international experience and has worked with internationally renowned Chefs in Michelin star restaurants in New York and Paris.

He trained in classical French cuisine in New York City, under highly trained French chefs including his mentor Chef Olivier Reginesi. Most noteworthy, Wandile's Paris cooking experience was at the world renowned 2 Star and 3 Star Michelin restaurants, Le Meurice, and Hôtel Plaza AthÈnÈe under legendary chef Alain Ducasse.

He currently specializes in contemporary French haute cuisine, where only the finest ingredients are used and treated with extreme perfection. Wandile gives special attention to detail complimented by his creative presentations.

Says Wandile Mabaso "I'm honored and humbled to be invited as a Guest Chef for such an occasion and working with such talented colleagues, I look forward to imparting some of the skills, knowledge and experience that I've gained through my journey and taking our guests on a global gastronomic tour"

Says, Sandi Richmond , "There's been a great deal of creative energy in our kitchen. It's a very exciting process to be able to develop dishes based on ingredients that pair well with certain wines. The dishes were chosen around ingredients that bring out the flavours in the wine."

Attending the luncheon was KZN operations director, Mike Jackson "The Tsogo Sun auction wine collection adds depth to the dining experience for our guests. It's about how great a certain wine will be with a meal and how it highlights the dishes and the dining experience," enthused Jackson.

2016 was the third year that Tsogo Sun walked away with top honours as the biggest single buyer in South Africa's two leading wine auctions - the 42ndNederburg Wine Auction and the 32ndNedbank Cape Winemakers Guild (CWG) Auction - representing a total spend of R3696800. The wines are available at the Beverly Hills hotel.