Good Food & Wine Show 2012

 The Good Food & Wine Show gets bigger and better every year. I had a long chat with show director, Christine Cashmore, and learnt a few things about the show that I didn’t know. Some small things like why do they put all the wine and alcohol stands together on one side, and the reason is out of respect for the Muslim patrons who then have the option of avoiding that side of the show.

But I was interested to hear about the future plans for the show. They will continue to bring out celebrity chefs every year (possibly Jamie Oliver in 2014!) even though it’s very expensive. The show will also grow it’s focus on children and healthy eating. This year was the first year there was a cooking theatre dedicated to kids, the CBeebies theatre where Mr Maker did his thing. There was also hands on cooking for the kids. Next year they hope to have cooking demos teaching parents how to cook easy but healthy meals for their kids. Finally the show will focus more on food provenance, trying to get people to pay attention to where their food comes from and how it was produced. As part of this direction, the Good Food & Wine Show subsidises small producers in the Slow Market section.

As I do every year, I recommend that you give yourself half a day at least at the Good Food & Wine Show. You can’t enjoy it if you’re in a hurry as you won’t be able to give any attention to the stands in order to find interesting products. Nor will you be able to stop and enjoy some of the many free cooking demos happening all around the show.

Also, take money with you (although there are ATMs there), because there are lots of special show offers so you can pick up things at great prices. Olive oil, and various other condiments at good prices straight from the producers… you could save the entry fee twice over with just a few purchases.

I spent two full days at the Good Food & Wine Show this year. I was one of the judges for the stands again this year and I also did my first cooking demo this year, at the Cavendish Kitchen. In fact, please vote for me so that I can donate R5000 to my selected charity. I saw quite a lot of the show and these are some of the things that caught my attention this year…

I got to try the famous Die Wors-Rol. One of Bertus Basson’s many projects. It’s big and it’s tasty. If you’re hungry, I’d recommend getting hold of one.

Another option if you’re hungry is the empanadas from Como Empanadas. Good quality ingredients used in these authentic Argentinian empanadas. And just to justify my Spanish surname I will tell you that Como means ‘I eat’. Their plan is to sell them frozen for you to keep in your freezer then smash in the oven when you need them…

I thought that the The Tea Merchant stand to be very appealing. Beautiful products on display, including these awesome looking colourful cones containing a silk tea bag.

A lot of people have been asking me about the aubergine biltong I purchased at the cheese festival, and you’ll be pleased to know that By Nature is at the Good Food & Wine Show and they have this product in stock. They also have a couple of other new things in stock, ask about them.

To quench your thirst, I recommend you head over to the Sir Juice stand and try their fruit juices. They are additive free, good quality stuff. And delicious!

I bumped into Jenni Morris cooking at the Spekko stand and Pete Goffe-Wood cooking at the I&J stand, while I was cooking at the Cavendish stand. Reze Mahammed came to check on my progress…

I attended one of Buddy Valasco’s demos. The Cake Boss made a Table Mountain cake!

Below are the results of the Stand Awards, announced earlier today:. You might want to check out these stands too…

Best overall stand:
Lindt Chocolate Workshop

Best Designer Stand:
The Tea Merchant

Fine Wines, Beers and Spirits
Gold: Amarula
Silver: Distell Fine Brandies
Bronze: Cactus Jack

Most Innovative:
Fry’s Vegetarian

Most Interactive:
Lovoka Bartenders Workshop

Best Specialty Product Display:
Gold: Cassis Paris
Silver: Madécasse
Bronze: Falksalt

Best Green stand:
The Creamery –  I’ve tweeted about The Creamery ice cream before, it’s amazeballs. Local, organic and seasonal.