Lawyers and lighter matters
7 August 2006

The name and logo of a fancy attorney can cause shudders, as I know only too well – too often a polite threat and demand for vast sums in damages is appended. Whether it will have the same portentous effect in the local wine fraternity I’m unclear, but serious dark-bordered advertisements by big-time law firm Sonnenberg Hoffman Galombik appeared in Cape Town’s dailies this past week to ‘clarify the facts surrounding the status of the broad-based black economic empowerment transaction concluded in respect of KWV’.

Well! this is exciting, suggesting even more turmoil and bother than one had suspected in the aftermath of that strange business (big money matters set my little head spinning), in which the South African Wine Industry Trust first of all said it wanted to snatch back its money from ‘empowerment’ group Phetogo because it wasn’t playing the empowerment game properly – and then was forced to backtrack and say, well, really it was just because it needed the cash. One of the things it has decided to do with the cash, apparently, is employ some expensive lawyers and take out some expensive advertising.

Sonnenberg etc etc are declared in the advertisements as ‘legal advisors to the South African Wine Industry Trust and Phetogo’, and they suggest that the media ‘in various reports … in recent weeks’ has not been clear on the issues. Could they be thinking, just perhaps, of Michael Fridjhon’s scathing article in Business Day on the subject? Accompanying some mutterings that the contained serious errors of fact as well as of interpretation, and nasty suggestions floating around that Michael is only so het up because of the way he was summarily replaced years back as head of Sawit, there have been rumours that a lawsuit is in the offing – now, that would be another nice way of using up any money left over, of course. Anything to stop any benefits trickling down to the poor sods with aching backs bent over the vines or trundling barrels.

As I say, it’s all rather beyond me – including why Sawit and Phetogo don’t seem to much trust their own media releases or spokespeople any more and have to bring in this esteemed (and costly) law firm. It does increase the intrigue, though.

Costume dramas in the Swartland

What a relief to turn to lighter matters. As a rather melancholy veuve myself, I was irrestibly reminded by the picture alongside (from the launch of a big new winery in Piketberg) of Lehar’s operatically Merry Widow – Madame’s costume here is so like the costumes worn so becomingly by dear Aviva Pelham when my husband and I used to see her performing Hanna Glawari on the Nico stage. These two look as though they’re about to burst into a duet (with a full orchestra lurking behind the wall, perhaps).

All tulle and tufts and showy jewellery – quite gorgeous! And there’s even what seems to be a little fancy-dressed bridesmaid too. Not quite the usual West Coast scene. Even odder, and just as camp, is the  winery’s name: Org de Rac Domain, as you see. Now, we’re no strangers to French as the preferred language of pomp in the Cape winelands, but this is a trifle puzzling, though I think ‘org’ probably relates to ‘organic’ (organique?). Maybe it’s really a joke, because of the four words of this pretentious name, only one ('de') is genuine or accurate French…. It occurs to me what fun it’ll be if they win the top medal at the Michelangelo Awards which is in equally meaningless pseudo-Gallic: ‘A Grand d’Or goes to Org de Rac Domain’…. More likely in Piketberg than Bordeaux – or Franschhoek, for that matter. 

 

Hating Gauteng