Today, I feel that special mention must go out to the standard and quality of South African brandies and the success they’ve enjoyed thus far. I’m gonna let my mind digress for a second; consider the stuffiness that fine brandy was once associated with. Which was your typical Afrikaans academic hailing from grape vine laden Stellenbosch surrounded by Andre Brink novels who cringes at just the mere thought of enjoying his brandy with anything other than just... brandy.

On the complete flipside you have your boer-boy jocks chasing meisies around the local pub, and bench pressing those same meisies in his maties or pukke rugby jersey who can't think of drinking his brandy with anything other than coke and in a jug.

Then you had another side (note this is not your regular coin; it has more than two sides let’s call it the brandy dice coin of yester year). Back to this third side of the coin, a section of coloured mense, staunch supporters of the all blacks. Far from patriotic but try take away his berties (bertrams vo) and you'll meet a South African vampire quicker than you can say, “Jou ma se p...” You can finish the rest. These guys prefer to skink their brandy; take it down quick (watch his face scrunch together exposing teeth more expensive than lil wayne's or rather a lack thereof), or they would create the ultimate get you fucked up concoction called "sponge" a 'toxic' punch made of brandy and black label beer.

Then we had our black folk or African folk depending on how politically correct you want to get in an unPC society. Now here brandy is somewhat a formal stalwart, many times forming the basis of many a formal gathering whether it be emcimbini (at a traditional gathering) where the men gather and proceed to share (by a single individual who has been nominated) a couple of bottles of viceroy amongst many, and has been at catalyst of many arguments of whose the oldest.

Then you have the young man whose been plying his trade under the big city lights and goes home to emakhaya (rural villages) every festive season after telling his boss he needs two months leave for amasiko and of course he cannot go home empty handed and so he proceeds to purchase a number of bottles of brandy as a gift, lest the elders not allow him to return to the city.

Now back to the success of brandies; not only are South African brandies picking up awards left right and centre locally but also internationally whether it be collecting a Veritas Award; the greatest recognition of your life’s work as a master distiller. As well as picking up international wine and spirit awards. It’s not only awards that determine the success of brandy however, but also success in terms of sales and consumer trends.

These days you'll find brandy being offered in your urban chic environments from Jozi's Melrose Arch to Cape Town’s famous Camps Bay strip not only is it being offered but being enjoyed in an array of great cocktails. Also on the rise is the amount of black professionals who are making the switch to brandy. Brandy is now being seen as a mark of achievement; you’ve worked hard, now enjoy your sovereign or your rene single cask.

Brandy is now seen on the streets of Soweto to Gugulethu being enjoyed tall by amajita, amagenge amongst your gusheshes, mercs, beemers and range rovers parked out at tshisa nyamas. From Chaf Pozi to Sakhumzi to Mzolis to groova park to Le mans to kwaMax, or being enjoyed in Sandton penthouses or Cape Town beach front holiday homes. There’s no denying brandy is growing. Now the task at hand is sustaining and educating the consumer.

On that note here’s a tipple now sip and enjoy.