One&Only Cape Town is celebrating its first birthday in style with an elegant festival of flavours from 16 to 18 April 2010.

The weekend will be marked by a delectable selection of food and fine wines and champagnes from around the globe. Leading winemakers from France, Austria, Germany and Portugal will introduce some of their best vintages in a series of intimate events over the course of the weekend.

One&Only Cape Town opened in April 2009 with local and Hollywood celebrities and businessmen joining CEO and Chairman of Kerzner International Sol Kerzner for an intimate evening at the resort. One&Only Cape Town has enjoyed marked success since then and has become the destination of choice for many of the world’s top actors, entertainers, sportsmen and music stars visiting Cape Town.
   
The anniversary celebrations will kick off on Friday 16 April with a tutored tasting presented by four of Europe’s top winemakers: Dirk Niepoort of Duoro Valley (Portugal); Egon Muller, winemaker in the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer Valleys (Germany); Michael Moosbrugger of Kamptal (Austria); and Nicolas Potel from Burgundy (France).

The tasting is followed by a “For the Love of Wine” dinner with celebrated Japanese sushi master Nobu Matsuhisa in the only Nobu restaurant on the African continent. His six-course Omakase menu – meaning ‘from the heart’ – will be paired with thirteen different wines introduced by the European winemakers, who will guide guests on an epicurean journey of tastes and smells.

On Saturday 17 April acclaimed South African wine expert Michael Fridjhon will co-host a lunch at Nobu entitled “The world of wine meets Nobu Matsuhisa” with Evelyne de Pontbriand, President of the Savennieres Appellation in the Loire and proprietor of the extraordinary Domaine de Closel. Each course will be paired with a selection of white wines sourced mainly from the Loire Valley, although there will be two of South Africa’s finest Chenins, and two fabulous new-generation whites from Bordeaux.

Celebrations will culminate in fine style that Saturday with a gala evening at Gordon Ramsay’s maze. Guests will be treated to an amazing five-course dinner paired with some of the world’s most sought-after wines. Michael Fridjhon will host the evening along with Simon Tam from the International Wine Centre in Hong Kong. The wine line-up includes legendary Bordeaux First Growths Chateaux Mouton Rothschild and D’Yquem, both from the 1989 vintage; Burgundy Grand Cru Corton Charlemagne; Australia’s famous Penfolds Grange; and Krug, one of the most famous of the prestige cuvees of Champagne.
   
An elegant brunch at maze on Sunday 18 April will round off the weekend’s festivities. Hosted by Michael Fridjhon and world-renowned bubbly authority Dr Tony Jordan, the line-up will include Louis Roederer Cristal as well as Roederer Vintage, Brut Premier, Rose and Demi Sec. Seats are limited so book now to avoid disappointment.

One&Only Cape Town has a number of special packages on offer for their first anniversary celebrations. There is also a tailored package, including accommodation, available to guests who would like to enjoy the full festival menu on offer. All stay-over guests are privy to a 20% discount at the One&Only Spa, including the Pedi:Mani:Cure Studio by Bastien Gonzalez.

For more information or reservations, please call the dedicated telephone line: 021 431 5090 or e-mail our dedicated festival email address: birthdayfestival@oneandonlycapetown.com