As with most things in SA wine, the decision whether to enter the latest wine competition, Top 100 SA Wines, the Oral Oscars, has become a political hot potato. Some thoughts on whether to enter or sit this one out:

Ten reasons to enter Top 100 SA Wines:

1. If a Ukrainian nurse, Elizabeth Taylor sunglasses and designer bling kept Muammar Gaddafi in power for 42 years, surely gaudy stickers can sell bottles of wine;

2. To support WOSA – the WOSA CEO is invited to serve on industry executive to “to assist in the global repositioning of South Africa’s fine wines”;

3. To support the little guy in his legal struggle with the Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show;

4. To show confidence in a panel dominated by British Masters of Wine;

5. To challenge the dominance of the sighted Platter wine guide;

6. To bring new blood into the wine exhibition circuit;

7. Bringing Tim Atkin, Jamie Goode and co. to SA may result in a mini tourist boom at the top end of the market;

8. To give wine hacks something to carry on about;

9. To aid the hard-pressed local sticker printing industry, knocked by the collapse of exports of bottled wine;

10. To give credibility to the competition.

Ten reasons not to enter Top 100 SA Wines:

1. How many medals does Château La Tour wear? Do French first growths enter such competitions?

2. To stick it to WOSA and the white, male, middle-aged members of the self-appointed industry executive;

3. To put a Johnnie come lately back in his box. There are altogether too many vintrepeneurs sucking blood from the SA wine golden goose and this competition is just too expensive;

4. To strike a blow against cultural cringe and stick it to in a panel dominated by British Masters of Wine;

5. To show support to Platter, which needs all it can get;

6. There are altogether too many wine consumer shows which cost the industry millions;

7. Reducing the carbon footprint of SA wine by leaving Tim Atkin, Jamie Goode and co. in their bedsits in Blighty;

8. To bring down the curtain on the Beano comic antics of some irresponsible elements in the SA wine press;

9. To increase the green footprint of SA wine by limiting environmentally unfriendly bottle stickers;

10. With big names staying away in droves, how representative will this Top 100 be?