Highveld ponies steal Cape show

The Joburg brigade invaded the Cape's second-biggest horsey social gathering - after the Met - last Saturday for the Veuve Clicquot Masters Polo at Val de Vie Estate in Paarl.

From the packed reception area down to the lounge, it was Joburgers such as model Lee-Ann Liebenberg, Generations actress Tarina Patel and socialite Maps Maponyane (him again) who attracted the camera lenses.

They lapped up the attention, so much so that internationals such as Belgian milliner Fabienne Delvigne and the US cast of Black Sails - including Zach McGowan, Hannah New, Clara Paget and Luke Arnold - and Nigerian actor Hakeem Kae-Kazim went mostly unnoticed for the afternoon.

Capetonians Liezel van der Westhuizen and Siv Ngesi took a break from attempting new poses to mingle, sip Champagne and snack on canapés.

It was clear that most of the guests were there to socialise and one wonders if they noticed the men on galloping ponies playing polo in the scorching heat.

Lovers of the sport, kitted out in white hats and matching shirts, reclined on the white garden furniture, clapping and chatting away.

Socialite Jen Su's yellow dress had many talking because it matched the sponsor's decor, and Alex McGregor's crochet top, which barely covered anything, turned heads too. And it came to light that McGregor was the girl featured in Irish band The Script's hit Man on a Wire music video, which was shot in Cape Town.

Best dressed on the day were businesswomen Greta Scholtz and Anina Malherbe in their white frocks. It was a pity that Scholtz's Gavin Rajah dress would spark another "copycat" drama for the designer on social media come Monday.

The bubbly was exceptional and the macarons moreish, but by sunset it was time to head out to the Table Bay Hotel to indulge in a local offering from House of Mandela wines.

Unlike the polo, this event featured no famous faces except that of the host and co-founder of the wine brand, Madiba's granddaughter Tukwini Mandela.

Guests had paid R595 each to wine and dine at the hotel's newly refurbished Atlantic restaurant, where head chef Jocelyn Myers-Adams had designed a four-course menu, made with locally sourced ingredients and paired with a selection of the Mandela wines.

The food was a clear hit, with many making complimentary remarks about the two starters, one of which was a smoked crocodile carpaccio with gooseberry and wild garlic, paired with a chenin blanc.

For the main course, Myers-Adams selected the pinotage to accompany roasted springbok. The meal concluded with a cheddar soufflé and plum sorbet and the shiraz.

Mandela told everyone about her excursions around the world to promote her wines, noting that she was due to head to the US and Germany soon to punt the product.

Later, she walked around the room, chatting and taking pictures with the guests, who by 10pm were heading home, wine-filled goodie bags in hand.

The wines are available at local retailers, and if you have trouble choosing a grape, try the pinotage. It was a favourite at the dinner.