ANT KATZ

“We haven’t had a chance to total up how many bottles were sold yet,” Torah Academy’s administrator Shabsy Chaiton to Jewish Report on Monday. But, he said, he was certain that it had been the most successful sale ever.

A Festive atmosphere pervaded as hundreds of people tasted wines, herrings and other Pesach products and bought thousands of bottles of wine in aid of Torah Academy – an event that traditionally marks the beginning of the Pesach Shopping season in Joburg.

Suppliers were great

Shabsy was full of praise for the wine suppliers, most notably Adams International. The other wine suppliers represented were Tishbi, Kleine Draken and Backsberg.

“There were more ranges of wine than ever this year,” says Shabsy, “more wine tasting as well as other Pesach products for people to taste.” He was full of praise for the good merchandising of Pesach products in KosherWorld, he said. “Their range of Pesach products is larger than I’ve seen before,” he said.

And so was the record-breaking range of wines. Shabsy told Jewish Report Online that he had no doubt that this was the widest variety of kosher wines ever seen in South Africa under one roof. “From grape juice, table and Kiddush wines to upmarket local and imported wines for the more discerning pallet,” he said, they came, they tasted and they bought in caseloads.

Cases of wine were being bought and loaded up by customers as fast as they could be offloaded from the trucks. In some instances shoppers had to borrow the bulk flat-bed trolleys that are used in the store to get the wine to their cars

KosherWorld manager Chad Harrison said that most of the ranges are available in the store from Monday, and that while they are “competitively priced,” they are not at the charity sale prices that were offered on Sunday.

Chabad House Bookshop, which is also situated in the centre, also did a roaring trade as did the other food tenants who were open.

The sale took place over two floors and the cases of wine, which were all offered at fantastic prices, were being carted away as quickly as they wer unloaded from the trucks.

Many customers came in bakkies and people were placing such large orders that they had to cart the wine to their vehicles in KosherWorld’s blue goods trolleys (PICTURED).

It is a wonderful annual event in which the community and the school both win, said Shabsy.

Said KosherWorld director Joel Back of the huge crowd that came to buy wines and stayed on to socialise: “It’s fantastic to see the Jewish community in the streets and engaging in such a jovial atmosphere around Pesach shopping. SA Jewry is alive and well and doing all that it should be doing in Glenhazel,” said Joel.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW PICTURE

“Le Chaim” – Moshe Reuven Schneider and Moshe Amoils sample Pesach wine in a toast at the annual Torah Academy wine sale and morning market held at KosherWorld on Sunday March 15. One of the biggest annual fundraisers of Torah Academy, a very wide selection of bargain-priced wines were on sale to the hundreds who flocked to Glenhazel to participate. Stalls included a variety of Pesachdik goods and allowed visitors to do some Pesach shopping. Co-ordinator Shapsy Chaiton said that since the sale had been moved to the more accessible location four years ago, its popularity had soared, as had its contribution to the school’s funds.      PHOTO: Suzanne Belling