South African winemakers are to put Braille on some bottles to allow blind drinkers to select their own wine. The 10 producers from the Worcester winemaking region near Cape Town said the initiative would help their wines stand out in a crowded market. Five million bottles carrying Braille are expected to be produced next year, some going for export. Bottles containing a shiraz and a sauvignon blanc will have Braille embossed on the glass. Part of the sale price will go to Africa's largest braille resource centre.
"Just because people are blind, it does not mean they do not enjoy their wine," said Worcester Winelands Association marketing manager Bridget Zietkiewicz.
Ms Zietkiewicz said that "technically it was quite difficult" to produce the bottles embossed with the patterns of dots that make up Braille script.
"Braille cannot be read on a curve," she said, but added that intervention by a glass manufacturer had allowed the idea to come to fruition.
The various wine-producing regions of South Africa's Western Cape province compete for tourism and for recognition. The Worcester region, 100 km from Cape Town, the provincial capital, is less well known than the Stellenbosch and Franschhoek regions closer to the city.
"We are making this initiative as part of trying to set Worcester apart as a wine destination from the rest of the country," Ms Zietkiewicz said.
San Nakji heard that blind people's other four senses are heightened due to their disability. Does that mean that wine tastes much better to them. I personally hate wine and it tastes like cat pee to me, I would love to hear from a blind person about what they taste. Any reading my blog perhaps?
The other thing I was thinking about as I read this article is that I heard that braille may be on the way out. Thanks to technology, the blind no longer need something as archaic as braille, it seems. Well, I think the blind should fight to keep braille going. It is something unique to them and personally I am very jealous of anyone who can read it. I have tried feeling braille, but the differences in letters is so subtle that it all just feels the same. More evidence of heightened senses?
San Nakji for President!
2 comments:
This is pretty cool!!! That's neat that they are putting braille. I wish that braille wasn't on it's way out. Blind people should still use it. It gives them an advantage over sited people.
That's for sure!
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