In January, Pick n Pay went full Cape Town with their “citrus for gin” offering.

You may recall that the retail giants were charging R45 for one grapefruit, two limes, and two lemons, with some dubbing this peak ‘gintrification’.

Still, I have no doubt that Pick n Pay did a roaring trade on this front, largely because Capetonians are suckers for convenience during the silly season.

(Drinking game – do a shot of gin every time you hear the words ‘silly season’ this December and January. We bear no responsibility for your hangover.)

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it seems to be the mantra here. The “citrus for gin” bags will be back in stores by mid-December, but before those hit shelves, South Africans who enjoy being sold things at a mark-up for no apparent reason can enjoy some berries and herbs combos.

Spoiler alert – you’re paying a premium for the convenience.

Their ‘Berries for Gin’ offering comes in a 200-gram container, and costs R45. If you bought them separately, you would have to buy larger quantities, but you would be paying far less than that at a per kilogram costing.

Some say the conspiracy runs deeper:

Yes, she’s joking. We know.

Still, just to be safe, we stick with our tried and tested craft gins from Cape Town Gin. After all, with the Rooibos Red and the Pink Lady, infused with rooibos and indigenous Rose Geranium respectively, you don’t really need all the frills and fuss.

Pick n Pay is also offering a bunch of herbs packaged as ‘Botanicals for Gin’, which goes for R18 a pack, although on this front you’re not being ripped off.

I will leave you to decide whether or not the berries and herbs are shrewd investments.

Talking of shrewd investments, how about winning a trip to Cape Town worth R30 000? Cape Town Gin is running a competition until December 31, and the first prize is quite a cracker:

A weekend in Cape Town for two people worth R30 000, which includes the following:

• Two Return flights from Johannesburg, Durban, Bloemfontein or Port Elizabeth.
• Two Nights, including breakfast, in the wonderful V&A Waterfront Hotel, part of the Newmark Group
• Dinner on the Saturday night at one of Cape Town’s leading restaurants.
• Uber vouchers to the Value of R1 000
• A bespoke tutored tasting of our three Cape Town Gins
• A sunset cruise on the magical Mirage Catamaran yacht (weather depending)
• Two Tickets on the very popular Cape Town Red Bus around the peninsula.

The Second Prize is a hamper containing 12 bottles of Cape Town Gins, and 12 cases of Fitch & Leedes mixers, so you won’t be needing a trip to the bottle store any time soon.

The Third Prize is a bottle of each Cape Town Gin (Classic Dry, Rooibos Red, and the Pink Lady), and a case of Fitch & Leedes mixers.

All you have to do to enter is buy any Cape Town Gin 750ml bottle, hang on to that proof of purchase, and head to the instructions on the competition page.

Once there, tell them which of the stylish Cape Town Gin and 50ml Gift packs is your favourite combination (Classic Dry, Rooibos Red, or the Pink Lady), and you’re good to go.

See you in the Mother City – gin in hand mandatory, overpriced berries and herbs optional.