South African wine has a history dating back to 1659, and at one time Constantia was considered one of the greatest wines in the world. Production is concentrated around the capital Cape Town, with major vineyard and production centres at Paarl, Stellenbosch and Worcester.
There are about 60 appellations within the Wine of Origin (WO) system, which was implemented in 1973 with a hierarchy of designated production regions, districts and wards. WO wines must be made 100% from grapes from the designated area. "Single vineyard" wines must come from a defined area of less than 5 hectares. An "Estate Wine" can come from adjacent farms, as long as they are farmed together and wine is produced on site. A ward is an area with a distinctive soil type and/or climate, and is roughly equivalent to a European appellation.
The roots of the South African wine industry can be traced to the explorations of the Dutch East India Company which established a supply station in what is now modern day Cape Town. A Dutch surgeon, Jan van Riebeeck, was giving the task of managing the station and to plant vineyards for wines and grapes that could be used to ward off scurvy for sailors continuing on their voyages along the spice route. The first harvest and crushing took place on April 6, 1652. The man succeeding Riebeeck as governor of the Cape of Good Hope, Simon van der Stel, sought to improve the quality of viticulture in the region. In 1685, van der Stel purchased a large 1,850 acres (750 ha) estate just outside of Cape Town, establishing the Constantia wine estate.
By 1859 more than 1 million of South African wine was exported mainly to Britain and the region experienced a period of prosperity that lasted until the 1860s when the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty signed by the Gladstone government and France reduced the preferential tariffs that benefited South African wine in favor of French wine exports. By 1865, exports dried up to less than 150,600 gallons (5,700 hl). In 1866 the phylloxera epidemic reached South Africa, causing wide spread devastation to the industry and vineyards that would take more than 20 years to recover.
While many growers gave up on winemaking, choosing instead to plant orchards and alfalfa fields to feed the growing ostrich feather industry. The growers that did replant with grapevines, choose high yielding grape varieties such as Cinsaut. By the early 1900s more than 80 million vines had been replanted, creating a wine lake effect and glut of excess wine. Some producers would pour unsaleable wine into local rivers and streams. The depressed priced caused by this out of balanced supply and demand dynamic prompted the South African government to fund the formation of the Koöperatieve Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Zuid-Afrika Bpkt (KWV) in 1918. Initially started as a co-operative, the KWV soon grew in power and prominence to where it was set policies and prices for the entire South African wine industry. To deal with the wine glut, the KWV restricted yields and set minimum prices that encouraged the production of brandy and fortified wines.
For much of the 20th century, the wine industry of South Africa received very little attention on the worldwide stage. Its isolation was further deepened by boycotts of South African products in protest of the country's system of Apartheid. It wasn't till the late 1980s and 1990s when Apartheid was ended and the world's export market opened up that South African wines began to experience a renaissance. With a steep learning curve, many producers in South Africa quickly adopted new viticultural and winemaking technologies. The presence of flying winemakers from abroad brought international influences and focus on well known varieties such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. The reorganization of the power KWV co-operative into a private business further sparked innovation and improvement in quality as vineyard owners and wineries that previously relied on the price-fixing structure that bought their excess grapes for distillation, had to shift their focus to quality wine production in order to compete. In 1990, less than 30% of all the grapes harvested was used for wine production meant for the consumer market with the remaining 70% being discarded, distilled into brandy or sold as table grapes and juice. By 2003 the numbers had switched with more than 70% of the grapes harvested that year reaching the consumer market as wine.
South Africa is located at the tip of the African continent with most wine regions located near the coastal influences of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. These regions have mostly a Mediterranean climate that is marked by intense sunlight and dry heat. Winters tend to be cold and wet with potential snowfall at higher elevations. The threat of springtime frost is rare with most wine regions seeing a warm growing season between November As of 2003, South Africa was 17th in terms of acreage planted with the country owning 1.5% of the world's grape vineyards with 270,600 acres (109,500 ha). Yearly production among South Africa's wine regions is usually around 264 million gallons (10 million hl) which regularly puts the country among the top ten wine producing countries in the world.
Viticulture
Historically vineyards in South Africa were planted with untrellised bush vines planted 4 feet (1.2 m) apart at a density of 2,800 vines per acre (7,000 vines per hectare). Following the phylloxera devastation, the focus of viticulture in South Africa was more on quantity rather than quality.
Vineyards were planted with high yield varieties, widely spaced to facilitate the use of mechanical harvesting. In the late 20th century more producers began to focus on quality wine production and adapted modern viticultural practices. Vines were planted to an average density of 1,300 per acre (3,300 per hectare) and pruned to keep yields down to 2.8-3.2 tons/acre (49-56 hl/ha). The most common form of trellising found in South Africa is the vertical hedge row system that uses a split cordon supported on a wire kept around 2.4 feet (730 mm) off the ground. The grapevine leaves are trained upright on separate wires that allows plenty of sunshine to reach the grapes but enough coverage to keep them from being sunburned. The vines are usually pruned to allow four to five spurs each with two to three buds (potential grape clusters) per cordon. Heat is also a concern come harvest time with some wineries harvesting only at night in the cooler temperatures under the floodlights.
The lack of precipitation in many wine regions makes irrigation a necessity. Sprinkler and drip irrigation systems are used to provide anywhere from 7.8–27.3 inches (200–690 mm) of extra water a year. Modern winemakers are developing new techniques and understandings of the role that water stress plays in the development of quality wine grape production. Producers who do not irrigate will sometimes use the phrase "dryland" or "dry farmed" on their wine labels as marketing angle. Beside irrigation, an important concern for vineyard owners is the threat of vineyard pests such as mealy bugs and baboons. To combat these hazards, some vineyard owners will utilize Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs such as the importation of ladybugs, a natural predator of mealy bugs. While ocean winds keep some fungus and mildew threats at bay, downy mildew and powdery mildew can pose an occasional threat during the wet winter season. Near harvest time botrytis can also appear, being a hazard or a welcome visitor depending on whether or not botrytized wine production is the goal. Another threat is diseased and virus-infected rootstock. After the phylloxera devastation, vineyards in South Africa were replanted with American rootstock of these rootstocks that were imported were infected with various virus such as corky bark, fanleaf and leafroll, which soon spread to other vineyards. These virus-infected vines have shorten life span and difficulties with photosynthesis, which can lead to poor in the grape and low quality wine. Since the 1980s, efforts have been undertaken by the South Africa wine industry to quarantine and promote healthy virus-free vineyards. Additionally, work has been undertaken in clonal research to identify which grape varieties grow best in which climate and wine region
Winemaking and Wines
The winemaking traditions of South Africa often represents a hybridization of Old World wine making and the new.
Since the end of Apartheid, many producers have been working on producing more "international style" of wines that can be successful on the world market. Flying winemakers from around the world have brought new techniques and styles to South Africa. In the 1980s, the use of oak barrels became popular. Today the focus in the South African wine industry has been on increasing the quality of wine production-particularly with the more exportable and fashionable red grape varieties. Traditionally South African red wines had a reputation for being coarse in texture with rustic flavors. In the vineyards, growers focused yield control for better ripeness while winemakers used modern techniques to create softer, fleshier wines. Temperature control fermentation as well as controlled malolactic fermentation were more widely used as well as less dependency on filtration as a means of stabilisation.
In 2006, SAWIS (South African Wine Information and Systems) reported that the country had 100,146 hectares of vineyards, with about 55 percent planted to white varieties. Chenin Blanc has long been the most widely planted variety, still accounting for at least one-fifth of all grape varieties planted in South Africa as of 2004 though that number is decreasing. In the 1980s and 1990s, interest in international varieties saw increase in plantings of Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc. Other white grape varieties with significant plantings include Colombard (spelled locally as Colombar), Cape Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Sémillon. Since the 1990s, interest and plantings of red grape varieties have been steadily on the rise. In the late 1990s, less than 18% of all the grapes grown in South Africa were red. By 2003 that number has risen to 40% and was still trending upwards. For most of the 21st century, the high yielding Cinsaut was the most widely planted red grape variety but the shift in focus to quality wine production has saw plantings of the grape steadily decline to where it represented just 3% of all South Africa vineyards in 2004. In its place Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Pinotage have risen to prominence with Cabernet Sauvignon being the most widely red grape variety covering 13% of all plantings in 2006.
Grape Varieties
| Grape |
Vineyards |
| Chenin Blanc |
18.7% |
| Cabernet Sauvignon |
13.1% |
| Colombard |
11.4% |
| Shiraz |
9.6% |
| Sauvignon Blanc |
8.2% |
| Chardonnay |
8.0% |
| Merlot |
6.7% |
| Pinotage |
6.2% |
Pinotage
Pinotage, a crossing of Pinot noir and Cinsaut, has seen its plantings rise and fall due to the current fashion of the South African wine industry.
Today it is the second most widely planted red grape variety in South Africa. While there are supporters who want to make the grape South Africa's signature variety, critics of the grape note that hardly any other wine region in the world has planted the variety due to its flaws. In the early 1990s, as Apartheid ended and the world's wine market was opening up, winemakers in South Africa ignored Pinotage in favour of more internationally recognized varieties like Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. Towards the end of the 20th century, the grape's fortunes began to turn, and by 1997 it commanded higher prices than any other South African grape. The grape can be very dependent on the style of winemaking, with well made examples having the potential to produce deep colored, fruity wines that can be accessible early as well as age.