Wine
Although Jan van Riebeeck, the founder of the Cape Colony, planted vines and made wine himself, it was not until the arrival of Governor Simon van der Stel in 1679 that winemaking in South Africa began in earnest. Van der Stel created the estate Constantia (later subdivided into the several estates in the area today), and passed on his winemaking skills to the burghers who settled around Stellenbosch.
The French Influence
Between 1688 and 1690, some 200 Huguenots arrived in the country. They were granted land, particularly in the region around Franschhoek (which translates as ‘French Corner’). Although only a few had any winemaking experience, they gave the infant industry fresh impetus.
For a long time, Cape wines (except those produced at Constantia) were not in great demand, and most grapes ended up in brandy. The industry received a boost in the early 19th century, as war between Britain and France – and preferential trade tariffs between the UK and South Africa – led to more South African wine being imported to the UK.
Apartheid-era sanctions and the power of the Kooperatieve Wijnbouwers Vereeniging (KWV; the cooperative formed in 1918 to control minimum prices, production areas and quota limits) didn’t exactly encourage innovation, and instead hampered the industry. Since 1992 the KWV, now a private company, has lost much of its former influence.
Many new and progressive winemakers are leading South Africa’s reemergence onto the world market. New production regions are being established in the cooler coastal areas east of Cape Town, around Mossel Bay, Walker Bay and Elgin, and to the north around Durbanville and Darling. The older vines of the Swartland, northwest of Paarl (and in particular the Paardeberg area), are also producing some very high-quality wines.
The Human Cost
The black and coloured workforce in the wine industry currently numbers over 160,000, most of whom are toiling in vineyards owned by around 4500 whites. Workers often receive the minimum monthly wage of R105 a day. When this was increased from R69 a day in 2013, following a crippling strike among fruit pickers, some farms responded by cutting back on hiring pickers, with female workers in particular taking the brunt of the cuts.
There is labour legislation on the books, but it’s not always complied with, and unfortunately many workers are unaware of their rights. Wines of South Africa (www.wosa.co.za) runs various programs to improve the industry's human rights and sustainability record. The industry has also increased cooperation with the Wine Industry and Ethical Trade Association (WIETA; www.wieta.org.za), which lobbies for a better deal for those working in the wine industry.
Worker’s Wine
It's worth noting that South Africa has more fair-trade–accredited wines than any other country. Various wineries are leading the way in setting improved labour and fair-trade standards. Both Solms-Delta and Van Loveren (www.vanloveren.co.za) in Robertson have made their employees shareholders in joint-venture wine farms, while part of the Nelson Wine Estate (www.nelsonscreek.co.za) has been donated to the workers to produce wines under the label New Beginnings.
Other worker or black-owned and -empowerment brands include:
AThandi (www.thandiwines.com) Meaning ‘love’ or ‘cherish’ in Xhosa (isiXhosa), and located in the Elgin area, this was the first winery in the world to be fair-trade–certified. It’s half owned by the 250 farm worker families and produces good single varietals and blends.
AM’hudi (www.mhudi.com) Owned by the Rangaka family, their range includes a cabernet sauvignon, chenin blanc, pinotage and sauvignon blanc.
ALathithá (www.lathithawines.co.za) Made by winemakers at Blaauwklippen on behalf of Sheila Hlanjwa, it’s part of a project to popularise wine drinking in township communities.
AFairvalley Wines (www.fairvalley.co.za) The fair-trade–accredited wines from this venture, located next door to Fairview, are owned by 42 families.
Wine Varieties
Top Tipples
Cathy Marston, Cape Town–based wine educator and writer, recommends the following:
Reds
AMR de Compostella (www.raats.co.za) This elegant, restrained wine created by Mzokhona Mvemve and Bruwer Raats wouldn't be out of place in any lineup of top Bordeaux blends, and knocks most of the competition into a cocked hat. Alas – short of begging at the cellar door, it's so popular you're unlikely to be able to get it.
AHartenberg's cabernet sauvignon–shiraz (www.hartenbergestate.com) For under R100 you can't get a better-value red wine. It's a great blend that goes well with everything for everyday drinking.
AFairview's Beacon shiraz There's quite a lot of pepper in the flavour of this wine, but it's very modern and forthright with a spicy, black-fruit finish.
Whites
ATokara's Director's Reserve White An elegant blend of sauvignon and semillon.
ADeMorgenzon's White 12 (www.demorgenzon.co.za) Seriously lovely chenin-based blend.
AAA Badehorst Secateurs chenin blanc (www.aabedenhorst.com) A great everyday, crowd-pleasing white.
AGraham Beck Blanc de Blancs One of the classiest, freshest bubblies you’ll find in the Cape. Among MCC sparklers, those of Silverthorn Wines (www.silverthornwines.co.za) in Robertson are also worth seeking out.
Reds
Regular pinotage, a cross between pinot noir and cinsaut, which produces a very bold wine, is the Cape’s signature grape. Together with other robust red varieties such as shiraz (syrah) and cabernet sauvignon, it’s being challenged by lighter blends of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, shiraz and cabernet franc, which are closer in style to bordeau.
Whites
The most common variety of white wine is chenin blanc. In the last decade or so, more fashionable varieties such as chardonnay and sauvignon blanc have been planted on a wide scale. Other widely planted whites include colombard, semillon and sweet muscats. Table whites, especially chardonnay, once tended to be heavily oaked and high in alcohol, but lighter, more fruity whites are now in the ascendancy. For good sauvignon blancs, look to wineries in the cooler regions of Constantia, Elgin and Hermanus.
Sparkling
Méthode Cap Classique (MCC) is the name that South Africa’s wine industry has come up with for its champenoise-style wines: many are as good as, or even better than, the real thing.
Fortified
The Worcester, Calitzdorp and Karoo regions are the country’s leading producer of fortified wines, including port, brandy and South Africa’s own hanepoot. This dessert wine is made from the Mediterranean grape variety known as muscat of Alexandria to produce a sweet, high-alcohol tipple for the domestic market.
Wine Trends
South African winemakers blend grape varieties for many of their top wines. Red blends, mostly based on cabernet sauvignon, have been around for decades, but recent years have seen something of an explosion in white blends in two distinct, but equally exciting, main styles. First, those mixing sauvignon blanc and semillon, à la white bordeaux. Vergelegen has been the leader here, with its well-oaked and rather grand semillon-based wine. But now there are many fine versions – like Oak Valley’s OV blend, Tokara White and Steenberg’s Magna Carta.
The other strand in the white blend story is more indigenous. These wines are often from warmer inland districts, like the Swartland. Most follow the lead of the ‘inventor’ of this style, Eben Sadie, with his wine Palladius, and use plenty of chenin blanc, along with varieties like chardonnay, roussanne and viognier.
Winemakers are also moving to the coast or climbing mountains in search of cooler areas to make different styles of wine; these wines are more delicate and often have lower alcohol levels and greater freshness. Elgin, a high inland plateau, is gaining increasing recognition for its fine chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and pinot noir. Sauvignon blanc is a favourite for wineries in maritime areas, too – such as Lomond and Black Oystercatcher, both not far from Cape Agulhas; or Fryer’s Cove up the West Coast, whose vineyards are just inland from the chilly Atlantic. There's also a trend for using muscat to make light, sparkling muscato-style wines, such as those produced by De Krans in the Karoo and Imbuko in Wellington.
Pinotage also features in the growing band of 'chocolate coffee' styles of red wine, a trend kicked off by Diemersfontein in Wellington. While these wines, with their distinctive coffee and chocolate aromas and flavours, are generally sniffed at by the critics, they have been a hit with the public.
Glossary of Wine Terms
aroma The smell of a wine; ‘bouquet’ is usually used for the less fruity, more developed scents of older wine.
balance The all-important harmony of the components in a wine: alcohol, fruitiness, acidity and tannin (and oak, when used).
blend A mix of two or more varieties in one wine, eg colombard-chardonnay. You'll see ‘Cape Blend’ appearing on some reds’ labels; it implies at least 20% pinotage.
corked Not literally cork fragments in the wine, but when the cork has tainted the wine, making it (in the extreme) mouldy-tasting and flat.
estate wine This term is permitted only for wine grown, made and bottled on a single property.
finish The impression a wine leaves in the mouth: the longer the flavour persists (and the sadder you are when it goes), the better.
garage wine Wine made in minuscule quantities, sometimes by passionate amateurs – and occasionally actually in a garage.
oaked or wooded Most serious red wines, and a lot of smart whites, are matured for a year or two in expensive wooden barrels; it affects the texture of the wine and the flavour. A cheap way of getting oak flavour is to use wood chips or staves in a metal tank.
organic It’s the grapes, rather than the winemaking, that can be organic (naturally grown without pesticides, chemical fertilisers, etc).
tannin Mostly in red wine and derived from grape skins and pips, or oak barrels; the mouth-puckering dryness on gums and cheeks, which softens as the wine matures.
vintage The year the grapes were harvested; also used to describe a port-style wine made in a particularly good year (the best are often called ‘vintage reserve’).