Some Great Reward: South Africa

BY NEAL MARTIN | AUGUST 29, 2018

Wine regions are like vines. The more they struggle, the greater the reward. And let’s not beat about the bush, both South Africa and its wine industry endures more than its fair share of struggles. Apart from decades spent in the wilderness during apartheid, the country is driven by inequality where ramshackle, no-go townships spread for miles whilst armed guards protect hilltop mansions. Crime and violence are never far away. Then there is the seemingly unshakable stigma and prejudice towards the country from overseas, the ridiculing of Pinotage, and its trenchant inability to attract premiums for much of its wine, hence marginal profits and numerous wineries privately for sale on the market. Also consider a chaotic government that is apathetic towards the wine industry, at worst regarded as an unnecessary privilege of the minority white population, evidenced just as I was filing this report by the demise of Solms-Delta. 

This panorama cannot translate the breathtaking landscape of the Cape; this shot was taken just up from the winery at Thelema in Stellenbosch

The truth is that Cape is one of the most mind-bogglingly beautiful landscapes you will ever visit, where jagged mountains soar up to heavens and cascade into oceans; fynbos-covered hillsides are home to startling flora and fauna. There is poverty and inequality. Yet, visit a winery and so often you see how the industry benefits the local community irrespective of skin colour, providing not just stable jobs for pickers, but homes, schools and hospitals. Yes, there is crime if you look for it, however I have rarely met such friendly and joyous people as in South Africa. The Cape is a visceral, unforgettable experience. Every single person whose feet have touched South African soil returns with shattered preconceptions and a desire to return as soon as possible. Maybe it is my job to shatter the preconceptions attached to the wines.

I reiterate my claim that no country, no wine region has been as dynamic, progressive or indeed, as exciting as South Africa. It is almost unrecognisable compared to a decade ago. There is no avoiding the fact that yes, an ocean of substandard fermented grape juice continues to be churned out, tarnishing its reputation. But counter to this is a flourishing scene of “young Turks” rewriting or just ignoring rules, a burgeoning organic/natural wine movement, tangible improvements amongst established larger wineries and co-operatives, a constant pursuit to find untapped land suitable for high-standard viticulture, potentially lucrative oeno-tourism, co-operation between winemakers that would teach Bordeaux or Burgundy a lesson in how there is strength in togetherness, parcels of ancient vines whose contribution is only just being realized and a vast ocean of wine that in terms of value-for-money, is just unbeatable. 

The question is, despite setbacks and obstacles, how far can South Africa go? 

South Africa is the seventh largest wine producing country, although its global contribution to volume decreased from 4.1% to 3.9% in 2016. This reflects a drop in the number of wine growers from 3,232 to 3,145 in tandem with a decrease in hectares under vine from 98,597ha to 95,775ha. According to the most recent data, there are 586 wineries in South Africa, a figure that has remained fairly stable over the last ten years. However there is an upswing in micro-cellars crushing less than 100 tonnes, reflecting the burgeoning number of winemakers, especially young winemakers, without the financial means to buy their own land. At times you feel that almost every visit finishes with an invitation to taste the new label by a cellar hand. The truth is that these winemakers are often well worth investigating since they are often under the tutelage of a skilled and established producer. In this report, check out “Brunia” or “Die Kat se Snor”. Even Ewan MacKenzie, the sommelier who expertly assisted with my regional tastings, invited me to taste his own label “The Wine Thief” and hey, the wines were pretty good. All this movement and proliferation lends South Africa its sense of dynamism. It never sits still.

Grape Varieties

Initially I considered writing this report region by region (or “Wine of Origin” as it is known in South Africa) but on this occassion I will approach it by grape variety. Reading Stephen Tanzer’s last report, I concur that contrary to the widely held view, South Africa white grape varieties have the edge over red. Truth is that South Africa has ideal sites for high quality white wine production, reflected in the fact that of 2,095 hectares of newly planted vineyard in 2016, around 70% was dedicated to white varieties. 

White Varieties 

Chenin Blanc, or Steen as it is referred to in South Africa, remains the leading grape variety. Although it constitutes the most popular of new plantings, data shows that it is also the variety that is being pulled up more than others. Maybe that reflects a shifting of sites suitable for high quality production? One would like to think so. The reality is that there is a vast amount of Chenin Blanc cultivated for high volume, commercial production and so much is consigned to big name brands stocked on supermarket shelves. It is almost completely unrelated to the burgeoning move towards the kid-glove winemaking applied to propitious parcels of ancient Chenin Blanc with minimal intervention by gifted, quality-obsessed winemakers such as Chris Alheit or Lukas Van Loggerenberg. It is important to distinguish between these types of wine because, frankly, that difference is not always reflected in price. It is not like Burgundy where you will pay multiples for a Grand Cru vis-à-vis a modest Village Cru and hopefully reviews here will help you parse the wheat from the chaff. Suffice to say, at its best, South African Chenin Blanc is world class, though never as immediate as Chardonnay. Often the wines are quite subtle and demand some aeration to fully reach their zenith. Also, personally speaking, I quite enjoy the contribution when blended with its bedfellow of Sémillon, which lends a textural component to the wine.