The eighth biggest wine producer in the world, South Africa offers perhaps more variety and diversity than any other wine-growing country.
All the main wine regions are in the southwestern area of the Cape where conditions are most likely to mirror those of the Mediterranean.
Areas such as Paarl, Stellenbosch, Swartland, Walker Bay and Franschhoek have all become synonymous with top quality wines.
The most popular red wines are shiraz (syrah), cabernet sauvignon, along with cinsault (or cinsaut), pinot noir and the homegrown Cape favourite, pinotage.
Chenin blanc remains the white wine of choice although there are plenty of splendid examples of sauvignon blanc too.
Prices vary but it’s still possible to find a very good wine for less than £10, while the more expensive choices offer great value when compared with their European counterparts.
Any survey of South African wines needs to combine tradition and a lengthy wine-making heritage along with new ideas and challenging examples of change and experimentation.
So as well as sampling long-established varieties such as syrah, pinotage, cabernet sauvignon and chenin blanc, we’ve also looked at new blends and imaginative ways of presenting conventional grape varieties.
As with all premier wine-making countries, South Africa is having to adapt – not only to people’s tastes but also changing climatic conditions – and we’ve reflected that here.
Rhebokskloof Vineyard Selection Pinotage 2016
A grape variety that South Africa can proudly call its own, pinotage was first created there in the 1920s as a cross between pinot noir and cinsaut and has now become the country’s signature red wine. It does have its critics, though, with complaints in the past about a varnish-like, acetone aftertaste. Happily, this example from the renowned Western Cape region of Paarl, simply offers silky, dark-red fruit flavours with an intriguing, slightly smoky aroma. If you like pinot noir, it’s worth taking this step beyond.
Buy now £12.75, Corney & Barrow
Anthonij Rupert Optima 2014
From the west coast district of Swartland, some 25 miles due north of Cape Town, comes a medium-bodied Bordeaux blend of 41 per cent cabernet franc, 30 per cent merlot, 28 per cent cabernet sauvignon and one per cent petit verdot. Complex and structured with lashings of blackcurrant and an underlying spiciness, it’s easy to see why it has become the flagship wine from the historic L’Ormarins winery. Its name pays homage to producer Johann Rupert’s brother Anthonij, who died in a car crash in 2001.
Buy now £22, Berry Bros & Rudd
Lismore Pinot Noir 2017
There’s a sad story behind this striking example of South African pinot noir. Winemaker Samantha O’Keefe moved from California to produce wines that reflected the terroir of Lismore vineyard in the Western Cape. She succeeded brilliantly as this superb wine, with its strawberry and red fruit flavours shows. But then in December 2019 she lost her winery and her home in a wildfire that officials believe was started deliberately. A shipment of this 2017 cool-climate pinot noir was one of the last to leave the winery before the blaze. The public is being urged to buy it to help O’Keefe in her efforts to rebuild.
Buy now £28, Wine Society
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