Recent Trips - South Africa

South Africa

The current economic climate is undoubtedly having an effect on the wine industry throughout the world, and this was very evident on my recent tour of South Africa. Without a particularly well developed domestic market, South Africa's producers are very reliant on exports. Their export markets, most noticeably the UK and the US, are feeling the squeeze, and passing it on to their suppliers. One leading South African winemaker told me that American importers are now looking for prices that are unviable. He said; "The only way to make these figures work is to double production, and forget about quality". Another indication of the problems facing growers in South Africa, is the movement, away from experimentation and the growing of less fashionable varietals, in favour of bankable commercial plantings. During my recent stay I tasted some great Rieslings and Semillons, but was told repeatedly that this would be the last vintage using these grapes, as the vines had been grubbed up to make way for more saleable varietals.

South African producers have fought to raise standards over the last 20 years, and they are now producing some superb wines. It would be a terrible waste if all those efforts were thrown away, and South Africa were to return to the ghetto of mass production.

Enough of the gloom and despond, South Africa is still a great place to visit. My tour started in Cape Town from where I visited wineries in Constantia and Cape Point. At Buitenverwachting Lars Maack took us through a range of his wines. Constantia's proximity to the ocean makes this one of SA's cooler regions, well suited to white wine production. This is evident in the elegantly structured Sauvignon Blancs and Chardonnays, but it was the reds that really impressed me here. Cool-climate they may be, but Lars' Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc still show great depth of fruit, ripe tannins and well integrated oak.

Further east on the outskirts of Stellenbosch the Grier family at Villiera, continue to prduce superb sparkling wines. I tasted their Brut Zero, which has sufficent body to balance its bone dry character. The Monro vintage 2005 shows attractive yeasty autolytic tones on the nose, complimented by soft ripe fruit and nicely balanced acidity. At Villiera we also got the first indication of the potential of Chenin Blanc. Chenin has long been the staple of the South African industry, and as such it is often little considered. It is a hugely versatile varietal and the Griers showed us tank and barrel fermented examples, both of which were superb.

Eastward again to Robertson, which should, by rights, be a warm climate region, but cooling south easterly breezes mean that this area is also suited to white wine production. At Springfield, I was fascinated by their high risk winemaking, using natural yeasts and minimal interference. Their whites are superb and illustrate the different terroirs on their property, but I was also taken by their bordeaux blend "The Work of Time" and their Methode Ancienne Cabernet Sauvignon. The region's suitability for white wine production is further illustrated at the De Wetshof Estate. Danie de Wet is probably South Africa's leading Chardonnay producer. He may look as though he would be happiest packing down in the 2nd row of a Springbok pack, yet he produces white wines with a rare delicacy and finesse. I always enjoy his entire range, but for me the Lesca/Finesse always stands out.

From Robertson, south to Hermanus and Hamilton Russell. The wines here are pure class. I know comparisons are envidious, but Anthony's Pinot Noir and his Chardonnay, both stand comparison to Burgundy. His Southern Right range is also now showing some complexity and depth. The Pinotage may serve to convert some doubters to the cause of this difficult grape variety. Then on to a new winery (for me), Creation Wines are set in the hills behind Hermanus,and are making a superb range of wines. I was particularly impressed with their Viognier and their Bordeaux blend. They are working with young vines, but I feel that their Pinot Noir has great potential.

Staying in cool climate regions, we moved north and east to the town of Elgin, once an area dominated by apple orchards. Here ex neuro-surgeon Paul Cluver has established a winery concentrating on cool climate grape varieties. He produces superb, but largely uncommercial Rieslings, which went some way to converting the group to thie joys of this great varietal. The outstanding wines here however were Paul's fantastic Pinot Noirs, which created a "road to Damascus" moment for one of the group, who discovered that Pinot Noir was the varietal he has been searching for. The Pinots here show subtle red fruit characters in youth, with delightful, soft, supple tannins, giving a velvety mouth feel. We tasted a number of vintages, back to 2000, and these showed that the Cluver Pinot Noirs have fantastic ageing potential. I was also impressed by Paul's Chardonnay, which has great intensity, coupled with great subtlety and finesse. This is a style which caused many to rethink the current predjudice against Chardonnay.

From Elgin we moved up to Franschhoek to visit wineries there and to Stellenbosch, which is really the heartland of the South African wine industry. A visit to L'Ormarins, in Franschhoek, proved to be as interesting for the remarkable motor museum as for the wines. The Rupert family have amassed a superb collection of vintage Bugattis, Ferraris and assorted collectables from around the world. The museum contains millions of pounds worth of beautiful cars, a petrolhead's dream. The wines are interesting, without ever being quite as stylish as the automobile exhibits. Their sister estate La Motte is equally stylish, with a great restaurant and an art gallery. I found the wines here more interesting, I was particularly struck by their Shiraz/Viognier blend and their Grenache.

From La Motte we continued on to visit my old friend Gyles Webb at Thelema Mountain. The atmosphere here was somewhat fraught as the pump on one of their two presses had blown up, just as they reached the peak of harvest. Gyles remained remarkably calm about the whole situation and still found time to chat about his wines. He has long been recognised as one of South Africa's finest winemakers. He now produces wines under two labels, his Sutherland wines are produced from fruit grown on his vineyards in Elgin, while the Thelema Mountain range is made from grapes grown in the warmer climes of his Stellenbosch estate. Of the Thelema wines, his Sauvignon Blanc remains a benchmark for the varietal in South Africa, and he shows a sure hand in dealing with all the red Bordeaux varietals. My personal favourite is his Cabernet Sauvignon called "The Mint", the vineyard from which this wine is produced is surrounded by eucalyptus trees, and these impart a distinctive, and attractive menthol character to the finished wine. This mintiness is combined with sappy fruit and a strong backbone of ripe tannins. A great wine.

After a thorough run through of all Gyles' wines from both estates, we moved on to Kanonkop for a Snoek barbecue and a look at what Pinotage can be like at its best. Kanonkop are the acknowledged kings of Pinotage, a grape variety first produced in South Africa in the 1920's. It is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault, and at its best it combines the silky tannins of the former with the more rustic charms of the latter. We tasted examples from 2008 and 2001, which showed that this varietal can be attractive in youth and yet have considerable aging potential. However, this winery is no "one trick pony", they also produce a superb Bordeaux style red, called Paul Sauer, which is a densely packed wine with rich fruit and delightful spicey oak.

Our last visit was to Warwick Estate, where we tasted another superb Pinotage, before moving on to their Three Cape Ladies. This was originally a blend of Cabernet, Pinotage and Merlot, but in recent years a small amount of Shiraz has been added to the blend. This has added a fullness and roundness to the wine and added to its complexity. Warwick's flagship wine is the Trilogy, a Bordeaux blend that combines elegant blackcurrant fruit and cedary oak. We tasted the 2008 which was still very youthful but showed great balance and promise for the future.

During my last two visits to South Africa I have been impressed by the overall quality of the wines the country has to offer. I have tasted some superb Chenin Blancs, wonderful Riesling and numerous excellent Sauvignon Blancs. All of the red varietals perform well in South Africa's diverse wine growing regions. The Bordeaux blends from the warmer regions are superb, complex and structured. Pinot Noir from Elgin and Hermanus can compete with the finest around the world and I have found a number of very pleasing Pinotages.

On returning to the UK I was struck by the fact that this diversity and quality is not reflected in the South African wines on sale here. We are mainly offered high volume brands that are made to meet a ridiculously low price point. The finer wines that really show the intrinsic worth of South African wine are generally only sold via the restaurant trade. With this in mind, I am increasing the listings of quality South African producers on the web site. I have selected wines from people who I consider to be the best winemakers in South Africa. These are wines of character that truly reflect what the country's winemakers are achieving, and fully illustrate the tremendous diversity and complexity that is South African wine. For further details, check out the wines listed on the
Wines - South Africa pages.