In 2010 there are many opportunity to travel country to country, vineyard to vineyard. One of the most valuable from them is South Africa. Their politics and society is much clearer that was in the 80’s that’s why we can meet same conditions as other countries’ wineries. Let’s discover together wineries of Africa’s bead.
South Africa is somewhere between New and Old world wine making. In the past few decades the country’s wine industry try to step out within its borders. To tell the truth with many success. They make more fashionable product and export many bottles yearly. South Africa is one of the few country where not Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay is the leader. Chenin Blanc is. We can found here rare grapes like Colombard or Pinotage as well.
The majority of South Africa’s wine regions are located in the Western Cape. There are six main regions in the country with 270.000 acres.
One of the oldest region in SOuth Africa is The Stellenbosch district. This region provides 15-20% of the annual wine production in the country. Its climate is similar to Bordeaux’s. Our suggestion from this region Indaba Shiraz with chocolate flavor.
At the foot of the Heldenberg Mountain we can find Durbanville region. Try a white wine hinted by citrus and gooseberry: Moulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc.
The Breede River Valley, located east of the Drakenstein Mountains, is a warm climate region that can very dry and arid in some places. Despite of this fact the River is more beautiful than we thought.
Now let’s discover the biggest wine region in the country. This is Constantia which located south of the Cape Town. This region has great history. Vin de Constance was drunk by Napoleon when exiles on St. Helena. Beside table wines we found an excellent high value red: Vergelen Premium Red Cabernet Sauvignon.
One of the most interesting place is the Walker Bay. It has cooler climate because this is the most southerly wine region here. Cooler that’s why farmers like to plant Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. An exciting rarity is The Ruins Chardonnay/Viognier from 2007.
Despite the fact that FIFA World Championship will held this year in South Africa, the other reason to visit this country is the wine. Grapes like the country’s climate, you can find several rarities, so do not hesitate and travel to the most developing country of Africa.
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