Winemaking in South Africa

producers in the world – 10.8 million chl.

More than 50%

of wines are exported

The wine industry employs more than 300 thousand people

are concentrated in the South-West of the country within a

radius of 150 km from the capital Cape town

The total area of vineyards exceeds 100,000 hectares

World famous wines are from the region Stellenbosch, Paarl, Durbanville, Svartland, etc.

town Jan van Riebeek made a record that planted shortly

before the vineyards gave the first wine.
In the 19th century, during the war between France and England, South African wine had a chance to enter the international market, and wine production volumes increased 9 times in a short time.
At the beginning of the XX century, when the first regulatory and controlling organization was created — the United cooperative of winemakers of South Africa (KWV)
1973. - introduced classification of wines of South Africa. South Africa was the first country in the new world to apply the geographical principle of wine labeling
1994-the abolition of the apartheid regime and the return of South African wines to the international market

French AOR. Wine of Origin (WO), implies division into 4

levels. This classification refers to high quality wines
At the moment, there are more than 80 WO.
"Estate wine" - means local wine, ie grapes come from the territory of one estate, where the winery is located.
"Single vineyard" - grapes for wine comes from a separate vineyard, but it should not exceed 6 hectares.

District

Region

Unit

of wine production in South Africa.
Stellenbosch – one of the

most famous wine regions of South Africa and the second oldest after Constance. The first vineyards were broken in 1679. Stellenbosch accounts for 14% of total wine production. Vineyards lie on the slopes of the mountains Simonsberg, Gelderberg and Stellenbosch, at an altitude of 150-400 meters above sea level. The climate is significantly influenced by the ocean. In summer, the temperature is around 20 degrees, it is only slightly warmer than in Bordeaux. In Stellenbosch there are about 50 types of soil, in General – granite on the slopes of the mountains and alluvial Sands in the river valleys.
Durbanville - ocean breezes not only soften the African heat, reducing the average annual temperature to a moderate 19 degrees Celsius. Their influence minimizes the risk of fungal diseases of the vine, which grows on red granite soils