South African wine has a history dating back to 1659, with the first bottle being produced in Cape Town by its founder and governor Jan van Riebeeck. Access to international markets led to increased investment in South Africa's wine industry. Production is concentrated around Cape Town and almost exclusively located within the Western Cape province, with major vineyard and production centres at Constantia, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Worcester. There are approximately 60 appellations within the Wine of Origin (WO) system, which was implemented in 1973, with a hierarchy of designated production regions, districts, and wards. Wines must only contain grapes from the specific area of origin. "Single vineyard" wines must come from a defined area of less than 6 hectares. An "Estate Wine" may be produced from adjacent farms if they are farmed together and wine is produced on-site. A ward is an area with a distinctive soil type or climate and is roughly equivalent to a European appellation.
History
The roots of the South African wine industry can be traced to the explorations of the Dutch East India Company, which established a supply station in what is now Cape Town. A Dutch surgeon, Jan van Riebeeck, was assigned the task of managing the station and establishing vineyards to produce wine. This was intended to ward off scurvy amongst sailors during their voyages along the spice route to India and the East. The first harvest was made on 2 February 1659 (as noted in Van Riebeeck's log), seven years after the landing in 1652. The man succeeding Van Riebeeck as governor of the Cape of Good Hope, Simon van der Stel, sought to improve the quality of viticulture in the region. In 1685, he purchased a large 750 hectares (1,900 acres) estate just outside Cape Town, establishing the Constantia wine estate. After Van der Stel's death, the estate fell into disrepair, but was revived in 1778 when Hendrik Cloete purchased it.
Many growers abandoned winemaking and instead planted orchards and alfalfa fields to feed the growing ostrich feather industry. The growers that did replant with grapevines chose high-yielding grape varieties such as Cinsaut. By the early 1900s, more than 80 million vines had been replanted, creating a wine lake. Some producers would pour unsaleable wine into local rivers and streams. The imbalance between supply and demand that caused depressed prices prompted the South African government to fund the formation of the Koöperatieve Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Zuid-Afrika Bpkt (KWV) in 1918. Started as a co-operative, the KWV soon grew in power and prominence, eventually setting policies and prices for the entire South African wine industry. To deal with the wine glut, the KWV restricted yields and set minimum prices that encouraged the production of brandy and fortified wines. For much of the 20th century, the South African wine industry received minimal international attention. Its isolation was exacerbated by the boycotts of South African products in protest against the country's system of apartheid. It was not until the 1990s, when apartheid ended and the world's export market opened, that South African wines experienced a renaissance. Many producers in South Africa quickly adopted new viticultural and winemaking technologies. The presence of flying winemakers from abroad brought international influences and focus on well-known varieties such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. The reorganisation of the powerful KWV co-operative into a private business spurred further innovation and improved quality. Vineyard owners and wineries who had previously relied on the price-fixing structure that bought their excess grapes for distillation were forced to become more competitive by shifting their focus to the production of quality wine. In 1990, less than 30% of all the grapes harvested were used for wine production meant for the consumer market, with the remaining 70% being distilled into brandy, sold as table grapes and juice, or discarded. By 2003, the numbers had been reversed, with more than 70% of the grapes harvested that year reaching the consumer market as wine. In the 21st century, there has been a focus on the growing collective of black winemakers in South Africa. Several black entrepreneurs whose ancestry faced the system of apartheid rose into winemaking prominence, such as Ntsiki Biyela and Paul Siguqa.
Climate and geography
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