• Discover Yourself in South Africa
• A Thousand Memories
• iExplore South Africa

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South African Wine

South African wines are rightfully taking their place in international circles, winning competitions when blindly compared to the best-known wines of the world. In the U.S., they have slowly become more available, but the vast majority of South African wines are consumed within their own country, so tastings on a trip are an eye-opening joy.

The country’s mild climate and fertile soil are a perfect combination to produce the world-class wines vinophiles around the world are talking about. Fruit-forward whites from grapes such as chenin blanc, sauvignon blanc, and Riesling are popular, and reds include a local varietal, Pinotage, made from pinot noir combined with cinsault (otherwise known as hermitage), which was first produced in the wine area of Stellenbosch. South Africa has 13 wine routes encompassing hundreds of estates that produce thousands of wines. Where to begin?

Three popular routes are just outside Cape Town: Franschhoek, Stellenbosch and Paarl. If you enjoy winding through picturesque mountains and rolling vineyards dotted with historic Cape Dutch architecture, perhaps stopping to pick berries or sampling the wares at a cheese farm — not to mention doing leisurely tours and tastings of excellent wines in scenic settings and kicking back for a farm-fresh gourmet lunch at a 300-year-old wine estate — the Winelands are for you. Some people are satisfied with a half-day trip from Cape Town, while others could spend a week writing tasting notes at the scores of vineyards and fine-dining establishments in the region (make sure to ask for a table with a view of the vineyard) and laying their heads in several of the region’s memorable inns.

FRANSCHHOEK

About an hour from Cape Town, scenic Franschhoek has approximately 20 wineries and is considered the gourmet capital of the Winelands. Top tables include Le Quartier Francais, whose chef, Margot Janse, won Relais & Chateaux’s Rising Chef award in 2006; and La Petite Ferme, which has great seafood (try the local rainbow trout) and expansive views of the valley. Franschhoek (French Corner) became the home of Protestant French Huguenots who fled France due to religious persecution in the 1600s. There’s a Huguenot memorial and museum at the end of the town’s main road.

STELLENBOSCH

Only 35 minutes from Cape Town, Stellenbosch is known as the wine capital of South Africa, boasting nearly 100 wine estates. Founded by Simon van der Stel in 1679, it’s a quaint, charming oak tree-lined town which you can explore after you’ve had your fill of the grape. There is a good amount of historic architecture here (for details take a tour of the Village Museum), and it’s also a university town, which brings with it a lively population and a number of cultural venues.

PAARL

Old Afrikaans for “pearl,” Paarl is set under the enormous granite rocks of Paarl Mountain in the Berg River Valley. Settled in 1687, it has a charming Main Street and several cultural institutions — Paarl Museum, Afrikaans Language Monument and Museum — in addition to one of the most popular cellar tours in the winelands at KWV, whose 55-acre cellar is the largest in the world. Nederburg, one of the Cape’s best known wineries, is also based here on a large estate that’s the location of a high profile international auction of Cape wines every summer.

Amidst the villages of the Boland, sprawl the vineyards of the Helderberg Wine Route. The 23 members range from a 300-year old historical property to state-of-the-art boutique wineries.

The Klein Karoo Wine Route lies from Cogmanskloof, in the West, to Meiringspoort, in the East and consists of seven co-operatives and five private cellars, offering a symphony of wines.

Rawsonville Wine Route is relatively undiscovered territory for wine lovers yet yields championship status young wines. There are fourteen wine cellars in a radius of ten kilometers.

The Robertson Wine Route is known as the valley of wine and roses. 32 Members, including 11 co-operatives, 14 estates and 7 private producers are represented. The slopes of the Simonsberg, near Stellenbosch, provide one of South Africa's prime wine-growing areas for noble cultivars. Twelve wine farms are represented on the Simonsberg Wine Route.

Devon Valley, tucked away just to the west of Stellenbosch, is one of the Cape Winelands' best-kept secrets. Vines have flourished here since the 18th Century and the grapes from the 700 ha of vineyards have long been amongst the Cape's most sought after.

Meander through the scenic Swartland Wine Route and savour some of the Cape's finest wines. The Swartland Food & Wine Festival held in June every year is a gastronomic feast and presents a stellar cast of wines from the different Swartland Estates.

The Tulbagh Wine Route is home to new planted vineyards, towering mountains, countless national monuments and stunning scenery, and all only 120km North East of Cape Town.

Wellington is a scenic town on the southern tip of South Africa, close to Cape Town and is the primary producer of rootstock for South African vineyards with a viticultural heritage dating back to the French Huguenots.