Wine making in South Africa started back in 1659. Although the main purpose of growing wine may have been to avoid scurvy among the sailors of the Dutch East India Company. Constantia, not far from today’s Cape Town, quickly became famous for its wines. Chenin Blanc and Muscat, both grapes imported from France, were used in the beginning. Thanks to the climate, similar to the Mediterranean, most of the vineyards in South Africa are located in what today is called the Western Cape region.
After the British took over Cape Town, the wine export to Great Britain grew quickly and the vineyards made a lot of money. But in 1866 an attack of phylloxera, a bug that kills the vine roots, devastated the South African wine industry. It took time but after the recovery from phylloxera South Africa produces too much wine. In order to control production, the Koöperatieve Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Zuid-Afrika (KWV) was founded in February 1918. KWV controlled not only the wine production but also set the prices. For many years, all wine production and sales in South Africa were done through KWV.
But over the years KWV has lost its power and independent vineyards started to produce high quality wines. Stellenbosch is the second oldest wine region in South Africa, after Constantia, production started back in 1679. Today, Stellenbosch is well known for its red wines. Around 14% of the total wine production in South Africa comes from Stellenbosch.
Chenin Blanc has long been the most popular grape in South Africa, today it makes up about 19% of the total production. Red wines were not common earlier but since the late 1990s, red grapes have been planted more and more. No South African grapes are used but Pinotage, a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut, was created in South Africa in 1925. In South Africa, Cinsaut is known as Hermitage, hence the name Pinotage for the new grape. Today, Pinotage makes up less than 7% of the total vineyard area. It is a required component in Cape Blends.
In addition to white, red and sparkling wines, South Africa also produces excellent fortified wines. The bottles are labeled port but in EU the word port can only be used by wines from the Duoro region in Portugal. The alcohol level is higher than in normal wines, generally between 17% and 20%. Especially the tawny port is an excellent drink after a dinner.