South Africa

South Africa is currently the world's seventh largest wine producer, however it has only about 1.3% of the world's vineyards.

The climate is more or less Mediterranean - the summers are long and hot, the winters cold, wet and blustery. However, the key wine regions are scattered all over the Western and Northern Cape so you can imagine there is some variation between them.

South African vineyards have been dominated by white wine grape varieties but the trend is moving towards a more even split between red and white. Chenin Blanc has long been the dominant white variety but in the past few years both Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay have become increasingly popular. On the red front Cabernet Sauvignon is the most widely planted international variety, the other Bordeaux varieties, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, have also become more prolific. Other varieties on the rise include Shiraz, Pinot Noir and the Cape's very own crossing of Cinsault and Pinot Noir; Pinotage.