Top Ten South African Wine Stories for 2011

After reporting on issues that rocked the SA spittoon in 2010, our thoughts turn naturally to those bubbling under and which are likely to set the agenda for 2011.

1. Watch out for Sherry to explosively revitalize (like Glenn Close jumping out of the bath, kitchen knife in hand at the end of Fatal Attraction) the moribund market for fortified tipples as Asian fusion restaurants continue to make inroads into the SA restaurant scene. Sherry by the glass at Simply Asia to complement their spicy stir-fry beef, basil and chili will be a good start and the Spanish activities of Adi Badenhorst in the Swartland will make the deeply traditional suddenly über-fashionable.

2. When will someone blow the whistle on Viognier? Many of these over-alcoholized, perfumed fruit bombs that pass for dry whites are disgusting and should be outed. If you want something to co-ferment with Syrah, try Mourvèdre – it’s as hard to pronounce and just as French.

3. The departure of Lannice Snyman for the big three star restaurant in the sky will give local foodies the chance to rethink the whole San Pellegrino Top Fifty Restaurants in the World circus and their place in it. Choices over the past couple of years have been hilariously optimistic and bizarrely parochial.

4. SA exports to the UK are in freefall (bottled wine down 27% in the first nine months of 2010) and commentators expect things to get even worse when the numbers for the last three months appear. Stand by for a shake-up among marketing mavens with the establishment of targets against which performance can be measured and pressure for increased accountability and transparency.

5. A little Petit Verdot goes a long way and promoters of Bordeaux-style blends should seriously rethink the amount of PV they add to the mix as many recent red blends are too hard and tannic.

6. Embracing social media as an effective marketing channel will continue to gather pace and the ranks of dead-tree nogshleppers will be vigorously cut back as producers baulk at funding a court larger than that of King Henry VIII and less useful. Next Level wine writers to watch: David Cope, Clare Mack, Harry Haddon and Allister Kreft.

7. Tasting panels will be tightened up as producers insist on increased consistency and believability as the price for continued participation in a process which has become the major source of income for several magazines and entrepreneurs.

8. Boutique retail outlets will continue to take strain as consumers turn increasingly to online discount channels to fulfill their retail requirements.

9. Expect a rearrangement of the tectonic plates of corporate Big Wine as the current COWPEE/DGB/DISTELL/Graham Beck/KWV pentagon is structurally unstable.

10. Green and politically correct posturing: carbon footprints, organic farming, empowerment projects, sustainability and terroir-driven winemaking will unfortunately all take a back seat as producers struggle with sluggish domestic sales (especially at the top end) and exports which have fallen off the proverbial cliff. 2011 is shaping up to be a vintage to be survived.