South African wine needs to rejuvenate image, says top winemaker

We need to “jack up brand South Africa” in the UK, says Vergelegen’s winemaker, who believes Cabernet Sauvignon should be the country’s flagship grape.

Nielsen figures to the end of May show that the South African category has fallen sharply in the UK off-trade in the last year, dropping 11% by volume and 5% by value. But Vergelegen’s managing director Don Tooth says most of the fall in volume can be attributed to the bottom end of the market.

“The story behind brand South Africa needs to be expressed a lot better. WOSA are doing good work but there’s a big discrepancy between what we’re making and traditional entry level wines.”

Tooth said that South Africa’s tiny share of the above £8 wine market was a sad “indictment” of its efforts. Over £8 accounts for 2.6% of the total market, and South Africa makes up only 3-4% of that - way behind France, New Zealand and Australia.”

He said in order to boost its image South Africa needs to “influence the influencers” and demonstrate how good value South African wine is compared to quality equivalents from other countries.

André van Rensburg, winemaker at Stellenbosch’s Vergelegen winery, told Harpers: “Without a doubt Cabernet Sauvignon is the most royal of grape varieties- there’s not a nanosecond’s hesitation in my mind. You’ve just got to find the right soils for it.”