South Africa is one of the most important wine producing countries in the southern hemisphere. With over 300 years of wine making history, it is often described as a bridge between the Old and New Worlds. The majority of wines are produced using New World winemaking techniques, but they often have more stylistic similarities with their Old World counterparts. Since the end of apartheid, South African wine has received international attention and recognition for its wide variety of styles.
The South African wine industry is spread across the lush and rugged landscape of the Western Cape. Here, the abundance of mountains, valleys and plateaus allows winemakers to produce a wide variety of styles. Wineries can also be found in the Orange River region of the Northern Cape, where the flat, arid landscape is dominated by the Kalahari Desert. Most of South Africa's wine regions have a MediterraneanClimate, strongly influenced by the meeting of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
The country's signature Grape is Pinotage">Pinotage, an indigenous cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut that is rarely found in quantity in any other wine producing country. Shiraz is also widespread, as are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (often combined in a Bordeaux blend).
However, white grape varieties account for 55% of the country's 96,000 hectares of vineyards. Chenin Blanc is the most planted grape variety in the republic with 18.
From Croatia where it is called crljenak kastelanski or pribidrag. According to genetic analyses carried out by Professor Carole Meredith of California University in Davis (United States), it is related to the Croatian plavac mali and Zinfandel. It is also found in South Africa, New Zealand, Chile, Brazil, Germany, Bulgaria, Albania, Italy under the name of Primitivo, Malta, Greece, Portugal and to some extent in Croatia. In the United States (California), it is one of the most widely planted grape varieties, having been introduced in the 1830s well before Primitivo. In France, it is registered in the official catalogue of vine varieties on the A1 list under the name Primitivo.
sparkling wines from the region of South Africa go well with generally quite well with dishes of rich fish (salmon, tuna etc), shellfish or vegetarian such as recipes of niçoise salad, californian sushi (reverse maki) or quiche with leeks and fresh salmon from flo.
On the nose in the region of South Africa often reveals types of flavors of tree fruit, citrus fruit or red fruit and sometimes also flavors of tropical fruit, microbio or non oak. In the mouth in the region of South Africa is a powerful with a nice balance between acidity and tannins.
St-Emilion’s Wine Council announced its eagerly-anticipated ranking this afternoon, bringing a decade of disputes and court battles to an end. The classification awards Premier Grand Cru Classé A status to just two producers, while it also recognises 12 Premier Grands Crus Classés (B) and 71 Grands Crus Classés. These rankings can cause a winery’s value to soar – they have been likened to the Michelin guide for restaurants – so winemakers across the region awaited the results with bated breath t ...
For the first time in our history, Decanter Fine Wine Encounter opened its doors in New York City and what an incredible day of wine tasting for everyone who visited. 50 prestigious wine producers from all over the world arrived to pour their top wines for Decanter’s diverse and enthusiastic attendees. Guests had access to more than 200 fine wines and the opportunity to attend four sensational masterclasses. See photo highlights from the day below. Thanks to all of the producers and guests for m ...
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