Comments on: The Final BRIC: South African Wine http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/ Tue, 21 May 2013 21:21:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Jen@Cybercellar http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2133 Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:44:56 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2133 Enlightening and thought provoking article. Your last paragraph sums it up perfectly-”Mother nature and human nature are both very fickle and wine cannot help but reflect them both.” But then again (in the words of John Dunn) “Grapes are the most noble and challenging of fruits”
Either way it is a challenge but I think South African wine will get there…and sooner than we think.

]]> By: Mike Veseth http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2132 Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:51:29 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2132 Thanks, John. Sounds like you had a great visit.

]]> By: Mike Veseth http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2131 Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:50:58 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2131 I agree, Chris, and I think they have several strengths — there is great terroir diversity to exploit if consumers can be educated to appreciate the regions and their particular strengths. I think there might even be a place for quality “Steen” (the local name for Chenin Blanc) in the export strategy. I think I’ve read that Steen is the most planted white grape, used mainly for basic wines for the domestic market. It would be interesting if this underappreciated variety turned out to by South Africa’s signature export wine. A long shot, I suppose. Thanks for writing.

]]> By: Kris Chislett http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2130 Mon, 21 Feb 2011 04:02:13 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2130 Great article Mike. I still think South Africa has a long was to come in terms of people seeing value in their wine, rather than buying the occasional bottle for “novelty” purposes.
They need to focus on their strengths. I think there is still a home for Pinotage (done right), but I have tasted some excellent Bordeaux blends coming out of South Africa.

]]> By: John http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2123 Sun, 20 Feb 2011 15:09:28 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2123 Mike,
Great post on South Africa. We had the privilege of visiting the winelands near Cape Town two years ago. You might enjoy my summary of what we found:
http://winepeeps.com/2009/03/31/south-africa-reflections-on-an-amazing-trip/
John

]]> By: Tom Lynch http://wineeconomist.com/2011/02/20/the-final-bric-south-african-wine/#comment-2122 Sun, 20 Feb 2011 14:52:29 +0000 http://wineeconomist.com/?p=3481#comment-2122 This is an interesting and well done article. However, by giving only the Nielsen sales figure for SA wine sales in 2010, you’re not giving a clear picture. Nielsen reports typically only cover the largest grocery chain sales. A better gauge of any imported wine would be numbers from Gomberg or Impact, which show the quantity of wine imported. Both of those numbers show a long-term growth trend for SA wines in the US, including Gombers showing growth of SA wine imports to the US of 18% in 2010.

Why the discrepancy? SA wines do try to compete in large chain stores, like they do in the UK. But this is not a high-margin channel, and most SA wineries prefer to focus on restaurant and bottle shop sales where staff can introduce the wines and help consumers learn more about the brands.

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