Profile
Home |
South African Overview
SOUTH AFRICAN OVERVIEW
South Africa has developed, over the last 300+ years, a distinct quality of wine representative of some of the worlds finest.
Most International varietals seem to flourish in the Cape’s near perfect growing conditions, with the French grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz making the first wines.
The region has also developed some unique originals, with the advent of the Pinotage. One of our favorites!
Most of the Cape’s winegrowing regions are influenced by one of the two mighty oceans which meet at this southern most tip of Africa: the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans. Combine beneficial maritime influences like regular coastal fog and cooling sea breezes with a moderate Mediterranean climate, distinctive and varied topography, and diverse soils, and this brings together the most ideal conditions to create complex and unique wines.
With a wine making tradition and history dating back so many years, blends the restrained elegance of the Old World with the accessible fruit-driven styles of the New, making for wines which eloquently express the unique terroir of the Cape.
GEOLOGY
The Western Cape has some of the most ancient viticultural soils in the world. Huge pressures and upheavals over millions of years resulted in majestic mountain ranges on the Southern tip with steep slopes and deep valleys, soft folds and soaring peeks, and created a remarkable variety of mesoclimates and soil types in the process.
“If terroir is important, then the age of that soil and the way the soil is constructed is important. Age and the weathered character of that soil are essential to the eventual wine, whose journey started at the hair root tips of the vine. Our geology is like a craggy old sun-etched wild west gunslinger in Hollywood-it would be impossible to cram more evidence of character and age into one face, that’s us- and it makes our wines different. We call in the energy of memory. And when you can capture that spirit of place in a wine you strike something that resonates with authentic brilliance. It’s something extra in the wine that you sense, rather than taste” – Bruce Jack, South African Winemaker.
TOPOGRAPHY
South Africa’s topography is characterized by its diverse and distinctive landscapes, with magnificent sandstone mountains often resting on granite foothill bases which merge into undulating shale substrata hills.
The vineyards of the Cape are planted in wide variety of locations-hugging valley floors, clambering over hills, climbing steep mountain slopes, tucked beneath high peaks. This varied terrain offers not only a wide range of locations but also many different mesoclimates and soils in which to grow the various cultivars. Vineyards may be located from a mere 50 meters above sea level to over 600 meters in the mountains. A vast difference in height above sea level between the lowest altitude vineyards and the highest can be found on a single farm.
When it comes to aspect, in the Southern hemisphere the Southern and Eastern slopes are preferred for delicate varietals like Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc. Northern and Western slopes are warmer due to their higher inception of sunlight.
SOIL
The soils found in South Africa are very diverse mainly because of pronounced differences in topography and geology greatly impacting on mesoclimates and vine performances.
Various weather cycles and erosion by the sea, together with the pronounced and varied geography of the Western Cape, gave rise to great soil diversity over short distances. In the coastal zone the general pattern is Sandstone Mountains, often resting on granite intrusions, surrounded by shale at lower altitudes, whereas further inland shale parent material and river deposits usually predominate.
CLIMATE
Viticulture in South Africa occurs at latitude of 27-34 degrees South in a Mediterranean climate. The Western Cape is cooler than its position might suggest, with conditions that are ideal for growing a wide range of noble cultivars. The traditional winegrowing areas along the coastal zone are seldom 50 km from the ocean and experience beneficial coastal conditions, especially cool sea breezes. The temperate climate features warm summers and cool winters with frost rarely a problem.
The Cape Doctor:
This legendary- and sometimes ferocious southeasterly wind blows across the southwestern Cape during spring and summer months. Living up to its name, it inhibits the development of disease in the vineyards. The southeaster has a moderating influence on temperature, lowering it by several degrees. It occasionally brings rain to the most southern vineyards in the coastal zone and more seldom carries moisture to the vineyards beyond the first range of mountains.