Coastal Region/Breede River Valley

Question 1

Where is the Coastal Region located?

Answer 1

Around the original colony of Cape Town and along the western coast of the Cape.

Question 2

What are the eight districts of the Coastal Region?

Locations?

Answer 2

—Swartland
—Darling (SW corner of Swartland; not fully on the coast)
—Tulbagh (SE corner of Swartland)
—Wellington (South of Tulbagh, North of Paarl)
—Paarl (South of Wellington, North of Stellenbosch and Franschoek)
—Franschhoek Valley (South of Paarl, East of Stellenbosch
—Stellenbosch (South of Paarl, West of Franschoek Valley)
—Cape Town (introduced in 2017)South of Swartland and Darling on the western coast, East of Paarl and Stellenbosch (contains Constantia, Hout Bay, Durbanville and Philadelphia (last two previously under Tygerberg district)
**Tygerberg (repealed in 2017)

Question 3

What were the wards of Cape Peninsula District?

What are the wards a part of as of 2017?

Answer 3

—Constantia
—Hout Bay (like “out” with an h)

Now combined into the newly formed Cape Town District along with Durbanville and Philadelphia.

Question 4

What are the five estates that now occupy the historic Constantia vineyard?

Answer 4

—Groot Constantia
—Klein "little" Constantia
—Buitenverwachting "boy-ten-ver-vach-ten" (“Beyond Expectations”)
—Steeberg
—Constantia Uitsig

Question 5

Which estate revived the virtually extinct Vin de Constance?

Answer 5

Klein (“little”) Constance revived the virtually extinct style with new Muscat de Frontignan plantings in the 1980s.

Question 6

What climatic features promotes an ideal setting for dessert wines and cool-climate white grapes (Sauvignon Blanc) in Constantia?

Answer 6

Cool sea breezes blow northward from False Bay, and average February temperatures hover around 70° F, promoting a lengthy growing season

Question 7

What is South Africa’s most prominent winemaking district and where is it located?

Answer 7

Stellenbosch district “Town of Oaks”, across False Bay from the Cape Peninsula.

-has become the epicenter of viticultural and oenological research for the country, and it is a source of high quality red wines.

Question 8

What are the three peaks that surround the valleys of Stellenbosch?

Answer 8

—Simonsberg peak
—Stellenbosch peak
—Helderberg peak

Question 9

How much of South Africa’s wine is found in Stellenbosch?

Answer 9

Almost 1/5

Question 10

What soils are found in Stellenbosch?

Answer 10

-Some of the world’s most ancient soils ranging from:

• majority of the soils derived from granite and sandstone
• alluvial loam over shale on the valley floors to decomposed granite and sandstone on the hillsides.

Question 11

What are the two most planted varietals in Stellenbosch?

Answer 11

Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc

-followed by Merlot, Shriaz, and Chenin Blanc.

Question 12

What is the climate of Stellenbosch?

Answer 12

Maritime-influenced climate comparable to—but warmer than—Bordeaux

Question 13

Name two Cabernet Sauvignon based blends from Stellenbosch that have garnered praise?

Name three other highly regarded producers from the district?

Answer 13

—Warwick Estate’s “Trilogy”
—Meerlust’s “Rubicon,”

—Kanonkop “can-NON-cop” (a champion of Pinotage); main varieties Cab Sauv and Pinotage
—Rust en Vrede (“rust an vred-da”); estate is Cab Sauv, Shiraz, and Merlot
—Neil Ellis

Question 14

Name 7 wards of Stellenbosch

Locations?

Answer 14

—Bottelary: NW corner
—Polkadraai Hills “POLE-ka-DRY”: SW of Bottelary
—Devon Valley: SE of Bottelary
—Papegaaiberg “PA-pa-GUY-berg”: SE of Devon Valley

—Simonsberg Stellenbosch: NE corner; (has deep, reddish clay soils that create wines so bold they usually need to be cellared for several years to subdue their massive tannins. After waiting the right amount of time (usually 7 years), the Bordeaux blends and Syrahs review flavors of smoky black currant, black cherry, tobacco and cedar. These wines are perhaps the closest analog to Bordeaux.)
—Banghoek:SE of Simon/Stell, NE of Jonkershoek; very small, hilly region, a little cooler producing juicy, creamy, Cabernet-based wines that have less tannin than Simonsberg-Stellenbosch; area should be more known for their white wines withoutstanding acidity with Chard and Chenins; easy contenders for being some of the best Chardonnay in the country.
—Jonkershoek Valley: South of Simon/Stell and SW of Banghoek; Jonkershoek Nature Reserve, home to one of only six floral kingdoms of the world has over a thousand different species, some of which don’t grow anywhere else; limited number of wine producers, due to the fragility of the region.

Question 15

What district is the KWV located?

Answer 15

Paarl (“pearl”)

Question 16

Who is Paarl’s largest producer?

Answer 16

Nederburg

Question 17

Who was the first house to produce a botrytised dessert wine in South Africa?

Answer 17

Nederburg

Question 18

What is the the Nederburg Wine Auction? When did it begin?

Answer 18

An auction of rare Cape wines, has taken place in Paarl since 1975. In its first year, the New World’s oldest annual wine auction showcased Golden Liquid Nederburg Edelkeur.

Question 19

What two districts were once a part of Paarl, but are now their own district?

Answer 19

Franschhoek Valley and Wellington.

Question 20

Where is Cap Classique production increasing in the Coastal Region?
What mountain range surrounds the region?

Answer 20

Tulbagh

-a smaller district located to the north of Paarl and east of Swartland.

—The district is hemmed in on three sides by the Winterhoek Mountains.
—The district’s higher altitude creates a significant diurnal temperature shift; mornings can be exceptionally cool as cold overnight air sits trapped in the amphitheater formed by the mountains
—Cap Classique production is increasing.

Question 21

What “region” in South Africa use to exist solely for fortified wines? What districts did these appellations exist for?

Answer 21

Tug on my Welly to Pearl the Frenchie

The Boberg Region (repealed in 2019)
produced in Paarl, Franschhoek, Wellington, and Tulbagh?

Question 22

What are the three districts of Breede (“Broad”) River Valley?

Answer 22

—Breedekloof “BREE-da-KLUF” northernmost
—Worcester-south of Breedekloof
—Robertson- east of Worcester

(A fourth district, Swellendam, shifted to the new Cape South Coast region in late 2010)

Question 23

Where would you find almost half of South Africa’s Semillon?

Answer 23

In the district of Worcester, in Breede River Valley.

Question 24

What is the largest district in South Africa in terms of production?

Answer 24

Worcester district (within the Breede River Valley region)

—Along with the district of Breedekloof, the two districts produce
over 25% of the national volume of wine and spirits (generally brandy) and nearly 20% of the nation’s vine acreage is located in these two districts.

Question 25

What grape variety is emerging as a star in the district of Robertson?
What is the climate?
Notable producers?

Answer 25

Robertson (in Breede River Valley) is a higher quality area with particularly juicy Chardonnay; Shiraz emerging as one of the district’s finest varietal wines.
—Rainfall is low, summers are hot, but southeasterlies help to funnel cooling marine air off the Indian Ocean into the valley
—Graham Beck Wines (known for Cap Classique), Springfield Estate

Question 26

What soils are found in the Cape?

Answer 26

Boasts the oldest geology in the wine-growing world: ancient weathered soils, typically based on either granite, Table Mountain sandstone, or shale, which naturally curtail the vigour of the wines.

Question 27

Name three notable producers for Chenin Blanc in Stellenbosch.
Name one notable producer for old bush-vine Chenin in Swartland

Answer 27

—Ken Forrester
—Rudera
—De Trafford

—Sadie Family’s Palladius blend, based on old bush-vines in Paardeberg in Swartland, set a new standard.

Question 28

What are the 9 wards of Robertson?

Answer 28

—Agterkliphoogte
—Bonnievale
—Boesmansrivier
—Eilandia
—Hoopsrivier
—Klassvoogds
—Le Chasseur
—McGregor
—Vinkrivier

Question 29

What mountain range separates Stellenbosch from Paarl?

Answer 29

The Simonsberg separates Stellenbosch from Paarl (hence the Simonsberg-Stellenbosch and Simonsberg-Paarl wards).

Question 30

What mountain range rises in the SE part of Stellenbosch?

Answer 30

The Helderberg peak

Question 31

What is the group of like-minded wine-growers in the Swartland region of the Western Cape?

What are the requirements?

Answer 31

Swartland Independent Producers

(SIP) Quality Controls:
—Wines that carry the below logo must be grown, vinified, matured and bottled entirely within the Swartland WO.
—Swartland Independent Producers must bottle at least 80% of their production under their own labels.
—SIP wines are fermented entirely with ambient yeasts. Yeast nutrients are prohibited.
—SIP wines are not acidulated, nor do they contain added tannin.
—SIP wines may not be chemically fined, nor may they undergo any concentration processes (reverse osmosis, etc.)
—SIP wines contain a minimum 90% of the following varieties:
Red: Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache Noir, Carignan, Cinsaut, Tinta Barocca, Pinotage
White: Chenin Blanc, Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier, Clairette Blanche, Palomino (Fransdruif/Vaalblaar), Semillon (Groendruif)
—Wines may be aged in only European oak, with a maximum 25% new oak authorized.
—Wines must be bottled in a Burgundy-shaped bottle.

Question 32

What soils are found in Swartland?

Answer 32

Malmesbury Shale, sandy granitic soils, gravel

Question 33

Major natural feature in Swartland?

Notable producers of Swartland?

Answer 33

—Paardeberg Mountains

—Sadie Family Wines, A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines.