South Africa Study Guide Flashcards
Who is responsible for founding the Dutch East India Company and establishing Cape Town’s first vineyard in 1655?
Jan van Riebeeck
French Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in their homeland brought a new wealth of winemaking knowledge to what Coastal Region district? When was this?
Franschhoek Valley
1680s and 1690s
Who was the original owner of Constantia and what was the wine of the estate called that was the first New World to seen throughout the Royal Courts in Europe? When was this? What was the grape and what is it known as in South Africa?
Simon vad der Stel
Vin de Constance
1685
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains known as Muscat de Frontignan or Muscadel
After Simon van der Stel’s death in 1712, the Constantia estate was split in two. What became the most famous estate from this and who renovated it and continued to make Vin de Constance bringing it worldwide recognition?
Groot Constantia
Hendrik Cloete
When did Powdery Mildew and Phylloxera hit South Africa? What did this do to the wine industry of South Africa? What further compounded the damage done by the arrival of these plagues?
Latter half of the 19th century.
Destroyed it
British abolishment of preferential tariffs in 1861. This renewed competition between French wines and those of the Empire.
How were many wines produced in South Africa treated in regards to production in the latter half of the 19th century causing them to pale in comparison to the better French and German wines?
They were heavily treated with SO2 and fortified with brandy
What challenge in regards to exporting made it difficult to compete with the French for the British export market?
The length of distance and transit from South Africa to Britain compared to the short trip from France
What does KWV stand for? What is it? Why was it created? What regulations did it enact? What effect did this have on the South African wine industry?
Ko-operative Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Zuid-Afrika
It is a cooperative of wine producers and growers
Created to curtail the plummeting prices and over-supply of wine following the replanting of South Africa with high yielding vines on American rootstocks.
Fixed minimum prices, determined areas of production and established production limits.
Their regulation favored large producers and rewarded lower quality in favor of quantity
When did the domestic market in South Africa shift taste preference away from fortified wine toward dry table wine?
mid 20th century
What spurred a great renewal in the wine industry in 1994 and 1997 respectively?
The end of apartheid and the transformation of the KWV into a private company.
How did the privatization of the KWV promote a shift in production towards quality in 1997?
The KWV relinquished its statutory powers and scrapped quotas, encouraging growers to focus on quality
What does SAWIT stand for? When was it established? Why?
South African Wine Industry Trust created in 1999
Established to speed the transformation of South African wine and to empower black workers in an industry that had long relied on slave-and apartheid-era labor practices
What is South Africa’s appellation system known as? When was this introduced?
Wine of Origin
Introduced in 1973
What is a grape variety called in South Africa?
cultivar
How do South African producers receive Wine of Origen certification for their wines?
They submit a sample of the wine for evaluation by a tasting panel, which confirms that the wine shows the correct organoleptic qualities for it cultivar and age.
How many cultivars are approved for Production under the Wine of Origen scheme in South Africa?
75
What is the min % of a labeled grape required to receive Wine of Origen status as a varietally-bottled wine?
min 85% as of 2006
If a wine is a blend of grapes, what is the min % of a grape labeled that must be present? Are blends cofermented or vinified separately?
Any grape labeled must be present at minimum of 20%
vinified separately
What is the min % that must be present of the following items if listed on a wine label for Wine of Origen certification? Grape, vintage, area of production?
Grape:
min 85% for varietal
min 20% of grapes labeled for a blend
Vintage: min 85% of stated vintage
Area of Production:
100%
What are the four types of production areas for Wine of Origen in descending order of size?
Geographical Unit
Region
District
Ward
For WO single vineyard wines, what % of the fruit must come from the stated vineyard? What is the maximum size that the vineyard may be?
100% of fruit must come from stated vineyard
less than 6ha is the max size
For WO estate wines, where must they be produced from in regards to vineyard locations and winery location?
Must be produced from contiguous parcels of vineyard land, and vinified and bottled on a single property.
If a producer decides to forgo WO certification, what is not allowed to present on the wine labels?
vintage, varietal, or area of production
How does a South African wine qualify to be marked as a “sustainable wine of origin” rather than marked with the basic WO seal? Who issues this certification? What guidelines does this organization set in regards to production?
The winery complies with sustainable environmental standards.
Integrated Production of Wine Scheme (IPW) authorizes this certification through the SA Wine and Spirit Board
They set guidelines for agriculture, manufacturing, and packaging practices
What criteria are wineries judged on to determine eligibility by the SA Wine and Spirit Board for IPW certification? (5) What is the min score a winery must receive in order to obtain IPW certification?
worker safety measures handling of wastewater carbon emissions use of pesticides and other chemicals vineyard biodiversity
Winery must obtain a minimum of 60%
What are the 5 large geographical areas of South Africa?
Western Cape Northern Cape Eastern Cape Kwazulu-Natal Limpopo
What are the 5 production areas of the Northern Cape? (2 districts, 3 wards)
Districts:
Douglas
Sutherland-Karoo
Wards:
Hartswater
Central Orange River
Rietrivier FS
What is the single ward of the Eastern Cape?
St. Francis Bay
In what Geographical Area of South Africa does most South African wine production occur?
Western Cape
What are the 6 regions of the Western Cape Geographical Area?
Coastal Region Cape South Coast Breede River Valley Klein Karoo Olifants River Boberg
What kind of climate do the Regions of the Western Cape Geographical Region experience?
Mediterranean
What is the name of the cool ocean current that flow north from Antarctica to South African coastal areas?
Benguela Current
What is the name of the most famous wind current that blows across the Western Cape throughout spring and summer? What direction does it blow? What benefits does it provide for the vineyards?
Cape Doctor
Southeasterly wind so it blows northwest
inhibits fungal disease and moderates the temperature in the vineyards.
What is the Western Cape’s southernmost district? What region is it within?
Cape Agulhas
Cape South Coast Region
