South Africa’s wine tourism has been rated the best-developed in the world by International Wine Review, one of the world’s most influential opinion formers on wine.
Wine tourism is growing fast worldwide and plays an especially important role in South Africa. The country’s reputation for making high-quality wine is centuries old, but has aged as fine as its irresistible reds.
The world had largely forgotten it by the time apartheid ended some two decades ago. But since then, the industry has rapidly modernised, and South African winemakers have reacquainted themselves with the rest of the wine-loving world – and vice versa.
Today, the best of South African wine is up there with the rest.
During their review, the publication’s editor Don Winkler and publisher Mike Potashnik visited the winelands in December 2011 to evaluate the country’s top premium and ultra-premium wines, and at the same time evaluated its wine tourism.
“While the country is located far from most foreign wine lovers, it offers huge rewards to those who visit its wine country,” they wrote in their latest report.
“Most wineries have excellent tasting facilities and many have superb restaurants with spectacular mountain vineyard views.”
It is estimated that wine tourism now generates annual income in excess of R5-billion (US$590-million) while also being a major job creator. The total wine exports from South Africa stood at 350 564 774 litres in 2011, with Europe as its biggest buyer overall.
The sector has contributed significantly to economic growth and job creation in South Africa, having generated an estimated R4.3-billion (US$507-million) in 2009 alone.
Read the complete article with more backgrounds on Media Club South Africa
The site of International Wine Review
Photo courtesy of Q-one
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