South African Red Wine

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South African wine dates back to 1659 and Constantia was once considered one of the greatest wines in the world. Wine production in South Africa is mainly centred around Cape Town, with other productions centres at Stellenbosch, Paarl and Worchester, and a further 60 wine grown regions in the Wine of Origin (WO) system. Wine produced from these regions must have 100% grapes from their designated growing areas.

One of the most well known South African red wines and one that is unique to South Africa is pinotage which was developed in 1925. Other popular South African reds include cabernet sauvignon and red Rhone varieties, especially syrah which is also widely grown.

SA Wines have become fashionable in recent years due to the removal of trade sanctions, and lots of investments into new vineyards and hi-tech stainless steel wineries, and this has definitely put South African on the map as they are now rated in the international market, ranking 8th as the largest  producer.

The SA climate is ideal for wine growing because most of the wine regions are situated around the coast and exposed the Indian and Atlantic Ocean at the south tip of Africa. This complete exposure to the oceans creates a Mediterranean climate which exposes the vineyards to hot sunlight in the day time and cooler temperatures in the evening created by the sea breeze.

Stellenbosch is a very popular tourist destination in SA for wine lovers with various vineyards,  trails and inclusive accommodation to relax and enjoy a few days sampling the delicious samples from the region. Reds in Stellenbosch are grown in the east and whites in the west.

If you are looking for top quality South African red wines visit goodwineonline. They are one of the UK's most popular online wine stores with a large variety of South African red wines and other international wines.