Like, Get It Together, South Africa!
filed under: Regional Spotlight

I just finished reading one of the best pieces of wine writing I've ever read, in no doubt because it's one of the rare pieces that actually lends real world perspective to wine instead of just playing up the "romance" that's so frequently associated with all things vinous.
In Michael Franz's poignant portrait of South African wine at WineReviewOnline, he speaks frankly - and eloquently, I might add - about incredibly troubling things going down near the cape...,
mostly having to do with racial inequality but also with some pretty crazy political goings-on that smack scarily of the third world. In one particularly memorable revelation he relates that less than 1% of the land under vine in South Africa is under black ownership, management or control. Yep - pretty disturbing. Franz - who "moonlights" from wine writing as a poli sci professor - makes a good case that for South African wine to move to the next level on the international wine scene, some serious stuff needs to happen at the political and industry level first. Thanks for a great piece, Michael.
Read the entire thing here
Learn more about South Africa's wine industry at Wines of South Africa
Posted by Courtney on October 3, 2008 06:26 PM