Before we can start focusing on where the current state of viticulture and winemaking is in South Africa, we need to understand our roots. Who were the first people to plant vines, nurture them, harvest the grapes, and press them into wine? Understanding history provides perspective and it is with remarkable accuracy, thanks to a daily journal kept by Cape Towns founder, that we can retrace the history of viticulture in South Africa’s Western Cape.
On December 24th, 1651 Johan “Jan” van Riebeeck sailed 3 ships (The Dromedaris, The Rejiger, and The De Goede Hoop) from Texel in the Netherlands towards the Cape of Good Hope at the southern end of Africa. Jan van Riebeeck was contracted by the Dutch East India Trading Company to undertake command of the first settlement in the area, which needed to be established for ships requiring refreshment on their voyage to the East Indies along the spice route. The 3 ships landed on April 6th, 1652 and began work on building the Fort of Good Hope and its surrounding farming community. Fransdruif, Groendruif (also known as Sémillon), and Listán (also known as Palomino) were planted, and the territory had its first vineyards. There is a theory that the word Listán was translated to La Stan, then to De Steen, then finally to Steen, which is where a current synonym for Chenin Blanc in South Africa originated. The first winter experienced by the Dutch was extremely harsh and their gardens were washed away by the heavy rains. As a result, food supplies dwindled and by the end of winter approximately 19 men had died. In the mid 1650’s more vine cuttings were sent by the Dutch East India Company including Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains (known as French Muscadel) and Muscat of Alexandria, (also known as Hanepoot.) At the time it was falsely believed that the consumption of grapes or wine would cure cases of scurvy amongst sailors and the success of those initial vineyards was considered paramount to the success of the settlement. It wasn’t until February 2nd of 1659 that the Dutch were able to successfully produce their first wine from Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains. Jan Van Riebeeck’s journal entry that day was as follows: “Today, praise be to God, wine was made for the first time from Cape grapes, namely from the new must fresh from the vat.” After 7 years of living in the settlement that was plagued with difficulty, there was finally some forward progress made in the name of viticulture. Jan Van Riebeeck was commander of the colony at the Cape of Good Hope until he left in 1662. He was promoted to Secretary to the Governor-general of the Dutch East Indies and served there from 1665 to 1677 when he died in Indonesia. He never returned to the Netherlands.
356 years later, the South African wine industry has continued to have its constant ebb and flow of successes and failures. Phylloxera, Apartheid, and the KWV (all of which I will touch on in the future), provided major hurdles for the industry to overcome. Yet today, the wine being produced there is better than ever and the value for what is in the bottle has never been stronger. If it wasn’t for that initial Dutch settlement and its founding fathers, the landscape and the future of the wine industry in South Africa could be dramatically different. I look forward to seeing how the world responds to South Africa being an International focus for modern viticulture and I will continue to share what some have called “the best kept secret in the wine world – South Africa.”