Seminar paper from the year 2005 in the subject Business economics - General, grade: 1,0, University of Applied Sciences Bielefeld, course: Internationale Wirtschaftsbeziehungen, language: English, abstract: Although South Africa was not very famous for its beverages, esp. its wines, for long times and has gained fame in recent years only, the heritage of its vine-growing culture goes back to the mid of the 17th century. European settlers, predominantly from The Netherlands, started to plant first seedlings in the Cape region. It was Jan van Riebeeck, founder of the Cape colony, who brought the seedlings along from Europe in 1655. Some four years later, the first South African wine was ready to be drunk. However, as the Dutch were not too experienced with viticulture, real development took place only when French Huguenots settled in that region in the end of the 17th century. In the mid of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, these wines (e.g. the very sweet Constantia wines) were very popular all around Europe, particularly in the royal houses. But afterwards, the demand shrank to nearly zero. In 1973, viticulture was resumed in the African country. However, the wines were boycotted by the rest of the world due to the Apartheid problems within the country. Only from 1990 onwards, South African wine industry is recovering and nowadays belongs to the so-called “New World wines”, which also include products from Chile, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the United States (California).

- Most up-to-date analysis of South African wine - Author is an industry insider and acknowledged expert on the wines of South Africa - Author was named Domaines Ott* International Feature Writer Of The Year 2020 at the Louis Roederer Awards South Africa is the eighth largest wine-producer in the world and its wine industry is among the oldest of the New World. Today it is one of the globe's most dynamic industries, compact but diverse. In the past decade a new generation of winemakers has breathed life into centuries-old estates and new, boutique brands alike. The Wines of South Africa begins by introducing readers to the history of South African wine, starting with the arrival of the Dutch and the establishment of what would become Cape Town. Clarke then analyses South Africa's industry today including the geological, geographical, and climatic conditions that create the parameters and potential of South African wine. He describes the major grape varieties and wine styles and outlines the broad range of wines being produced. The book the current infrastructure of the industry paying particular attention to the role of Black and coloured people in the wine industry since the end of apartheid. Key challenges facing the industry are explored, including profitability and the loss of vineyards as farmers switch to higher-margin orchards; environmental concerns, the effects of climate change, and water conservation; and the legacy of apartheid and continued imbalances in the socioeconomic structure of the Western Cape. The major growing areas of South Africa are described in turn, including an explanation of the Wine of Origin scheme, and the most important producers operating in each one.

In this anthology, editors Kym Anderson and Vicente Pinilla have gathered together some of the world's leading wine economists and economic historians to examine the development of national wine industries before and during the two waves of globalization. The empirically-based chapters analyze developments in all key wine-producing and consuming countries using a common methodology to explain long-term trends and cycles in wine production, consumption, and trade. The authors cover topics such as the role of new technologies, policies, and institutions, as well as exchange rate movements, international market developments, evolutions in grape varieties, and wine quality changes. The final chapter draws on an economic model of global wine markets, to project those markets to 2025 based on various assumptions about population and income growth, real exchange rates, and other factors. All authors of the book contributed to a unique global database of annual data back to the mid-nineteenth century which has been compiled by the book editors.