10 good things to know about South African vintages

Beijing, a city with a vibrant international dining scene, has seen many interesting wine-pairing dinners and events. Everybody seems to know one or two things about how to match Chinese food with French and Italian wines, but what about South African wine?

Wines from South Africa cannot be found in every supermarket and convenience store in China, but they have rapidly gained popularity in recent years for having great value and quality.

During a recent wine dinner presented by the South African embassy in Beijing and Wines of South Africa, 11 South African wines were selected to pair with traditional Beijing dishes, and it was excellently put together.

Here are some notes for your next wine shopping or food-pairing experiment.

1 South Africa is considered a New World wine country, but its winemaking history dates back over 350 years and its soil is among the richest.

2 South Africa is the ninth largest wine producer in the world, accounting for about 4 percent of the world's wine.

3 Pinotage is South Africa's very own grape variety, like malbec to Argentina, but the most commonly planted red-wine grapes in South Africa are cabernet sauvignon. South Africa's most planted white wine variety is chenin blanc. The country also produces all the classic global varieties, including sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, riesling, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, pinot noir and syrah.

4 South African wines are typically higher than average in alcohol content. It's normal to see the alcohol percentage on a random wine bottle to be above 14.

5 Despite its African geography, the country's major grape planting area, mostly around Cape Town, enjoys a Mediterranean climate. The mountain slopes and valleys form ideal landscapes for growing grapes. The Cape Winelands region is called Route 62, which is the longest wine route in the world.

6 The most famous wine regions in South Africa are Constantia, Stellenbosch and Paarl. Constantia is best-known for making elegant white wine and naturally sweet dessert wine.

7 The roots of the country's wine industry can be traced to the landing of Dutch settlers in 1652. They brought vines and built vineyards to sell wine to the Dutch East India Company merchant ships.

8 Compared with traditional Old World wines, South African wine can be found at a lower price for similar quality.

9 In the late 20th century, the wine industry of South Africa started to receive more attention and open up after years of control by the KWV cooperative and global trade sanctions.

10 South Africa's distinctive variety pinotage is strong and intense, which pairs well with red meat. When it comes to traditional Beijing dishes, Peking duck is the top pairing choice with pinotage. The light and crisp chenin blanc is great to drink with Beijing-style sauteed prawns and chrysanthemum Mandarin fish. The country's sweet dessert wines, meanwhile, pair well with almond and milk pudding, a royal-style Beijing dessert.

Jiang Wanjuan's Best Bites of Beijing is published on Fridays online at chinadaily.com.cn and covers the latest happenings in the capital's dining scene.

jiangwj@chinadaily.com.cn

South African reds pair well with Peking duck as well as red meat. Photos Provided To China Daily