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MICHAEL FRIDJHON: Top-end wine producers elated, while 2016 hit lower end hard
Many pundits have made fools of themselves by unsuccessfully predicting the demise of this segment of the industry, writes Michael Fridjhon
How South African wine producers feel about 2016 is likely to be determined by where their wines are to be found on the pricing pyramid. Those perched on the apex will reflect back on the year with satisfaction. Auction prices were the strongest yet, probably the result of a general consensus that the wines on offer were more deserving of enthusiastic purchase than ever before. The Nederburg Auction now represents a substantial selection of the very best of the generally more mature wines available to collectors. The Cape Winemakers Guild sale offers much younger examples. Its members include many of SA’s best producers. In 2016 in particular there was a palpable excitement about the wines that made the cut for inclusion in the October sale. Wine makers working the high end of the trade have equal reason to be satisfied: chardonnay in particular has swept back into focus, so estates with decent plantings of the great white Burgundy variety have found themselves managing allocations ...
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