Wine tourism in South Africa: from Cape Town to the winelands

Sitting on a stoep with the Stellenbosch mountains in the distance and a glass of estate Pinotage in hand is a fairly persuasive argument for booking a flight. South African wine tourism has quietly become one of the best versions of this anywhere, and it is still cheaper than the obvious alternatives.

Why go

The Cape offers a combination that is getting rare: serious wine at prices that do not sting, landscapes that make Napa look domesticated, and a wine culture that is both very old and recently reinvented. Winemaking here started in 1659, but the energy in the glass now comes from the post-apartheid rebuild.

The range is the surprising part. In one day you can taste cool-climate Chardonnay near Hermanus, bold Syrah from the Swartland, and Pinotage, which grows in quantity nowhere else on earth. The exchange rate has generally been kind to British visitors too.

The regions worth your time

Stellenbosch

Start here. Stellenbosch is the historic, prestigious end of South African wine, and the town itself is genuinely lovely, all oak-lined streets and Cape Dutch architecture. The wines are structured Cabernet Sauvignons that age, Bordeaux-style blends, and benchmark Pinotage.

The Stellenbosch Wine Route connects over 200 wineries. Kanonkop is the essential stop for anyone who cares about Pinotage, and you can taste the house style before you go with Kanonkop Kadette Pinotage at £19.49. Meerlust is the other name to have on the list, and Meerlust Rubicon at £40 is why.

Franschhoek

The French Huguenots settled Franschhoek in 1688 and the influence is still obvious in the restaurants and in the quality of the Cap Classique sparkling wine. It feels more polished than its neighbours: boutique hotels, serious kitchens, and wines that hold up internationally.

The Franschhoek Wine Tram is aimed squarely at visitors and is genuinely useful, because it removes the driving problem entirely. Boekenhoutskloof is based here, and The Chocolate Block at £28 is the bottle most people bring home.

Paarl

Paarl produces more wine than any other region in the country without that meaning compromise. It mixes historic estates with newer producers, and the wine styles are as bold as the landscape underneath Paarl Rock.

Fairview is the one to visit, as much for the goat cheese and the wine-and-cheese pairings as for the wine itself. Goats do Roam Red at £13.79 is the souvenir. KWV has cathedral cellars that are worth seeing for the history alone.

Swartland

Drive north to see where things are heading. The Swartland was written off as too hot and too harsh until fairly recently. It is now where the most interesting winemakers are working, mostly with old bush vines and very little intervention.

The landscape is wheat fields and ancient vines that have no business thriving in that heat. The wines match it: Chenin Blanc with a mineral spine, Syrah that tastes of smoke and stone. It is less developed for tourism, which means better value and fewer coaches. Marras Los Tros Chenin Blanc at £13.79 is a good preview.

Planning it

Harvest runs February to April and is spectacular, but book accommodation early. The shoulder seasons give you decent weather, manageable crowds, and cellar door staff with time to talk, which is usually where the good recommendations come from.

Winter, June to August, means fireplaces and very few tourists, though some estates cut their opening hours.

Hire a car. The roads are good and the regions are compact enough for day trips out of Cape Town: 45 minutes to Stellenbosch, another 20 from there to Franschhoek. If you would rather taste without counting, book a driver or join a tour.

Where to stay

Staying on a working wine farm is the fullest version of the trip. You wake up in the vineyard, and during harvest you can usually get involved and taste straight from barrel. Smaller estates tend to offer the more personal version of this.

Basing yourself in Stellenbosch or Franschhoek town gives you walking access to restaurants and short drives to the estates. Franschhoek has some of the country's best hotels.

Staying in Cape Town and driving out each day also works, since most regions are under an hour away, and you get the city in the evenings.

At the cellar door

Cape wine hospitality is warm, knowledgeable and generous with the pour. Most estates charge for tastings and usually refund it against a purchase. Food pairings have improved enormously in the last decade.

Many estates run tours covering everything from vineyard management to barrel ageing. At the smaller places the winemaker is often the person pouring, which is the best version of the experience.

Eating

The food developed alongside the wine, so the pairings tend to look after themselves. Cape Malay curry works with an off-dry white, and Chenin Blanc is the obvious local answer. A braai wants bold reds, so Pinotage or Syrah. Biltong goes with Chenin, bobotie with Pinotage, and fresh line fish with a coastal Sauvignon Blanc.

Several estate restaurants now compete with the best in Cape Town, so it is worth booking lunch somewhere good rather than treating food as an afterthought between tastings.

Bringing it home

Most estates will arrange international shipping, though bringing a case back in your luggage is usually cheaper. These wines age well, so the bottles you liked will keep improving.

After that, the practical problem is finding the same wines again. The better South African bottles do not reach UK supermarket shelves. Our South African mixed case at £64 or the Swartland mixed case at £68 will get you close to what you were drinking out there, delivered anywhere in the UK.