Editorial: Is South African wine losing faith in itself?
By Christian Eedes, 26 May 2026
-
Share:
7
South African wine currently finds itself in a curious position. Technically, aesthetically and intellectually, it has probably never been stronger. Economically and psychologically, however, it often appears uncertain of itself. Export volumes fell sharply last year, down 13.8% to 264 million litres, while value declined by a less severe 2.4% to R9.8 billion. The optimistic interpretation is that the industry is moving upmarket. The less comforting interpretation is that South Africa continues to sell less wine than it once did while still struggling to persuade the world – and perhaps itself – that its best bottles deserve genuine fine-wine status rather than merely favourable price comparisons.
This tension increasingly defines the local industry. South African wine has become more sophisticated and internationally fluent while simultaneously appearing more anxious, fashion-driven and self-conscious. It is not so much a crisis of quality as a crisis of confidence.
Part of the problem is structural. The industry now effectively operates in two parallel universes. On the one hand sit the large-volume producers who drive the economics, fill supermarket shelves abroad and sustain the export machine. On the other sits a relatively small cohort of elite producers – the names that dominate discussion, attract international critics, trend on Instagram and shape perceptions of what “serious” South African wine looks like. The Top 20 wineries poll conducted three years ago by Winemag captures this dynamic rather neatly: a relatively small number of producers increasingly control the narrative while the bulk sector controls the volume.
Neither side can entirely survive without the other, but the relationship is uneasy. Fine wine confers prestige on the broader category; large-scale production keeps the lights on. Yet the conversation overwhelmingly gravitates toward the former because culture most often follows concentration of energy, ambition and personality.
That said, the relationship between critical attention and commercial or qualitative success is not linear. Some producers are propelled by constant scrutiny and discussion; others operate largely outside that conversation while remaining commercially robust and critically unheralded. In such cases, success is sustained less by visibility than by distribution strength, long-term reputation, or a deliberate preference for discretion over engagement with the critical ecosystem.
Selectivity, scrutiny and the logic of attention
This brings us to Tim James’s thoughtful reflections on wine criticism and its inevitable selectivity. He is plainly correct that critics tend to focus disproportionately on newer producers, emerging styles and the so-called “new wave”. He is also correct that access matters, that relationships (which is to say degrees of familiarity and mutual dependence) within a small industry are unavoidable and that no critic remotely covers the full breadth of South African wine. The notion that any independent critic could comprehensively and evenly document more than 900 label owners is unrealistic.
But criticism is not census-taking.
A wine critic is not a neutral state archivist tasked with mechanically recording all production in equal proportion. Critics are drawn toward movement, originality and cultural significance. They follow where the conversation appears most alive. The danger is not selectivity itself but opacity about the forces shaping attention.
And yes, there are blind spots. Fashion exists. Some older producers are under-discussed relative to their achievement. But the alternative to selective criticism is not objectivity. It is bureaucracy. Criticism reduced to a mechanistic administrative exercise – exhaustive, dutiful and ultimately besides the point. It is, arguably, why the much-loved Platter’s guide now appears to be nearing the end of a glorious 46-year run.
The truth is that attention in wine behaves culturally, not democratically. The very producers now regarded as neglected establishment figures were often once insurgents who benefited from disproportionate critical interest (Thelema in the 1990s, Vergelegen in the 2000s). Every generation eventually feels the spotlight shifting elsewhere.
Aesthetic convergence and the question of confidence
The bigger issue is not criticism but wine culture itself in 2026. South African wine increasingly risks mistaking aesthetic coherence for intrinsic quality. Fine wine has become not merely a standard but a look, a tone and a set of coded references: lighter extraction, earlier picking, lower alcohol, hipster labels, low-key cellar architecture and the implication that pleasure should remain subordinate to intellectual seriousness.
Some of this evolution has been positive. South Africa has escaped much of the overripe heaviness that once limited credibility. Yet one senses a new orthodoxy emerging just as rigid as the old one. The great flattening of wine style is real. Wines increasingly converge around a globally approved fine-wine aesthetic, and what gets lost is stylistic diversity – including the confidence to be rich, generous or unabashedly pleasurable. Winemag and, indeed, this writer are probably as guilty as anyone, having spent the better part of the last decade rewarding “tension”, “energy” and “drinkability”. But while an especially tasteful Scandinavian chair may photograph beautifully, sometimes a well-upholstered old armchair is more comfortable to sit on – and the same, occasionally, applies to wine.
Pinotage perhaps illustrates this best. The debate is no longer between “good” and “bad” Pinotage but between traditional richness and contemporary transparency. Both camps often caricature the other. Meanwhile, the category itself remains more varied and interesting than either side admits.
Underlying all this is a deeper insecurity. South African wine still struggles to state its case with uncomplicated conviction, forever glancing over its shoulder towards export markets conditioned by decades of faint imperial condescension and low expectations. Praise is gratefully received, but rarely fully believed; criticism is internalised with almost colonial deference. As a result, producers often appear caught between wanting to assert themselves as serious fine-wine propositions and fearing accusations of overreach should they do so too confidently. Even now, South African wine too often seeks validation abroad before fully trusting its own judgement at home.
At the same time, the authority of criticism itself has weakened. Critics no longer compete only with one another but with distributor narratives, influencer personalities, a WhatsApp consensus formed in semi-private exchanges insulated from broader scrutiny, AI-generated recommendations, and the hyper-curated vibe economy of social media. Scores still matter, but attention matters more. Increasingly, personality carries more weight than institutional authority.
In such an environment, criticism inevitably becomes more partial, more subjective and more personality-driven. Perhaps that is no bad thing provided it remains intellectually honest about its limitations and enthusiasms.
The interesting question is not whether bias exists. Of course it does. The more difficult question is whether South African wine still possesses sufficient confidence – commercially, stylistically and culturally – to sustain genuine diversity of thought, taste and ambition without constantly seeking reassurance from fashion, foreign approval or algorithms.
-
Share:
Related articles
Opinion & Analysis
Tim James: How South African wine coverage really works
25 May 2026
When I suggested last week that perhaps some wine commentators – and others in the wine trade – tended to ignore older-established producers in favour of what is new, it...
8
Opinion & Analysis
Greg Sherwood MW: Could dry white save Bordeaux?
20 May 2026
For centuries, the word "Bordeaux" has conjured a distinct visual of deep inky rivers of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, historic chateaux flanked by manicured vineyards on gravelly soils,...
2
Reviews
Storm new releases
20 May 2026
Want access to this content? Reviews and Reports are initially reserved for subscribers. Get immediate access to exclusive insights and data. SUBSCRIBE NOW Already subscribed? Login
Ryan Coetzee | 26 May 2026
Very well written, Christian. The bit about what criticism is and isn’t, and the bit about critical fashion and consensus particularly so.
I think the underlying tension (see what I did there?) is that each approach to criticism has up and downsides.
So, platters provides wide-ranging coverage, but does feel bureaucratic, and a bit averaged-out.
You provide consistent notes and scores, but don’t have access to 900 wines and focus on what is most culturally relevant.
Brice & Burnett, by the way, is a business, and it stocks what it knows or hopes it can sell to its sort of customers (I thought Tim’s criticism of B&B a bit unfair – it’s job is not to provide producers with exposure; it is to sell wine.)
In other words, unless you have the readership of a Jancis R or Neal Martin or Parker, in his day, you can’t match range with individual, consistent scoring. And even then I bet there is some sort of commercial pressure that impacts on range, even if, hopefully, not on scores!
It’s ok. It doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to be interesting.
wiebo anno van der meulen | 26 May 2026
interesting article as an ordinary wine consumer looking from the outside, i found the central argument compelling.
what strikes me however is that confidence alone cannot solve all of the challenges facing the industry. south african wine producers continue to operate within a difficult environment shaped by distance from major markets,rising logistics costs, exchange rate volatility,international competition and the broader economic realities of south africa itself. these are challenges that no amount of confidence can entirely overcome.
however i see an industry that is far more interesting and varied than many of the discussions around it suggest.
Christina Hyland | 26 May 2026
Platters is most definitely not coming to an end.
Kwispedoor | 26 May 2026
I’m not worried for a second about the current fashion trend which is moving in the direction of “tension”, “energy” and “drinkability”. It simply yields better, more balanced, true-to-terroir, versatile wines. Most other fashions drag undesirable problems along with them (while of course some really good wines also result). Fashions like, for instance, too much hands-off winemaking (faulty wines, homogeneous vibe, lack of versatility & vinosity, etc.) or Parkerised winemaking (unbalanced wines, homogeneous vibe, lack of versatility, too much wood, etc.).
The move towards pinpoint ripeness, considered viticulture, expression of place, and wines of personality and energy is far from troublesome. It’s a correction, not another extreme. We still have more than enough wines veering off to more extreme expressions – and those will always be with us, which is good. Especially in small doses, because then generally only the best of those extremes ultimately survive.
There’s absolutely no need to be concerned with the middle. Inherent to the middle is optimum BALANCE, and that’s one of fine wine’s (and even modest wines’) most valuable attributes.
Vernon | 26 May 2026
As a UK wine buyer, Winemag is great in keeping me in touch with the SA wine scene. What is wearying, however, is the leitmotif of “intellectual seriousness” about wine in numerous articles.
If I want intellectual seriousness, I’ll turn to Antjie Krog etc. , it won’t be to Winemag.
Julian W | 26 May 2026
A very well written article.
It would be a great shame if the Platter guide does come to an end, although I see an emphatic rebuff to this notion in the comments. But I have noticed more people relying on Vivino to reference ratings of wines – properly designed for online usage and better tailored to individual wines, which Platter doesn’t seem to have embraced sufficiently. Moreover, maybe many lay wine drinkers have as much faith in their peers’ opinions as they have in those of professional critics (one of the things that made eBay such a success). Professional critics’ opinions often come at a monetary cost, whereas Vivino and its ilk are free – something that suits the younger segment of wine drinkers, who have grown up in a world where a lot of media and information is happily given gratis.
Regarding ‘confidence’, it is probably difficult for the SA wine industry, which has been heading further upmarket over the last two decades, to be entirely confident when its country of origin’s economy has been so challenging, for such a long time.
The consumer is hard pressed at the moment, indeed many have been since long before hearing the word ‘Covid’. Prices are rising so fast that it’s hard to keep up – and with constant health advisory targeting alcohol, as well as a younger generation who are drinking less wine than their predecessors, there are real downward pressures on consumption.
With regard to international affairs, it seems the same challenges are being experienced almost everywhere. Whilst SA develops and refines its product, competing countries do likewise. Not just the ‘new world’ producers, but the old world fighting back against competition that barely existed a few decades ago.
Everyone is trying to up their game, increase quality and get more money for their wines, against a backdrop of falling consumption, greater competition and squeezed consumer budgets.
I don’t know where it’s all headed, but there is no doubt that general consumer confidence in South Africa, not to mention its export markets, would assist its wine industry.
But meanwhile, I think the top winemakers are doing a great job in promoting SA wine by challenging perceptions that only the ‘old world’ makes the best wine; the more drinkers that can be convinced of this, surely the more it helps the wider industry.
Kwispedoor | 26 May 2026
You make some good points, Julian. Platter’s might still tank in the near future (the Van Zyls did invaluable work and they are a monumental loss), but perhaps it’s a bit premature from Christian to suggest that it’s already nearing the end of its run. Of course, if Platter’s tanks, those who write reviews about wine for a living will benefit, as punters look ever wider for wine reviews…
It’s certainly not accurate, in my opinion, to liken Platter’s reviews to a “mechanistic administrative exercise”. The mere fact that it provides the most thorough examination of our wine industry doesn’t make it heartless. Generally, Platter’s tasters are passionate about wine and care deeply about their examinations of it. That’s not to say a shuffle of their tasters shouldn’t be considered.
There might be people who don’t care either way if Platter’s makes it or not, but most wine lovers would dearly love it to continue, even though there’s plenty of work to do and its owner needs to invest much more generously in it. By and large, wineries are doing a terrible job of making sure that historic info about their wines is available on their websites. Platter’s is useful for a variety of things, but that’s an important one. The guide has become part of our vinous heritage and deserves to be rescued.
I wish all producers will take a cue from our top producers (Mullineux, Kanonkop, Sadie, etc.) and just enter all the available wines that they have in bottle at the time of assessment. After all, it only costs them the wines and the shipping, I think. Those who don’t, are all compliant to eroding valuable heritage info, to the detriment of wine lovers – now, and in the future. If you’re into wine, you generally want as much accessible info about it as possible, as Jamie and Schalk confirmed on Tim James’ article from yesterday. Regret often comes too late…