Editorial: Syrah – critics’ darling, market misfit?
By Christian Eedes, 21 April 2026
-
Share:
12
If Shiraz is so good, why doesn’t it feature more prominently in the general wine conversation? Why is it, by many accounts, difficult to sell? Because, I’d suggest, “quality” and “mass-market appeal” are solving completely different problems.
It’s a bit like the gap between a critically adored band like Geese and something engineered for constant radio rotation. One wins attention for originality, edge and craft; the other wins ubiquity because it instantly makes sense, is easy to hum along to, and slots neatly into everyday listening. Both can be excellent, but they are not trying to do the same job.
South African Syrah, for all its current brilliance, sits firmly in the former camp. It is no longer the easy, generous, fruit-forward proposition it once often was. Instead, it is increasingly aromatic – pepper, herbs, even quite pronounced greenness – underpinned by freshness and grippy tannins, which can leave the casual drinker faintly nonplussed.
Consider the top-end examples like Boschkloof, Damascene, Mullineux, Rall, Reyneke, Savage and Van Loggerenberg, alongside Boekenhoutskloof and its Porseleinberg project. Yes, these are expensive wines and therefore not everyday by definition, but it is their style as much as their price that sets them apart. They reveal themselves with attention and sit uneasily in the world of casual, midweek, no-occasion drinking that underpins most volume sales. These are serious wines in a market still driven, largely, by ease and immediacy.
And therein lies the rub. Categories that scale tend to offer a clear, immediate point of entry. Cabernet Sauvignon signals structure and seriousness. Merlot trades on softness and approachability. Pinotage, in its traditional register, is bold and assertive. Syrah, by contrast, occupies an awkward middle ground: part Rhône lineage, part Cape expression, the emerging archetype increasingly uncompromising and one that the average consumer struggles to latch onto.
Faced with a shelf, the buyer defaults, as they always do, to recognition. Brand, not nuance, is the shortcut. The uncomfortable truth is that South African Syrah, despite its critical ascent, has yet to build the kind of brand equity that translates into instinctive purchase. It is respected, certainly, but respect is not the same as reach.
The exception that proves the rule
The Chocolate Block from Boekenhoutskloof is the exception that proves the rule. The current-release 2023 is 74% Syrah, 11% Grenache, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cinsault and 1% Viognier, so Syrah-led rather than straight varietal. Even so, with its production volume and a price of R295, it shows Syrah is no inherent barrier to commercial success. The question is whether that success stems from composition or from a memorable name and carefully crafted style. Other producers that have scaled without sacrificing too much premium, such as Kanonkop with its Kadette range and Rupert & Rothschild, lean heavily towards the Bordeaux varieties.
Value is no panacea. Even well-priced quality struggles if it needs explaining. Conversely, you have to ask whether consumers are really that willing to put in the effort that discovery requires, or whether buying habits are simply more conservative than we like to admit.
The Shiraz category clearly delivers plenty of instances of high quality relative to price, but it is less clear whether this is converting into demand. In this year’s Prescient Fund Services Shiraz Report, the Top 10 wines average R283 a bottle, with six priced below that level. Price alone would therefore not appear to be decisive. Other forces such as familiarity, established brand cues and ease of choice continue to carry as much, if not more, weight. The quality hierarchy is therefore blurred, if not absent.
Set against this, competing categories enjoy structural advantages. Sauvignon Blanc delivers instant gratification. Chenin Blanc combines familiarity with versatility. Cabernet carries global recognition and a well-understood promise. Syrah, in its current Cape expression, asks the drinker to meet it halfway, but older, riper styles still linger in the market, clouding its identity. Its stylistic range can therefore read less as diversity than as ambiguity.
Currently, therefore, Syrah finds itself in a curious position: a category that has advanced rapidly in intrinsic quality, driven by serious intent on the part of producers, but not yet in how it resonates with consumers. And perhaps the issue is that “everyday Syrah” will always be something of a contradiction in terms.
-
Share:
Greg Sherwood | 21 April 2026
I have argued for 20+ years that the entire GLOBAL Syrah category is held back by the Northern Rhone greats following such a staggered and fragmented annual release schedule. No co-ordination at all. There is very little opportunity for merchants and the wider fine wine trade to assert influence on consumers and dedicate time to promoting this category exponentially over the long term. What does this have to do with SA Syrah? Well, just like top Cabernet Sauvignon’s lead is taken from Bordeaux and maybe California to a lesser degree, SA’s top producers have undoubtedy followed the Northern Rhone lead but perhaps the consumers have not followed with equivalent fervour? Consumers need the elixier of market hype. Barring the odd 97, 98 or even an Atkin 100 pointer… there is little to organise around. Yet in the face of this, Syrah in SA, even at the lowest level, is probably one of the most exciting quality categories out there.
Donald Griffiths | 22 April 2026
Maybe part of the problem is that its called Shiraz and Syrah? It has a split personality, some consumers identify with Shiraz and bigger, bolder more fruit forward black peppery wines. Some identify with the more modern restrained examples of Syrah. There may even be a segment of the market that considers the two to be different cultivars? And I can’t help but notice several producers have changed from Shiraz to Syrah on their labelling, is this a marketing consideration over and above all else? The market hates inconsistencies and will respond accordingly.
Alan Glass | 22 April 2026
I agree Donald. More wine estates are calling their Shiraz Syrah, or perhaps I just notice it more, as I don’t know if any/many actually changed the name on their bottle, but it does create a confusion in the marketplace, and even among tasting room/restaurant staff.
Donald Griffiths | 22 April 2026
Thanks Alan. Anecdotally a particular wine I am fond of changed to Syrah from Shiraz a few vintages ago. I called them up to inquire about the change. I was told that the wine would now be made in a more ‘European’ style, that is to say lighter, less fruit forward and more elegant. As far as I can tell there has been zero change in the style (apart from vintage variation) so its easy to draw the rather cynical conclusion that it was just a marketing ploy. The SA wine consumer deserves better.
Caroline Rillema | 22 April 2026
I agree too. Even us retailers are confused as to which wine will be which style. Consumers are hesitant to spend R300+ on a bottle that may not be to their taste.
keith | 22 April 2026
I , like I suspect most overseas wine lovers regard Shiraz as being made in Australia in a typically big, bold , fruit driven style and Syrah to be much more elegant and restrained . The syrah I drink in South Africa is definitely more in the second category and all the better for it.
Not sure I agree that SA Syrah is held back by the likes of Chave , Jamet etc etc . To me it’s nearly as good as some of the greats from the NRhone, but a fraction of the price. The cheaper end of the market here compares very favourably with good quality Crozes , St Joseph etc and I have many friends in the UK who drink SA Syrah in preference to their NRhone competitors across the quality and price range .
GillesP | 22 April 2026
Shiraz or Syrah who really cares seriously? Any person with minimal level of wine knowledge knows its the same.
Niel Muller | 22 April 2026
Changing the style from Shiraz to Syrah is the biggest problem. Why make the wine in a more more ‘European’ style – to use the descriptions above “lighter, less fruit forward, more elegant and restrained”?
I believe the average shiraz consumer will prefer Shiraz in the more Australian style – “typically big, bold and fruit driven “. After all, we have the sunshine to produce it! And the old school shiraz drinkers must be missing their black peppery wines !
Maybe Syrah is the wine style for the connoisseur but it has killed/hurt the market for shiraz for the average red wine drinker. Price is part of the problem. Syrah usually comes at a premium to the Shiraz the consumer was used to. Christian Eedes argues that in this year’s Prescient Fund Services Shiraz Report, the Top 10 wines “averaged (only) R283 a bottle, with six priced below that level”. In my opinion, most of those wines never should have been in a Syrah/Shiraz Top 10 – so his price argument is a skewed one.
Kwispedoor | 23 April 2026
You might well be correct that the very ripe, big & bold wines are what the average SA consumer likes. Or perhaps just the older consumers? There certainly has been many opinions recently about the youth toning down on alcohol consumption, and those very ripe wines generally come with higher alcohol levels. A lighter balance certainly suits our climate as well and, personally, I also mostly prefer that to the heavier wines.
However, if the average SA consumer indeed prefers the very ripe, big & bold styles of red wine, then that will go for all types and cultivars, not only for Shiraz…
Christian Eedes | 23 April 2026
Hi Neil, I would argue that any style shift is the product of broader trends, and the category’s challenges are not simply due to an absence of demand for “Syrah” or a lack of supply of “Shiraz”.
Secondly, on pricing, my point was simply that excellence in the category is not exclusively the preserve of the ultra-premium tier. The Prescient Fund Services Shiraz Report is based on a blind assessment of quality in an effort to eliminate any preconceived ideas about style or quality. Whether specific wines should or shouldn’t feature in a Top 10 is a separate and inherently subjective question.
Jacques de Wet | 23 April 2026
The Lands End Syrah from Du Toitskloof is a fantastic wine for the price. Definitely a gem that doesn’t get the airtime it deserves.
Ammar | 23 April 2026
Isn’t the issue here that the New Wave aesthetic has had more traction with syrah than the other major red varieties? You could argue that all the producers listed in the article belong to the New Wave (some more firmly than others). I don’t see them as reproducing either the Northern Rhone or the Barossa style, neither of which offers quite the same mix of high-toned aromatics, tannic suppleness and moderate alcohol. I think of it as syrah for Burgundy drinkers. It has emerging parallels in pinotage with the likes of Scions of Sinai Feniks and Longridge Maandans, but very little if anything with respect to cabernet sauvignon or merlot. The fact that this approach exists alongside richer styles (e.g Hartenberg) and those with a foot in both camps (e.g. Keermont) may make it harder to generalise about the nature of South African syrah, but is arguably of little consequence to the average consumer. I suspect that the type of informed wine buyer who goes out of their way to seek out high-price, limited bottlings like Savage’s Girl Next Door knows exactly what they’re buying.