Creation Wines shines bright as Africa's best vineyard, third in global rankings

A wine estate at the southern tip of Africa has just been recognised among the world’s top three vineyards for 2024.

Renowned for its cool climate, dramatic landscape and virus-free vineyards, Creation Wines is a leading producer of pinot noir and chardonnay. It was placed third on the World’s Best Vineyards 2024 list, just pipped to top spot by VIK in Chile and Bodegas de los Herederos del Marqués de Riscal in Spain, which won first place. Creation was also named Africa’s Best Vineyard, for the fifth consecutive year.

The annual awards are voted on by more than 500 experts, including sommeliers, travel professionals and wine aficionados, who evaluate vineyards based on factors such as wine quality, vineyard tours, hospitality and the overall visitor experience.

This year’s awards were held at Nyetimber Estate in Sussex, England, a leading English sparkling wine producer.

Creation Wines was recognised for its commitment to biodiversity, sustainable practices and gourmet tasting menu paired with wine.

Carolyn Martin, co-founder and marketing director of Creation Wines, described the award as “a great honour and an acknowledgement of the journey we began over 20 years ago.

“While we knew instinctively that nature would be our guiding force in making fine wines, it was soon clear that to fulfil our dream of becoming the most loved and most innovative estate in the country, we would need to embrace every aspect of what it means to be truly sustainable.”

The only other South African winery in the top 50 was Klein Constantia Wine Estate in Cape Town, in 41st place.

Benguela Cove, a vineyard in the Hermanus region, came in 86th place. Last year, it placed 53rd.

Bodegas de los Herederos del Marqués de Riscal in Rioja, Spain, is noted for its striking Frank Gehry-designed hotel and rich winemaking tradition dating back to 1858. Gehry, recognised as one of the leading architects of the modern era, also designed the Nationale-Nederlanden Building, Prague, Czech Republic (nicknamed Dancing House, or Ginger and Fred, for its dramatic shape evocative of a couple in a dancing embrace); and the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, France, which is celebrated for its unique architecture, resembling a glass “cloud”, a sailboat with 12 large glass sails, or an iceberg.

VIK Winery is in Chile’s Millahue Valley, which translates to “Place of Gold” due to the area’s natural beauty and ideal conditions for viticulture. The winery is known for its striking landscape and exceptional wine production. The valley benefits from a warm climate tempered by cooling breezes from the nearby Andes mountains, creating excellent conditions for cultivating red wine grapes, particularly cabernet sauvignon, carménère and syrah.

Economic benefit

Wine tourism is a significant and growing sector in South Africa, offering substantial economic and cultural benefits. Data from South Africa Wine shows wine tourism generated more than R9.3-billion in 2022 and has created 40,108 jobs, both directly and indirectly.

In February this year,  the Macro-Economic Impact of the Wine Industry on the South African Economy, prepared by FTI Consulting, revealed that wine tourism contributes about 14.7% of cellar turnover for wineries that engage in wine tourism activities, with smaller wineries relying on it even more heavily.

A report by I and M Futureneer Advisors on the Economic Value of the South African Wine Tourism Industry in 2022, shows that micro wine cellars (with a turnover of less than R10-million) are highly reliant on wine tourism. In 2019, 41.3% of these small operators’ total turnover came from wine tourism activities; in 2022, 36.3% of their total turnover was wine tourism-related.

This influx of visitors supports local employment, with around 36,000 jobs linked to the sector across hospitality, wine tasting and regional tourism services.

The unique experiences offered by wine estates are particularly attractive to international tourists, helping drive visitors into rural areas and boosting local economies beyond the wine industry itself.

Driving tourism

Last week, South Africa Wine CEO Rico Basson said the South African wine industry needed to communicate its sustainability credentials and promote the country as a premier wine tourism destination to help grow the economy. He called for a strengthening of the partnership between the wine industry and the Department of Tourism to jointly promote South Africa as a premier wine tourism destination.

The country’s international profile needs polishing: Basson said South Africa Wine believes the industry needs to upsell wine at a more premium level and a concerted effort must be made to attract more international visitors to the country.

“International and domestic tourism is extremely important, especially for our smaller wineries, because they do significant direct sales to these tourists. It is a sector that will grow exponentially.

“The new Winelands airport will add to the influx of tourists, but the reputation and risk of the country are important.” DM