South Africa’s winegrowers struggle against droughts and low prices

After the end of apartheid and the lifting of the associated export ban, the winegrowers tried to conquer the markets with cheap, mass-produced wine. Today they are struggling to shake that image and gain recognition as producers of quality wines.

It’s like a trip back in time. Not long after you leave the gleaming skyscrapers of Cape Town, you’re passing neat little wooden houses lining the side of the street. And suddenly the names are all in French. There is a “Place Vendome” and “L’Ermitage.” The Franschhoek Valley wine route passes through one of South Africa’s largest wine growing regions once founded by French immigrants.