Eastern palates favour quality SA wine

South African wines are increasing in popularity in the Far East with Wines of South Africa (Wosa) having established this as one of the big growth markets for exporters. “We are seeing more diversity in this market with interest in a variety of South African wines," Siobhan Thompson, CEO of Wines of South Africa (Wosa), told FTW. “Initially there was a lot of interest in our red wines, but the white wines are starting to gain ground in the Asian market as well and we are very excited about this.” She said whilst it was still a very new market they were seeing massive growth. “We have also established an office in Hong Kong that is working hard to build the profile of South African wines in the East.” According to Thompson, the United Kingdom remains South Africa’s biggest market, taking around 25% of the volumes exported. “There has been a very healthy recovery in this market but our challenge is still that the average price of our wines is under the £5 mark whilst the average for wine is around £7. We are seeing good growth in the higher level brands but we are hoping to get more value for our wine.” She said unlike the UK, in the Eastern market – particularly in China – they were not only seeing massive growth in demand for SA wine but the value figures were growing healthily above the volume figures. “It is therefore a market that we will continue to target as this is where we believe future growth is,” she said.