South Africa

South Africa is making sports headlines as teams scramble to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which will be held next June in Africa's southernmost country. South Africa's wines, too, are back in the news. For example, Market Watch reporter Kevin Barry describes wines from South Africa as "offering good value" and says that the South African wine market is "poised for substantial growth in the U.S. market."

Apartheid. Nelson Mandela. Zulu Kings. Wildlife Safaris. When most people think of South Africa, a variety of things come to mind, but wine usually is not one of them. Yet that’s exactly what brought me to Stellenbosch, South Africa’s premier wine appellation, earlier this year. I was curious to see what the wine industry was like in a country with such a troubling, turbulent history, an industry that is still relatively elusive to the American consumer.