Matt Stow Photography
Nederburg red wine maker Wilhelm Pienaar and Nederburg cellarmaster Razvan Macici contemplate some of the wines that came on auction over the weekend. Prices for wines favoured consumers with the average price for a nine-litre case dropping 16%.
Consumers were the real winners after the 38th Nederburg Wine Auction in Paarl over the weekend, with prices dropping 16 percent on last year and many wines only marginally topping reserve prices.
The two-day auction, recognised among the world’s five leading auctions of fine wines, closed at R4.67 million compared with R6.1m last year.
Reflecting the global market shift and the euro zone crisis, there was a marked increase in export sales to African and Asian markets. Distell MD Jan Scannell said more than half the sales outside SA were destined for Namibia, Kenya, Zambia, Tanzania, Mauritius, Ethiopia, Taiwan and India.
A total 40 percent of sales went to international buyers, while retailers accounted for more than a third of sales. Spar led the top 10 buyers’ list, purchasing R666 280 worth of wine, followed by Checkers, Makro, Ultra Liquors and The Wine of the Month Club.
The average price per nine-litre case dropped to R1 663 (R1 985 last year), which Distill business director of wines Carina Gous indicated reflected current market conditions.
However, long-established and well-known brands such as De Wetshof, La Motte, Paul Cluver, Chateau Libertas and Stellenrust still outperformed reserve prices.
Chateau Libertas, considered the grandfather of SA red wines and celebrating its 80th vintage this year, took top honours with a set of 12 vintages between 1959 and 1970 selling for R16 000.
Two rare Lanzerac wines from the Distell Tabernacle followed closely, with a Cabernet Sauvignon 1964 closing on R7 200 and a Pinotage 1964 achieving R6 200 for six-bottle cases. The average case |price for red wines was R1 878 (R2 166 last year).
Magnums of De Wetshof Bateleur Chardonnay 2003 claimed top position for white wines, closing on R650, but the average nine-litre case price dropped to R1 051 (R1 201).
A collection of five-star John Platter’s South African Wine Guide-rated wines from the Chenin Blanc Association, along with the Uva Mira Single Vineyard Chardonnay 2007, De Wetshof D’Honneur Chardonnay 2004 and Jordan Nine Yards Chardonnay 2007, were stars among the whites.
The highest price paid for a noble late harvest wine was R5 000 for 12 half-bottles of Nederbug Edelkeur 1979, while the rare KWV Reserve Port 1929 fetched R8 200 a bottle.
US wine writer and economist Mike Veseth brought a new perspective to selling wine into that market, indicating that SA’s terroir offered a distinctive wine diversity with a host of styles and choices.
