SA wine producers seem to be organised by cultivar rather than appellation (as they are in France)So there is a Sauvignon Blanc Interest Group, a Chardonnay Forum and a Pinotage Association. Is this a good thing?

I think it is largely a reaction to reality. SA producers seem to have missed the opportunity to develop regional speciality wines. Almost without exception, areas have opted for a diversity of production rather than varietal specialisation - probably because Brand SA is not readily identifiable with one strong varietal - and regional organisations (such as they exist) have followed suit. Individual wineries have felt that they need to offer variety to be competitive, so it is almost inevitable that varietal interest groups spring up. As long as they do not seek to denigrate other varietals but rather promote their constituency to the greater good of SA wines in general, then the trend is a good one.

Do local wine writers and competition judges give sauvignon blanc fair press? There seems to be a lingering suspicion that it is not as "serious" a grape as chardonnay, for example?

The suspicion is a symptom of certain writers and judges not having fully embraced the revolution that SA sauvignon blanc has undergone in the past few years. The advent of wineries in cool-climate areas such as Elgin, Hemel en Aarde and Elim and the coming of age of others like Constantia have catapulted SA sauvignon blancs to a different level.

Producers of these sublime sauvignon blancs in general feel that writers and judges have perhaps not fully taken this new emergent style to heart and still regard the warmer climate style as the benchmark against which the cultivar is assessed.

Does SA really produce world-class sauvignon or are we at a disadvantage?

I believe we are at last producing some truly world-class sauvignon. Once again, the cool climate areas are leading the way and the comments coming from international writers and judges are most supportive.