It's 'in vino veritas' for vintners

South African emerging wine entrepreneurs are tapping into the local market for growth potential.

Treasure Chest - a group of 14 emerging wine entrepreneurs, 12 of whom are women - kicked off the first leg of a roadshow in Durban on Wednesday.

The group plans to visit Johannesburg at the end of February, Bloemfontein in March and Pretoria at the end of April.

The association was formed in 2013 when black-owned wine brands were struggling to market and distribute as individuals, said Malcolm Green, chairman of the Treasure Chest.

Not all the entrepreneurs grow their own grapes or own farms.

They collaborate and partner a range of co-ops and vineyards and mix their own varietals and market their brands.

Many have come from successful careers in other industries and have educated themselves along the way.

Wosa [Wines of S A ] said the country produces 4.1% of the world's wine with about 98,000ha of vines producing wine grapes.

About 50% of the wine is exported.

Green said Treasure Chest accounts for less than 1% of the South African wine market, 95% of which is exported overseas to 25 countries.

"As a group we export in excess of five to 10 containers a year, with 13,000 bottles per container, up to 130,000 bottles of wine annually," Green said.

"The group decided to look at a programme that would help put our brands on retail shelves.

"We applied to the National Agricultural Marketing Council for funding for a roadshow and were given approval early this year.

"In a 360-year-old industry this is the first of its kind," he said.

"The aim of the show is to introduce the members to key buyers and distributors of wine in the major South African centres," Green said.

Entrepreneur Thembi Tobie, who has her own label called Thembi, said she was astonished and almost fell off her chair on a visit to Nigeria when she saw that her high-end, free trade registered wines were being drunk with Coke.

"I was heartbroken to see all these people pouring coke into my chenin and sauvignon blanc."

But Tobie, who sees an opportunity in every challenge, decided to launch her range of sangrias and a low-alcohol spritzer called Taste, a wine, lime and passion fruit blend.