South Africa is one of the world’s wine producing heavyweights, exporting its products to countries all over the world. But it is not the only African country with significant commercial wine production and sales operations.
Today, after much hard work, Ethiopia is developing its wine credentials with help from French beverage giant Castel.
Former Ethiopian Prime Minister, the late Meles Zenawi, had a vision in 2007 to accelerate the country’s relatively small offering and invited Castel founder, Pierre Castel, to visit the country and review opportunities for vine planting.
Castel realised the potential and in 2008, his company started work at a vineyard in Ziway, around 160km from Addis Ababa. The first bottle was produced in 2014 and sold soon after.
Today, Castel manages a 162-hectare vineyard and produces about 1.4 million bottles a year – made up of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, syrah, and chardonnay.
It’s two, Rift Valley and Acacia, export about 15% of production, with over half going to China and the US. The company looks especially for Ethiopian restaurants, a trend which is growing internationally.
The company is also looking at growing its presence locally, but this will mean developing the wine industry through its infancy into a more mature market place. Right now, Rift Valley is aimed at experienced wine drinkers and Acacia is for wine beginners, with a sweeter taste.
Overall, according to Castel, the country’s wine consumption is growing and its brands can now be found in a growing number of supermarkets. In the future, the company will target expansion in all areas; export, local markets and production.