Such has been the pace of change in the South African wine industry over the last 15 years – particularly in terms of the quality, consistency and diversity of wines being produced – it is perhaps not that surprising our retail shelves and restaurant wine lists have not fully caught up with what is going on there. But as the dust settles on last month’s bustling Cape Wine trade show, organised by Wines of South Africa , that saw hundreds of buyers from all over the world go and experience what South Africa has to offer, Richard Siddle analyses the huge opportunities the country still has to take its wines to another level. He also analyses the challenges it faces in convincing more retailers, wine merchants, sommeliers and suppliers to fully get behind the increasingly premium and higher quality wines it is producing. In the first of two in-depth reports he picks out the key themes, trends and takeaways from another breakthrough Cape Wine show.