Canada Lebanon South Africa

Canada has been producing quality wines for over two hundred years, and has hundreds of established wineries producing characterful and easily recognizable wines from the many imported grape varietals which flourish in the cool climate and excellent soils which typify the region. The primary wine producing regions of Canada are all located in the south of the country, and benefit from the consistent climate found there. The two largest wine producing regions is Canada are the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, and Niagara Peninsula, in Ontario. Both of these regions produce large quantities of the ice wine Canada is famous for, where the grapes are allowed to freeze on the vine during the early frosts, and thus have their sugars and flavors concentrated, resulting in highly aromatic and often very sweet wines.

There are few countries in the world with a wine history as long or as impressive as that of Lebanon. Indeed, the Phoenicians who once lived on the coastal areas of the country were amongst the first people to spread viticulture around their empire, and wine was being imported from Lebanon into ancient Egypt almost five thousand years ago. Today, wine production in Lebanon remains strong, with over half a million cases of wine being produced annually. In fact, the last decade or so has seen wine production in Lebanon increase enormously, with new wineries opening each year in the eastern part of the country, near the Syrian border where the climatic conditions are more favorable for viticulture. Whilst modern wineries in Lebanon prefer to use classic French grape varietals, there is an increasing interest in using native grapes, which are producing some highly characterful results.

Situated on the very tip of the African continent, South Africa has proved itself over three centuries to be an ideal location for producing a wide range of wines. Benefiting from something not dissimilar to a Mediterranean climate, with long, hot summers complemented by both Atlantic and Indian Ocean winds, the grapes which grow on the valleys, mountainsides and plains of this fascinating country can ripen to their fullest capacity, producing wines packed full of fruity flavors and an array of interesting and enticing aromas. As a former colony, South Africa has long since been home to a range of different nationalities, who each brought something of their wine culture with them. As such, many European grape varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Riesling and others have been given time to flourish in South Africa, allowing the country to develop a diverse group of wine types which are proving increasingly popular around the world.