Rooibos wine is a variety of
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
in which wood from the
rooibos
Rooibos ( ; , meaning "red bush"), or ''Aspalathus linearis'', is a broom (shrub), broom-like member of the plant family Fabaceae that grows in South Africa's fynbos biome.
The leaves are used to make a herbal tea that is called rooibos (esp ...
(''Aspalathus linearis'') and
honeybush (''Cyclopia'' spp.) plants is used instead of the traditional oak wood during the maturation phase. It has its origin in the
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
, South Africa. The wine has a unique flavor component and due to the anti-oxidative effect of the plants can be produced without the use of
sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic activ ...
.
Production
Fresh rooibos has a high antioxidant content (particularly
vitamin C
Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) an ...
) and a relatively low tannin content,
making it a potential alternative to the use of sulfur dioxide in the preservation of wine along with honeybush.
[Hesseling, E (2014) Audacia’s ‘tea wood’ wine, Wineland June 2014, http://www.wineland.co.za/articles/audacia%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98tea-wood%E2%80%99-wine ][De Wet, A (2015) The use of rooibos (''Aspalathus linearis'') and honeybush (''Cyclopia'' spp.) as wood alternative in red winemaking, Thesis (MSc), Stellenbosch University, 2015.][Jooste, B (2015) Rooibos-wooded wine - a world first from Stellenbosch: ministerial, Agriprobe, Volume 12, Issue 2, Pages 5-6.] During the maturation phase of rooibos wine, the wood of rooibos (''Aspalathus linearis'') and honeybush (''Cyclopia'' spp.) is used instead of the traditional oak.
Studies at the
University of Stellenbosch
Stellenbosch University ( af, Universiteit Stellenbosch) is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant ...
showed that treatment with rooibos and honeybush plant material protects red wine from the negative effects associated with exposure to oxygen making sulfur dioxide unnecessary.
The use of rooibos and honeybush plant material as a preservative in the production of red wine has been patented.
The rooibos wine product is free of SO
2 and has a unique flavour profile that can be ascribed to the aging of the wine in rooibos and honeybush wood.
Notable brands
The
Stellenbosch-based Audacia produced the first rooibos wine – a Merlot – in South Africa in 2013 . Their rooibos product range has since expanded to include Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, a Red Blend and a White Blend.
KWV South Africa (Pty) LTD
KWV South Africa (Proprietary) Limited (founded as ''Ko-operatiewe Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Zuid-Afrika'') is one of the leading wine and spirits producers in South Africa. Its brands include Roodeberg, KWV Wines & KWV Brandies, and Laborie.
Hi ...
followed in 2014 with a rooibos
Pinotage under their Earth’s Essence brand.
[{{Cite web, url=http://www.wine.co.za/news/news.aspx?NEWSID=25946, title = KWV Launches World's First 'Natural' Pinotage Using Patented Technology, date = 18 November 2014]
References
South African wine