JUST a generation ago, the prices of reds and whites at a South African wine farm were very seldom less than what they sold for at wine shops in the towns nearby. Only a few winery proprietors would risk the wrath of retailers who might well refuse to stock the product of any supplier who dared to undercut them. Times changed, the number of wine estates selling from their cellar doors increased, retailers lost some of their clout, and then the age of online shopping was upon us. Today, most wine producers will arrange for wine to be delivered to you at the click of a button, so to speak, yet the more some things change, the more some things stay the same or go full circle.

It might seem logical that the person who offers the lowest price for something should be the person who made it. But of course, due to the economies of scale, if the wine is commercial in nature rather than boutique or artisanal, chances are that the lowest price on offer will be from a big retailer selling more on the basis of trade discounts and/or lower margins. For almost everything else, prices tend to be lowest when you order direct from the source. However, even then things aren’t always straight-forward. Whereas buying from a cellar’s online store is often tantamount to buying at the tasting room on the farm, sometimes the cellar-door price is lower than what the winery charges online, i.e. even before they add on a delivery fee, and sometimes it’s not.

Here are a few sets of price comparisons pertaining to three of the top SA wine producers whose bottles are widely available: Groot Constantia, Bruce Jack of Napier/Cape Town, and Kaapzicht of Bottelary outside Stellenbosch.

BRUCE JACK
• Boer Maak ‘n Plan Chenin Blanc: R250 at the cellar’s online shop, R225 online at Norman Goodfellows, R255 online at Wine-of-the-month Club
• Heartbreak Grape Pinot Noir: R438 at the cellar door, R397 at the cellar’s online shop
• Mary le Bow Red: R335 at the cellar door, R320 at the cellar’s online shop, R330 online at Wine-of-the-month Club
• Reserve Sauvignon Blanc: R150 at the cellar door, R143 at the cellar’s online shop, R109 at CyberCellar, R136 at Wine-of-the-month Club

GROOT CONSTANTIA
• Sauvignon Blanc: R190 at the cellar door, R185 at the cellar’s online shop, R189 online at Norman Goodfellows, R190 at Pick n Pay, R266 online at Takealot
• Shiraz: R290 at the cellar door, R283 at the cellar’s online shop, R295 online at Pick n Pay, R279 online at Norman Goodfellows, R374 online at Takealot
• Gouverneurs Reserve (red): R540 at the cellar door, R525 at the cellar’s online shop, R515 online at Norman Goodfellows, R529 online at Getwine, R649 online at Takealot
• Grand Constance (Muscat, 375ml): R815 at the cellar door, R795 at the cellar’s online shop, R799 online at Makro, R849 online at Norman Goodfellows, R1399 online at Takealot

KAAPZICHT
• Chenin Blanc: R90 at the cellar door, R110 at the cellar’s online shop, R95 online at Norman Goodfellows, R110 online at Pick n Pay, R75 online at Makro
• Kaleidoscope (red): R90 at the cellar door, R110 at the cellar’s online shop, R110 online at Pick n Pay
• Rooiland Pinotage: R200 at the cellar door, R225 at the cellar’s online shop, R205 online at Norman Goodfellows
• Steytler (reds): R675 at the cellar door, R730 at the cellar’s online shop, R650 online at Wine Cellar, R619 online at Makro