Made-for-export SA wine label goes local

Top UK wine media personality Matthew Jukes called the award-winning Lookout White and Lookout Red “affordable luxury” in a bottle. The good news is that both can now also be purchased in South Africa through 130 Shoprite Checker's supermarkets across the country.

Leopard's Leap Wines was launched in 2000 and quickly achieved its first international listing with the United Kingdom's Tesco, with sales of 7 000 cases in the first year. Now, with annual UK sales of almost 300 000 cases, the label is listed with most major UK retailers and available throughout Europe, the Far East, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and now also the United States.

Proprietor and MD, Hein Koegelenberg attributes the label's success to the product. “The label over-delivers on quality without compromising on price and therefore delivers on its promise of affordable luxury. The collection's appeal also lies in the range of variants on offer. Additionally, I attribute its success to Eugene van Zyl, the winemaker, who has created a collection of wines for the consumer palette specifically,” he says.

Leopard's Leap Wines forms part of Dr Anton Rupert's legacy and is owned by Hein and Hanneli Koegelenberg. With the sole intension of creating a brand for export, a percentage of the sales is donated to the Cape Leopard Trust, a conservation project established to save the species from extinction. The company has adopted three leopards as part of a larger conservation campaign with the Trust. In tribute to their freedom, Lisa, Ouma Maaitjie and Johan are depicted as three golden leopards on every label.