Two South African brothers who built one of the world’s top wine brands

Johann and Paul Krige are brothers and owners of Kanonkop Wine Estate, a South African wine brand that ranks among the most admired in the world. 

Kanonkop Wine Estate, situated outside Stellenbosch in the Western Cape, is one of South Africa’s most respected wine names.

According to the estate, this respect has been built in just a few decades through a commitment to making the best red wine it can offer.

The farm has been in the same family for four generations. It takes its name from a small hill, Kanonkop, on the slopes of the Simonsberg.

This slope was where a cannon was once fired in the 17th and 18th centuries to signal the arrival of ships in Table Bay. 

That was the cue for local farmers to pack their wagons with fruit and vegetables and head to the harbour to trade with the crews. 

Kanonkop’s move into bottled wine came relatively late by South African standards. The first wines with the estate’s own label appeared in 1973.

This is thanks to a push by winemaker Jan “Boland” Coetzee and Paul Sauer’s son-in-law, Jannie Krige. Paul Sauer, the founder of Kanonkop Wine Estate, wasn’t easily convinced.

He had a strong relationship with Stellenbosch Farmers Winery, which was buying most of Kanonkop’s wine in bulk, and the idea of bottling under their own name seemed like a risk.

Despite Sauer’s reservations, Coetzee saw the potential. He’d already begun reshaping the farm’s vineyards, pulling out Shiraz and planting Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Eventually, a limited run of 1973 vintage Cabernet and Pinotage was bottled, and in 1974, it went on sale for just under R2 a bottle.

Paul Sauer didn’t live to see how far those wines would go. He passed away in 1976, before the fourth harvest under the Kanonkop label. 

But his influence didn’t fade with him. The foundations he laid shaped the vision and values that his family would carry forward. 

By the early 1980s, the estate was entering a new chapter that would be driven by Sauer’s grandsons, Johann and Paul Krige.

The Krige brothers’ reign

As Paul Sauer’s grandsons, Johann and Paul Krige inherited a responsibility to uphold a reputation that was only beginning to take shape when they were young men.

Paul was the first to move onto the farm. After studying at Elsenburg Agricultural Institute and watching a rugby career slip away due to a knee injury, he joined his parents on the estate in 1984. 

His father, Jannie, had retired early to manage Kanonkop with his wife, Mary, who had inherited it from her father. Paul threw himself into the daily life of the farm.

Johann took a different route. After completing a law degree, he decided courtrooms weren’t for him. 

He earned an MBA, worked in export marketing at KWV, and eventually joined his brother on the farm in 1990. 

That mix of practical farming knowledge and business experience was exactly what Kanonkop needed.

They said in the early 1980s, like many South African wine farms, Kanonkop was trying to do too much. 

“It grew all sorts of grapes, reds and whites, and most of its wine was still being sold in bulk to be bottled under other labels,” they said.

Johann and Paul realised that if they were serious about building a world-class wine brand, they needed to cut through the noise and focus. 

Their decision to stick to red wine, specifically Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinotage, would prove to be one of the most important in Kanonkop’s history.

Soon after, they made another big call to stop selling wine to Stellenbosch Farmers Winery altogether. 

From the 1986 harvest onwards, every drop of Kanonkop wine would be bottled under the estate’s own name. 

It was a financial risk, but one that paid off. That same year, Kanonkop became the first South African wine estate to sell wine futures, offering customers the chance to buy wine while it was still in barrel. 

This brought in cash at just the right time, helping the brothers invest in better barrels, expand the winery, and grow their brand in a way that was fully under their control.

“Kanonkop isn’t just a business; it’s our family history, identity, and life’s work. It’s something we feel responsible for, not just as owners but as legacy stewards.”

Kanonkop’s secret weapon

While the Kriges built the business and defined its direction, there was another man quietly shaping the wine itself. He was Abrie Beeslaar, Kanonkop’s winemaker since 2003.

Abrie joined Kanonkop in 2002 after working at Swartland Winery, where he crossed paths with Beyers Truter, then winemaker at Kanonkop and already a legend in Pinotage. 

The two connected over a shared love for bold reds, and when Truter stepped back, he passed the baton to Abrie. Since then, Abrie has helped turn Kanonkop into an international name. 

He’s been named International Winemaker of the Year three times by the International Wine & Spirit Competition.

Additionally, in 2018, he made history when the Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2015 vintage earned a perfect 100-point score from British wine critic Tim Atkin. It was the first South African wine to do so, and a massive milestone for the estate.

This consistency and quality haven’t gone unnoticed. Kanonkop now regularly features in The Drinks Business’s list of the 50 Most Admired Wine Brands in the World. 

In 2024, it ranked 24th, the fifth year in a row Kanonkop wine has been featured on the ranking.

In 2023, it was the only South African label on the list and was recognised as the best brand in Africa and the Middle East, jumping 26 spots from the previous year.

The list is compiled by a panel of 100 wine professionals—buyers, sommeliers, writers, and educators—who rank wines based on quality, consistency, and brand strength. 

For Johann Krige, the key to Kanonkop’s success is authenticity. “It is about telling the story behind your wine,” he said. 

Inside Kanonkop Wine Estate