Dan Ben Hannah This is an attractive black grape with medium sized round berries. It has loose bunches and ripens in mid to late January. The variety was produced in Israel by an Israeli horticulturalist, Dr Hochberg, and named "Son of Hannah" in honour of his wife. It underwent seven years of evaluation in South Africa, and was made available to producers in 1973.

Alphonse Lavallée The first reference to this cultivar was in 1860 when it was registered by a nursery in Orleans in France. It was imported to the Cape from Argentina in 1926, and released to growers in 1928. A black seeded cultivar with a sweet and juicy taste and large, bold round berries. It has compact bunches, a good shelf life and ripens from January to February.

La Rochelle This delicious black seeded grape was developed in South Africa and is a cross between Barlinka and Alphonse, the two traditional black varieties grown in the Western Cape. La Rochelle has large, round berries, compact bunches, and was released in 1986. It is named after the French port La Rochelle on the Atlantic seaboard, as this was where many of the Huguenots came from. (The Huguenots – Protestants fleeing religious persecution – made up a large proportion of South Africa's earliest European settlers, and brought viticulture knowledge and traditions with them from France)

Bonheur Bonheur was developed in South Africa and released to growers in 1986. This beautiful seeded black variety is also a cross between Alphonse and Barlinka. The name comes from the French "Le Bonheur " which translates as "the good hour" and refers to dawn or sunrise. It has large, round berries, compact bunches and a blue-black colour and an excellent flavour.

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