Cape Valley

Sourced from Piekenierskloof pioneers, Tierhoek, this Chenin is made from fruit produced from a few select, old blocks planted in the 1970s. The nose reflects layers of orchard fruit with citrus pith and hints of wild fynbos herbs. The concentration expansion of fruit across the palate is incredible, with poised and precise acidity layering with earthy minerality, quince and lime zest. The finish is gloriously long and vibrant. Once again, this wine expresses a unique terroir.
Katherine Dart MW, Wine Buyer, Berry Bros. & Rudd

This Sauvignon Blanc is elegant and refined, with subtle flavours of blackberry leaf and passion fruit complementing a mineral core. Old World in style, it has rested on its fine lees for seven months, which has given the palate additional weight and texture. The wine is expressive with a tension that adds complexity. The property is one of the oldest surviving Sandveld farms, where leopards abound, and which is ideal for growing aromatic whites due to the higher altitude. Although not certified organic, the farm adopts an organic approach to be able to produce high-quality wines that express terroir.
Daisy Gatt, Buying Assistant

This wine expresses the coolness of the 2018 vintage in Constantia: it’s perfumed and elegant, with notes of lime zest, subtle gooseberry and melon. On the palate, razor-sharp acidity is gently tempered by the presence of a touch of Sémillon (2%). Subtle flecks of fennel and nettle complete the picture. This would be the perfect accompaniment to Vietnamese food, sashimi or goats’ cheese dishes. Ready to drink now.
Daisy Gatt, Buying Assistant (spring 2019)

Tierhoek is one of the oldest Sandveld farms in the Piekenierskloof, where leopards abound. This rugged, mountainous ward is situated on the border with the Cederberg Mountains and the Swartland. Since its inception, Tierhoek has adopted organic and sustainable practices to produce high-quality wines that express this exceptional terroir.

This Chenin Blanc has a glorious depth of flavour and rich mouth-feel, with aromas of orchard fruit, greengage and honeysuckle on the nose. Stony, savoury notes underpin the honeyed fruit on the palate, while fresh acidity brings added vibrancy. Drink now to 2022.

Grown on north-east facing slopes between the Constantiaberg and Table Mountain ranges, the vines here benefit from slow ripening in the afternoon sun, resulting in a rich yet classically proportioned blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The result is a wine that nods clearly to the region that has influenced it, while expressing a clear sense of place.
Katherine Dart MW, Wine Buyer (Spring 2019)

Aromas of apricot, green herbs and cut grass entice on the nose. On the palate, more tropical notes of passionfruit and papaya layer with ripe peach and nettle. The Sémillon brings depth and rich texture to the blend, complementing the racy acidity and fresh aromatics of the Sauvignon Blanc. This would pair beautifully with fragrant dishes and seafood. Drink now to 2027. 
Daisy Gatt, Buying Assistant (autumn 2018)

My first impression of Matthew Day’s maiden Vin de Constance is very simply “wow, what a wine!” He seems to have created even more depth, even more layers of complexity and its more vinous, more winey…there’s just more! The nose has taut, yellow apple fruit in spades with a little peach and soft plum characters too.

There is an exciting touch of German Riesling Auslese too – all those petrol, acacia, honey notes and citric lift. The palate is hugely complex as you might imagine, the Auslese character is present too. Although the acidity is greater than in previous years, it is entirely dovetailed into the structure of the wine. The length is simply huge, lasting for minutes but leaves me just wanting another glass. Drink now to 2030+.
Gary Owen, Private Account Manager

Matt has been working at Klein Constantia since 2009 as assistant to the highly respected Adam Mason, but has brought his own ideas and philosophy to the wine. Matt has used the vintage conditions of 2012 and his own methodology to preserve the aromatics and improve the freshness of the wine – highly important in a wine as sweet as Vin de Constance.

Importantly Matt has been harvesting in batches, almost like Sauternes trie harvesting, only picking the grapes when they are at their peak ripeness. In 2012 that meant a colossal three month harvest! At the end of harvest he also used a proportion of Essencia juice, the free run juice from the sweetest berries – this culminates in a more intense, more balanced and more drinkable Vin de Constance!

Since being re-introduced in 1986, Vin de Constance has consistently appeared in lists of the world’s top wines. The 2007 vintage was awarded 97 points by Neal Martin of Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, making it the best rated South African sweet wine in history. The outstanding 2009 was in the Wine Spectator’s Top 10 Wines of 2015.

Having trained under the late Didier Dageneau in the Loire, it is no surprise that Duncan Savage is the master of Sauvignon Blanc in South Africa, both at Cape Point and under his own label. His proprietary white, a blend of Sauvignon and old-vine Sémillon is a fantastic New World answer to white Graves – grapefruit, lemon peel and almond on the nose. Vibrant and very fresh, this will no doubt gain some flesh and texture with age – there is a lot to like here.
Fergus Stewart, Private Account Manager

The 2008 Vin de Constance is a worthy successor to the extraordinarily rich 2007. The wine is a result of meticulous care in the vineyard, with pickers passing through more than a dozen times to collect fruit at differing levels of ripeness and raisinification to build the layers of this complex wine. The deep gold colour hints at the richness within, the lifted, intense nose of ripe apricots and tropical fruits beguiles, whilst the weighty palate carries through the ripe fruit notes of the nose, mingled with sweet clove spice and an unexpected savoury twist on the lingering finish that makes one want to take another sip. Powerful, yet not cloying, rich but elegant, this is one of the world’s truly great sweet wines.
Martin Hudson MW - Wine Buyer

It certainly lives up to the billing: exhilaratingly, almost sherbet-scented with fresh nectarine-stone, orange & pink grapefruit notes; the palate's very clean, crisp & vibrant with shreds of tangy seville orange peel marmalade resonating on the finish; this Muscat de Frontignan/Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains wine is balanced by 140 grams of residual sugar. Still a legend in its own right & worth the detour.
 

The nose is enticing with orange, marmalade and apricot aromas, freshly harvested honey. If this isn’t enough of an assault on the olfactory senses, then the palate is in for just as big a treat. The mouth feel has a lovely viscosity that layers the mid palate with tropical fruit, dried pineapple, spiced honey and yet the finely balanced acidity lifts this to a finely honed length and finish. Always a great sweet wine for the hedonists this is another great offering that is very drinkable in its youth or over the next 10 + years.
Stuart Rae, Private Account Manager

The Klein Constantia Vin De Constance is a legendary natural sweet wine, widely regarded as one of the world’s finest. During the 18th and 19th centuries Vin de Constance was the most famous wine from the Southern Hemisphere. This seductive and iconic sweet offering, made only 20km from Cape Town, seduced the Kings and Queens of Europe, featured in the novels of Charles Dickens and Jane Austen and continues to impress its loyal followers. In 1980 Klein Constantia was bought by Duggie Jooste who redeveloped the Estate.

Early records were studied and careful selection was made from vines which, in all likelihood, came from the original stock used in Constantia 300 years ago. In 1986 the first vintage of the renaissance was reintroduced to the public and packaged in a similar style 500ml bottle to its forebears. Made from Muscat de Frontignan, the 2009 was aged in a combination of French oak, French Acacia oak and Hungarian oak barrels for 4 years, of which 60% were new barrels. The harvest began in late January and was completed only in late April.

The extended picking period allowed the estate to harvest up to 25 different batches that make up the many components in the final blend. Each bunch is hand selected and only the ripest and best bunches are chosen. There is no racking or movement of the wine during the 4 years of ageing until the final

Widely regarded as one of the world’s finest sweet wines, this famously seductive and iconic Vin de Constance is a gloriously sweet offering from the Klein Constantia winery in South Africa located 20km from Cape Town.
The 2007 vintage was one of the best of the decade, with a long, cool season ensuring concentrated flavours and aromatic intensity. A warm, dry late summer created perfect conditions for the raisining of the Muscat de Frontignan grapes whilst still on the vine.

After 11 years producing Platter five-star wines at Cape Point Vineyards, Duncan Savage finally realised his dream of producing his own red and white wine before the age of 35 with his maiden (2011 red, 2012 white) vintage. The wines received high critical acclaim with Duncan once again in the spotlight as one of the most exciting young talents in South African winemaking.

Follow the Line is earlier drinking and lighter of touch than the Savage Red. New World fruit is allied to an Old World personality in Duncan’s outstanding wines. The nose is a delicately scented with layers of juicy redcurrant fruit. The medium-bodied palate has a gentle, almost Burgundian feel to it. There is enough tannin on the palate and depth of fruit to provide focus, but freshness is the key characteristic here, giving the wine a lovely length and spiciness that dances on and on. Drink 2018 to 2020.

2014 is being described by Matthew Day as the vintage of the decade and it is easy to see why. Vivid gold in colour, the nose is open and expressive even at this early stage. Candid orange peel, backed peaches and apricots with a hint of honey dominate the nose, but there is nuance and spice here in the guise of fresh ginger, nutmeg and kerosene. The palate is rich, opulent and fruit forward, coating one’s mouth with sweet marmalade and apricot frangipane, but there is freshness on the midpalate with hints of tangerine and honeysuckle. Well balanced with plenty of concentration on the long, sticky finish. Exceedingly pleasurable and drinkable from the get go.
Simon Herriot, Private Account Manager

Even better than the 2014 release - and that was a spectacular sweet wine - the 2015 Vin de Constance is one of the greatest ever vintages of this iconic sticky. More Barsac than Sauternes in terms of weight, it’s fresh and refined, a bit like the 2012, with citrus and orange zest balancing the 172 grams of sugar. The oak is perfectly judged, the length and freshness things of wonder.
Tim Atkin - Decanter.com

There is such a buzz about this wine that I was very intrigued to try it for the first time this year, and it was quite an experience. A blend of Chenin Blanc (86%) and Semillon (12%), the 2013 Cartology is made from very old, dry-farmed bush vines, the oldest dating back to 1932. It is not open or giving at present but you can feel the power of those old vines being shielding as if behind a cloak at present, ready to burst forth with age.

This is serious wine; it has depth, richness and incredible potential. Quite honestly, I cannot begin to guess quite how long this will last. On a conservative estimate, I would say at least ten years. This is a wine to open a bottle of each year over the next decade to see how it develops. Drink 2016 -2025+.
Catriona Felstead MW, Wine Buyer

It’s easy to understand why Chris Alheit’s Cartology is garnering so many plaudits after only a few vintages – this is, in my mind, one of the most exciting of the new wave of South African wines on the market. A very precise bouquet of quince, baked apple, yellow plums and lemon leads into a rich and textured palate. The Chenin dominates at 88 percent, with the Sémillon adding some grassy zing and freshness. Give this a year in the cellar then enjoy over the following five years and beyond.
Fergus Stewart, Private Account Manager