Klein Constantia, Vin De Constance, 2016 - 50cl
Klein Constantia, Vin De Constance, 2016 - 50cl
- 50cl
- 14%
- Dessert
- Muscat de Frontignan
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Optimal drinking window: Now - 2050
Available in the UK now
Vin de Constance is one of the wine world's great resurrection stories. This is the wine that Napoleon requested on St Helena, that Jane Austen prescribed for a broken heart, and that Baudelaire immortalised in verse.
Klein Constantia revived it in 1986 after nearly a century of silence, and the 2016 is a reminder of exactly why the world mourned its absence. Made from late-harvested Muscat de Frontignan grown on the cool southern slopes of the Cape Peninsula, it is a natural sweet wine, rich but never syrupy, always held in check by a nervy, citrus-edged acidity.
It is drinking magnificently now but has decades ahead of it. If you have the patience to cellar it, do. If you open it tonight, we completely understand.
What the critics say:
"The Klein Constantia 2016 Vin de Constance is showing beautifully at this moment. Made during a string of devastating drought years, it reveals orange rind, spicy saffron, pickled ginger and a subtle saline lift, while the palate is glossy yet impressively weightless. The estate’s goal of crafting a “dry” sweet wine is evident in the poised balance between sucrosity and freshness, giving the wine a silky, beautifully composed feel. This is a truly memorable experience."
"Increasingly celebrated as one of the great sweet wines of the world, not just the Cape, Vin de Constance is a delight to taste and review. Slightly drier than the 205 release at 165 grams of sugar, it has more in common with the Loire or Tokaji than it does with Sauternes in terms of freshness and structure."
The Constantia valley sits on the cool, wind-buffeted southern slopes of Table Mountain, where the Cape Doctor keeps temperatures down and the Atlantic influence is felt keenly. Soils are predominantly decomposed granite with good drainage, forcing the vines to dig deep and concentrate their energy. The combination of long, cool ripening seasons and naturally low yields produces Muscat grapes with extraordinary aromatic intensity and the natural acidity that is the backbone of every great Vin de Constance.
Constantia is South Africa's oldest wine-producing region, a small, prestigious ward within the Western Cape just south of Cape Town. The ward sits in a natural amphitheatre open to the ocean, giving it one of the coolest, most maritime climates in the Cape, well suited to aromatic whites and the late-harvest wines for which it built its original 18th-century reputation. It remains modest in size compared to Stellenbosch or Swartland, but its name carries a historical prestige that few South African appellations can match.
Constantia's 2016 growing season benefited from a relatively cool, dry summer — precisely the conditions this southerly Cape peninsula appellation handles best. The Benguela Current keeps things honest here, moderating temperatures that would otherwise push ripeness too fast, and 2016 gave winemakers the slow, measured build-up they needed. Yields were sensible rather than abundant, which tends to concentrate character without forcing anything.
The results leaned fresh and precise, with the region's Sauvignon Blancs showing the kind of focused, mineral-driven tension that makes Constantia worth the argument when people dismiss South African whites. Semillon-based blends also fared well, picking up texture without sacrificing that cool-climate lift. Reds were less the story here — they rarely are — but showed quiet confidence. The whites are largely drinking well now, the better examples holding their nerve into the late 2020s. If you have a serious Constantia Sauvignon or white blend from this vintage, open it soon and pay attention.
OUR GROWERS
Klein Constantia
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