Constantia, South Africa
Constantia
Uitsig Winery was the last stop on my list after visiting several wineries
in the Constantia Valley
including Constantia Glen, Eagles Nest, and Steenberg. I
had made reservations that evening at La Colombe, where a few friends and I would be
having dinner. La Colombe is the restaurant on the vineyard property, and has
been rated one of the top restaurants in all South Africa, it was on the San Pellegrino 100 list of the
world’s best restaurants back in 2009. 
Trending
wines:
World’s Top 100 Restaurants:
Follow Wine, dine, and Play:
Wine
Dine and Play’s ratings for wine:
|
96 – 100
|
Extraordinary
|
|
90 – 95
|
Outstanding
|
|
80 – 89
|
above average
|
|
70 – 79
|
below average
|
|
60 – 69
|
poor/appalling/ “Cac”
|
Review basics:
|
Wines Produced
|
Red: Heritage, Meritage,
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Sangiovese, Syrah,
Malbec, Shiraz, Grenache, Burgundy, Petite Sirah, Red Blend, Barbera, Zinfandel,
Bordeaux Blend (aka Meritage), Summation, Barbera, Super Tuscan, Dolcetto
White: Chardonnay, Pinot
Grigio, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chablis, Sancerre, Pinot Blanc,
Gewürztraminer, White Blend, Rose, Pinot Bianco, Sémillon, Muscadelle du
Bordelais,
Dessert: Vin Santo, Moscato, Port,
Madeira, Sauternes,
Other: Olive oil
|
|
Grape Blends
|
Red: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc
White: Sauvignon blanc, Sémillon or Muscadelle du Bordelais
|
|
Current Vintage for 2013
|
Reds: 2010
Whites: 2012
|
|
Wine, Dine, & Play’s Rating
|
87/100
|
|
Platters wine guide
|
5
of 5 stars for Constantia Uitsig Semillon 2012
|
|
Region Map
|
Constantia Wine Region
|
|
Regulatory
|
|
|
ABV %
|
13.5 to 14% depending on wine
|
|
Barrel Types
|
New/old French or American Oak, cast iron
|
|
Barrel Aging
|
7 – 36 months depending on the wine, see tasting notes
|
South
African wine Quality Standards:
Unlike some European countries, South Africa does not have
any requirements for the process of making wines in a particular region—for
instance, allowing only certain trellising methods or varietals. However, there
are certain quality requirements. For a
wine to be labeled as a particular varietal or as coming from a particular
region, estate, or vineyard, it must also not display any “unacceptable quality
characteristics,” which means the wine may not be turbid, contain excess
sediment or crystals, have faulty/insufficient color, or display undesirable
flavor characteristics. Among the several characteristics listed as
unacceptable, a wine may not be overly tannic, thin or watery, or oxidized. For
a wine to be labeled as coming from a particular area, 100% of the grapes used
to make the wine must have been grown there, and producers may only label their
wines using officially-recognized geographic areas. In addition to designating a particular
geographic unit, region, district, or ward, a producer may also designate the
wine as coming from a particular estate or may label it as a “single vineyard
wine.” However, to do so the producer
must first register the area where the grapes were grown with the Wine and
Spirit Board. Single-vineyard wines must
have been made from a single varietal that is produced in the area registered
with the board, and the area registered may be no larger than 6 hectares. Estate wines must be made entirely—including
bottling—in the registered area where the grapes were grown. Also, if a particular varietal—or “cultivar”
as the law defines it—is listed on the bottle, at least 85% of the grapes used
in making the wine must have been of that type. This same 85% rule applies to
designating a particular vintage year.
Cases Produced:
Per Year:
|
Semillion 2011
|
1165
|
|
2012 Reserve Chardonnay
|
1165
|
|
Muscat d'Alexandrie, (N/V)
|
1165
|
|
2012 ‘Constantia’ White Blend
|
1165
|
|
2009 Constantia Red
|
1165
|
|
2012 Sauvignon Blanc
|
1165
|
Price chart:
$ - Under $50.00 USD
$$ - Over $50.00 USD
$$$ - Over $100.00 USD
$$$$ - Over $200.00 USD
$$$$$- Over $400.00 USD
Bottle prices:
|
Wine Selction:
|
Currency:
|
Country:
|
Price Chart :
|
|
2011 Semillion (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R145.00
|
ZAR
|
 |
|
|
$13.21
|
USD
|
 |
$
|
|
£7.93
|
GBP
|
 |
£
|
|
€9.64
|
EUR
|
 |
€
|
|
¥80.85
|
CNY
|
 |
¥¥
|
|
2012 Reserve Chardonnay (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R90.00
|
ZAR
|
|
|
|
$8.20
|
USD
|
|
$
|
|
£4.92
|
GBP
|
|
£
|
|
€5.98
|
EUR
|
|
€
|
|
¥50.18
|
CNY
|
|
¥
|
|
Muscat d'Alexandrie, (N/V) (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R285.00
|
ZAR
|
|
|
|
$25.97
|
USD
|
|
$
|
|
£15.59
|
GBP
|
|
£
|
|
€18.95
|
EUR
|
|
€
|
|
¥158.91
|
CNY
|
|
¥¥
|
|
2012 ‘Constantia’ White Blend (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R140.00
|
ZAR
|
|
|
|
$12.76
|
USD
|
|
$
|
|
£7.66
|
GBP
|
|
£
|
|
€9.31
|
EUR
|
|
€
|
|
¥78.06
|
CNY
|
|
¥¥¥
|
|
2009 Constantia Red (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R130.00
|
ZAR
|
|
|
|
$11.85
|
USD
|
|
$
|
|
£7.11
|
GBP
|
|
£
|
|
€8.64
|
EUR
|
|
€
|
|
¥72.49
|
CNY
|
|
¥¥¥
|
|
2012 Sauvignon Blanc (750 ml)
|
|
|
|
|
R90.00
|
ZAR
|
|
|
|
$8.20
|
USD
|
|
$
|
|
£4.92
|
GBP
|
|
£
|
|
€5.98
|
EUR
|
|
€
|
|
¥50.18
|
CNY
|
|
¥¥¥
|
Visit these sites to
get up to date currency rates:
Or visit:
Cost of wine tasting in USD (p/p):
|
Tasting Flight:
|
$3.00
|
|
Formal flight:
|
$6.50
|
Scroll down below to the main review to read the tasting notes
From vineyards home page:
Constantia Uitsig, known until 1940 as Constantia View, was
the home of the Lategan family for five generations. Their ancestors arrived in
this country in 1735. Constantia Uitsig had been a portion of Simon van der
Stel’s original grant of Groot Constantia. In 1894 Willem Lategan married Antoinette
Bredell of Schoemanshoek, and with her inheritance he built the present
homestead of Constantia Uitsig. In 1988 the farm was purchased by David and
Marlene McCay. Together they have restored the farm to its former glory, and
Constantia Uitsig now boasts award winning wines, three world-renowned
restaurants, a private cricket oval, Spa and a 16-roomed luxury hotel. In 2006
fifty percent of the wine estate was bought by a consortium. Just 20 minutes
from the heart of the city, Constantia Uitsig is truly Cape Town’s own
Vineyard. The breathtaking rural beauty of a valley, where vineyard rows
stretch up the mountainside, is unique in today’s overcrowded world.
The Constantia Uitsig tasting room sits in a group of
building just to the left of the main entrance, and the restaurant La Colombe
is further up the main road, with the vineyards on either side. The tasting
room was designed almost in a Spanish, Moorish, or old Roman Architectural
style with arched doorways and wooded frames around the windows. Of course in
the roman times they never bothered to bottle up the wine, and kept it in casks
for the nobles to drink, or gave the rotten wines to the soldiers on their
conquests.
There were several tables and a bar in the tasting room with
seven wines on their tasting menu (listed below) ranging from the Methode Cap
Classique (Sparkling Wine), to red and white blends, and their Muscat
D’Alexandrie (N/V), the best wine I had from the tasting. Though all the wines
had good character and taste, and with having dinner at La Colombe, I would
have their wine again by the full glass, the Muscat reigned supreme for me,
which is rare considering I am not a big fan of sweet late harvest wines, and
am more of a dry red wine man. That alone says a lot about their Muscat, especially
if you read some of my previous Napa and Sonoma County
reviews were I ripe sweet wines to little shreds not giving them good reviews
at all.
This or these wines remind me
of:
Constantia Uitsig was a wonderful property, consisting not
only of the tasting room and vineyards, but also two restaurants and a hotel,
reminding me of a few French Château that did the same like Chassagne-Montrachet.
The tasting and quality of their white wines were on par with the white wines
tasted at Castello di Amorosa,
Napa, and Pillitteri Winery, Niagara Wine Region, Ontario, Canada. The Constantia Uitsig reminded
a lot of the quality of the of 2008Sparkling Cabernet Ice wine, from Pillitteri that won the Effervescents Du Monde, Compition in France back in 2009, which I feel the
Muscat will be a contender for very soon.
Bouquet
& Palette:
|
Wine & Grape:
|
Nose:
|
Palette Experience:
|
|
Intense, upfront aromas with flavors of nectarines and
citrus fruits.
|
Subtle wood spice flavors. This wine shows exceptional
balance of fruit and oak with a long, lingering finish. Drink until 2019.
|
|
|
This un wooded Chardonnay shows complex aromas and flavors
of white fruits and pears
|
Beautiful zest and nuttiness on the palate. The wine has a
soft tannin structure with perfect balance between acid and fruit with a
long, lingering finish.
|
|
|
Muscadel finesse and a particularly pure, floral sort of
grapiness.
|
Typical muscat character, this desert wine is soft
on the palate with a lingering aftertaste, well balanced acid and integration
of fruit and wood
|
|
|
60% Semillon, 40% Sauvignon Blanc. Intense, complex
flavors of nectarine and dried apricot with hints of lime and minerality
|
The wine has an elegant balance between fruit and subtle
wood integration with a long, lingering finish. Drink until 2022.
|
|
|
This wine captures the essence of a cool climate blend
with complex aromas of cigar box, spices, plums, cherries and herbaceousnous
with hints of mint following through to the palate.
|
A medium to full-bodied wine with soft fruit tannins and a
lingering finish.
|
|
|
A typical cool climate wine that is well balanced. It shows
complex, upfront aromas and flavors of granadilla and gooseberry, with
underlying minerality and herbaceousness.
|
|
Vineyard Owner:
Constantia Uitsig Holdings Pty Ltd
Viticulturist:
Andre Rousseau
Tasting room address:
Spaanschemat River Road
Constantia
Cape Town 7848
South Africa
34° 02.45 minutes 28 seconds south
18° 25.12 minutes 55 seconds east
Cross streets:
Nirvana Way & Barbary Way
Contact Information:
|
Tasting room:
|
+27 (0) 21 794 4480
|
|
|
Fax:
|
+ 27 (0) 21 794 7605
|
|
|
Winery:
|
+ 27 (0) 21 794 6500
|
|
|
Website:
|
||
|
Email:
|
||
|
Hotel Reservations
|
||
 |
 |
|
 |
||
Hours of tastings:
Mon – Fri: 09h00 – 17h00
Sat, Sun & Public Holidays: 10h00 –
17h00
S. African Standard Time (GMT +2:00)
Review by:
Chef Sean Overpeck (CFE) at La Colombe Restaurant, Constantia uitsig
Chef Sean cooks for soldiers in Afghanistan, 2012:
“I like cooking with wine;
sometimes I even add it to the food.”
