Constantia Glen, Constantia, South Africa

CONSTANTIA GLEN: WINE MAKING STARTS IN THE VINEYARD

Constantia is the oldest wine region in South Africa, dating back to 1685. Constantia Glen is located just minutes away from the bustling city of Cape Town. They have a unique position between the Constantiaberg and Table Mountain, with mainly north-eastern facing vineyards . This location provides good exposure to the late afternoon sun, ideal for the slow ripening of the grapes. Decomposed granite and sandstone are the most common soil types, this gives the wines of Constantia Glen a beautiful minerality and character . The rich clay soil retains water well, so they do not need to use irrigation. As an ecologically responsible winery, they use a natural way to keep insects and pests under control, namely by using natural enemies.

With almost 30 ha, situated at 130-270 metres above sea level, they only make 100,000 bottles per year. The rolling foothills of Mount Constantia require manual labour in the vineyards. The cold maritime winds of the Atlantic Ocean, ensure an annual average temperature of 16C. This cool climate ensures slow ripening and low yields, resulting in grapes with exceptional quality, flavour and concentration . This gives white wines the crisp and fresh character, and red wines elegance and structure. This sets them apart from other wine regions in South Africa.

Bordeaux grape varieties

At Constantia Glen they understand that great wines start in the vineyard. Before they started their journey to making world class wines, they first performed 160 soil analyses, up to 3 meters deep. As it turned out, the Bordeaux varieties came out best in the tests. Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon are planted in large quantities as white varieties. Of the red Bordeaux varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot are the most planted, with a small share for Petit Verdot and Malbec. In 2007, the first wine was released. In a short time they have come a long way, a promising wine family !

THE WINES OF CONSTANTIA GLEN: