Dating back to 1685 and described as one of the world's most beautiful wine estates, Klein Constantia is set amidst ancient trees on the upper foothills of Constantiaberg. In 1685 Constantia was established as a wine region in South Africa between False Bay and Hout Bay by the Governor of the Cape, Simon Van der Stel. The perfect location for cool climate wines, it was here that the first Muscat de Frontignan grapes in the Constantia Valley were planted, thus beginning the legacy of one of the world's most famous wines. Klein Constantia's Vin de Constance was prized by leaders and aristocracy throughout 18th Century Europe, and today is considered possibly the world's greatest natural dessert wine.

Made from Muscat de Frontignan, the essence of Vin de Constance is perfect balance between sugar, acid and alcohol while retaining freshness and expressing the cool climate and very specific soil types of Klein Constantia. hey harvested 21 different batches, starting in early February, bringing in grapes with higher acidity, and continuing until mid-April, bringing in grapes with more maturity and flavour. These individual parcels are the unique components which form the building blocks of Vin de Constance.

The individual parcels allow the winemaking team to craft a wine that has the perfect balance between alcohol, acidity and sugar. The final wine entails a detailed and focused blending period during and after fermentation. This wine was aged for three years in a combination of 50% new French oak barrels, a small amount of acacia barrels, as well as large format foudres before final blending and then bottling.

Serve chilled as an accompaniment to desserts such as tarte tartin and crème brûlée, or to cheeses such as Roquefort and Stilton. The combination of high residual sugar and alcohol levels has a well-known preservative effect on bottled wine, allowing the wine to age for at least 20 years.

98 Points - James Suckling's Top 100 Wines. "Extraordinary aromas of white peaches, apricots, vanilla and flowers. Full-bodied and very sweet with so much sweet and dried fruit, such as apricots and tangerines, yet it maintains citrusy freshness and texture, with a long, very sweet finish. Always energetic and vivid. Great length to this, it goes on for minutes. It's a sweet wine to drink when young, to marvel over the intensity and verve, yet also one to age for decades."

Best in show - Decanter World Wine Awards
98 Points - Greg Sherwood MW
98 Points - Decanter
97 Points - Vinous
96 Points - Tim Atkin MW
19+/20 - Matthew Jukes