Page 64 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL FALL 2020 South Africa

Constantia

One of Cape Town’s toniest suburbs, just 12 miles
from the city center, Constantia is one of the Southern
Hemisphere’s oldest wine-making regions. Since the
mid 17th century, vines have been tended in this fer-
tile green valley buttressed by Constantiaberg moun-
tain and cooled by sea breezes from nearby False Bay.
In the late 1700s, sweet Vin de Constance dessert
wine from Muscat grapes grown here was prized
around the world by the likes of Frederick the Great,
Bismarck, several Kings of England and Napoleon, who
reportedly sipped during his St. Helena exile.
Today’s wine estates, including the original five revi-
talized after a devastating phylloxera infestation
stalled production for almost a century, are linked on
the scenic self-guided Constantia Wine Route. Among
the stops is South Africa’s oldest wine farm, Groot
Constantia estate with its popular chocolate and wine
pairings, and Klein Constantia, a heritage winery
where old-style Vin de Constance is produced today.

64 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE 2020