One of me dearest friends, G, had a bit
of a nasty car accident this past Saturday morning... thankfully he
wasn't hurt, but his Ford is a little fudged, so in an effort to
cheer him up and keep his mind of insurance people, Mr fabulosity and
I decided to take him wine tasting in the afternoon.
This of course didn't take much
persuading on anyone's part, because we're always up for an
adventure, especially if it includes wine.
After debating which route to visit, we
all realised we'd never really explored Constantia's Wine Route
before, and after a few phone calls regarding opening times and
directions, we headed towards Constantia Neck to start our journey.
It's such a scenic drive from Sea
Point, as you go through Camps Bay and Hout Bay before the Neck, and
hardly takes long at all. Perhaps 25 minutes, before we hit the first
farm, Constantia Glen. When the waitress/hostess explained that due
to a large group visiting and eating lunch, that they could only
serve us in about 15 minutes, we decided in the essence of time –
and because we felt her approach was slightly rude – that we should
just move on to Eagle's Nest, literally next door.
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| Eagle's Nest |
The wine guys at Eagle's Nest
(eaglesnestwines.com) were friendly
and informative. Tasting are R30, and include all six wines. My
favourite was definitely the shiraz, but that's no surprise to anyone
that knows me. I had been dying to try it after hearing such rave
reviews. The 2009 Viognier was also a winner for me, while G was a
fan of the Sauvignon Blanc. They are open for tasting from Mondays to
Sundays from 10am to 4.30pm, 021 794 4095
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| Eagle's Nest |
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| Eagle's Nest |
The next wine estate we visited, and
probably spent most of our time at, was Klein Constantia
(www.kleinconstantia.com).
The farm is based on one of the oldest vineyard regions in the Cape,
with the first wines being produced in 1689. The family-run estate
makes 15 different wines, including an entry-level range called KC,
offering a red (Cab-Marlot blend) and a white (Sauvignon Blanc).
Sauvignon Blanc's aren't normally my first choice, but the KC Sauv
Blanc took me by surprise as one of my favourites of the whole lot.
They also make a gorgeous Noble Late Harvest, that made me want to
break out the blue cheese right then and there. Tasting of the entire
range costs R30, and you get it back if you buy some wine. In winter,
their operating hours are from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday and from
10am to 4:30pm on Saturdays, 021 794 5188.
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| Klein Constantia |
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| Klein Constantia wine shop |
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| Getting a wine education at Klein Constantia |
Our last stop was Steenberg
(www.steenberghotel.com), which by this stage, I was already well on
my way to having a great afternoon!!! We arrived fairly late, after
keeping the Klein Constantia guys busy quite a bit after 'closing
time' and so only had a short amount of time to try a couple wines at
Steenburg. We started with a bubbly, the Brut 1682 Chardonnay 2009
(MCC), and then I tried the shiraz 2008. The tasting was free, and
after sampling those two, it was 6pm, and time to start heading back
towards town. Operating hours: From 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday and
from 10am to 6pm on Weekends, 021 713 2222.
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| steenberg - oh the excitement! |
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| steenberg brut chardonnay |
What a lovely afternoon it was, and I
can't wait to go back and try some of the other estates and revisit
the three above.
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| Party people |
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