Aidan By Beau Constantia

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This blend was carefully crafted from vineyards that produced perfectly ripe grapes on the sunny North-facing slopes of Beau Constantia. Following the low rainfall received in 2015, the 2016 vintage is widely known as a drought-stricken one for South African wine growers. However, with our cold climate at the upper reaches of the Constantiaberg, these dry conditions produced beautiful wines. Reproductive development is less sensitive to water shortages than vegetative growth. This meant that canopies were smaller, allowing for better sunlight penetration as well as movement of air in the bunch zone, creating the ideal microclimate for ripening of healthy fruit. The grapes were hand harvested, gently destemmed and berry-sorted before being batch-vinified in small fermentation vessels. The wine was matured in 225L French oak barrels (50% new, 35% second fill and 15% third fill) for 18 months before bottling.

About Beau Constantia 

Beau Constantia is a boutique wine farm situated at the top of Constantia Nek overlooking False Bay. Vines are planted to an elevation of 350 metres above sea-level on some of the steepest agricultural slopes in the Cape. These lovingly nurtured vines are spoilt with panoramic views of the Stellenbosch and Helderberg Mountain ranges and over False Bay as far as Hangklip.

After devastating fires destroyed the fynbos and pine forests on the property in 2000, the slopes were cleared and terraced, thereby exposing great potential for the planting of vineyards. Pierre and Cecily Du Preez purchased the 22 hectare property in 2002 and after extensive soil analysis the first vineyards were planted in 2003 with the help of dedicated farm manager, Japie Bronn.

Development of vineyards on the steep slopes took a lot of patience and effort, but today the farm prides itself with 11.47 hectares under vine. The cultivated varieties include Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Shiraz and Petit Verdot.

The Viognier is showing great promise after the debut wine, the 2010 Beau Constantia Cecily, received the award for the best Viognier at the 2011 Novare Terroir Wine Awards and was also rated 92 points by Neal Martin, who is the Wine Advocate South Africa reviewer for Robert Parker.

A couple of vintages ago, we launched a lifestyle range of wines called Pas De Nom. The range is made up of a white blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Viognier and a red blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. To complete the collection, we later added a Saigneé-style Rosé and a non-vintage MCC.

Together with the Pierre and Cecily as white wines, we also released two premium red blends under the bespoke Beau Constantia label, all of which is hand-crafted to its own unique style by winemaker, Justin van Wyk. The first being a classic and elegant Bordeaux-style blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, named Lucca. The second is a more modern and opulent blend of Shiraz, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Merlot, named after Lucca’s brother, Aidan.

Source:  Beau Constantia