Cape Peninsula winelands checklist 2022: where to go, what to go for
SOME STRUGGLE to get their heads around the law that allows for wines from Durbanville being labelled as Capetonian. Some feel that even Cape Point and Kommetjie are too far from the Mother City to be considered part of Cape Town. Perhaps we could agree that the wineries in the vicinity of Table Mountain have something in common – including Constantia, obviously, but also the urban sprawl to the north and east where they’re close enough to see the cable cars going up and down.
The majority of cellars on the Cape Peninsula offer good food of one sort or another, with the most popular tables including those at Constantia Glen and Groot Constantia, the most classy that at Beau Constantia. See below for the top cellars in the area and what they’re best at, and for the names of exactly which wines from the area have the best track records, see the Classification. The producers with best track records overall: Buitenverwachting, Cape Point, Constantia Glen, Eagles’ Nest, Groot Constantia, Klein Constantia, Steenberg and Trizanne. For all of the Top 100 in the SA Cellar Classification, click here.
CAPE PENINSULA‘S TOP CELLARS
Beau Constantia
Strongest Suit: Shiraz-led Blend
Buitenverwachting – Constantia
Strongest Suits: Cabernet-led Blend, Noble Late Harvest, Sauvignon Blanc
Cape Point – Noordhoek
Strongest Suits: Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend
Constantia Glen
Strongest Suits: Cabernet Sauvignon-led Blend, Merlot-led Blend, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend
Dorrance – Cape Town
Strongest Suit: Shiraz
Eagles’ Nest – Constantia
Strongest Suits: Merlot, Shiraz, Viognier
Groot Constantia
Strongest Suits: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon-led Blend, Chardonnay, Merlot, Natural Sweet, Pinotage, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend, Shiraz
Klein Constantia
Strongest Suits: Cabernet Sauvignon-led Blends, Cap Classique Sparkling, Natural Sweet
Savage – Cape Town
Strongest Suits: Cinsaut-led Blend, Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend, Shiraz
Steenberg – Tokai
Strongest Suits: Cap Classique Sparkling, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend
Trizanne – Kommetjie
Vinification at Cape Point Vineyards
Strongest Suits: Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend, Shiraz
Wade Bales – Constantia
Vinification at various wineries
Strongest Suit: Cabernet Sauvignon
