Unlabelled, tiny bottle of ‘Constantia Sweet’ sold for R293K
THEY CAN’T say with absolute certainty whether it was made in 1791 or 1890, but “due to the colour and aromas” it’s believed to be the former. The unlabelled, handblown bottle is small, half a standard 750ml measure of ‘Constantia Sweet’, acquired by Stellenbosch Farmers’ Winery (now Heineken Beverages) at a London auction in 1974. Recently resealed by Amorim Cork under the supervision of sommelier Higgo Jacobs. Resold on 14 August 2023 for R293 125 / US$13 385 by South African auction house Strauss & Co, the buyer’s identity not disclosed – the price more than double what a similar bottle sold for at a London auction in 2018, but far short of the record R967 300 paid for a labelled, different-shaped, 200-year-old bottle of the sweet ‘Grand Constance’ at a Strauss & Co auction in 2021.
Also sold by Strauss for Heineken at the August ’23 Cape Heritage Auction were small bottles of 1890 Constantia Port and 1959 Lanzerac Pinotage – the first commercial release of a wine made from the most successful variety South Africa has come up with, the Pinot Noir Cinsault cross dating back to 1925. See below for the Top 10 highlights of the auction, and for the full results, click here.
THOUSANDS PER BOTTLE
Constantia Sweet White 1791
R293 125 (US$13 385) paid for 1×375ml: R586 250/750ml
Constantia Port 1890
R70 350 (US$3693) paid for 1×375ml: R140 700/750ml
GS Cabernet 1966
R52 783 (US$2769) paid for 1×750ml
Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 1987
R25 795 (US$1354) paid for 1×500ml: R38 692/750ml
Chateau Libertas 1937
R29 313 (US$1539) paid for 1×750ml
Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 1989
R17 588 (US$923) paid for 1×500ml: R26 382/750ml
GS Cabernet 1968
R23 450 (US$1231) paid for 1×750ml
Lanzerac Pinotage 1959
R11 725 (US$615) paid for 1×375ml: R23 450/750ml
Chateau Libertas 1957
R18 760 (US$985) paid for 1×750ml
Zonnebloem Cabernet 1963
R11 725 (US$615) paid for 2×375ml
• Above prices include buyer’s premium and VAT.
Treasures in the Tabernacle cellar, Stellenbosch? There are too many to mention all, but some are: Grand Constance 1821, GS Cabernet 1966 and 1968, SFW Special Release Cabernet 1966, Oude Libertas Pinotage 1973, Lanzerac Cabernet and Pinotage from 1957 to 1995, Zonnebloem Cabernet 1945, 1961, 1963 and up to 1995, Chateau Libertas 1937, 1940, 1957, 1959 up to the 1990s, Nederburg Cabernet from 1967 onwards, Ports from 1929 to 1995 and a large selection of International wines from the 1930s to 1990s, including Petrus, Chateau Margaux and Haut Brion, to name a few.
Strauss & Co previously sold the 1959 Lanzerac Pinotage in July 2022, when two 375ml bottles were auctioned for R19 933.