Platter’s South African Wine Guide has awarded Groot Constantia’s Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 the highest honour of five stars (classified as exceptional bottling) in the 35th edition of this popular guide – annually one of the most eagerly anticipated listings of top-performing wines.
Groot Constantia is no stranger to having their wines awarded, and in fact Groot Constantia’s wines have collectively won 82 gold medals since 2003.
This latest award is a wonderful accolade for South Africa’s oldest wine farm which was developed by Simon van der Stel in 1685 and has been producing wine uninterrupted for 329 years.
“It is thanks to our dynamic team who spend so much time and energy in the vineyards that we can lay claim to these awards. Approximately six years ago we took a new direction in the vineyards and the improvement in quality has been amazing,” says Boela Gerber, Winemaker for Groot Constantia. “It is very exciting to see our hard work and new approaches reaping the rewards and we expect to continue to see our wines doing great things.”
“We are delighted and proud of this amazing achievement – an excellent reward to our vineyard and winemaking team for their continuous drive to increase quality across the board. History tends to repeat itself and over centuries this farm has produced high quality wines respected throughout the world. The Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 now joins this legacy,” concludes Jean Naudé, General Manager of Groot Constantia.
During the Eighteenth century, wines produced in the cellars of the Groot Constantia estate received international acclaim for their superior quality. In fact, before his death in 1821, Napoleon had 30 bottles of wine, produced in Groot Constantia’s cellars, shipped over to St Helena every month to ease his exile.
193 years later and the cellars of Groot Constantia are still producing notable, exclusive and desirable wines – which have won 82 gold medals since 2003.
For more information on Groot Constantia visit www.grootconstantia.co.za.