Klein Constantia - Vin de Constance 2021 (liquoreux, 50cl)

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About wine:

This wine has been made in the same way since 1737. The Klein Constantia 2021 Vin de Constance reflects a great vintage in the Cape. The three-week period in March when the fruit is harvested is winemaker Matthew Day's favorite time of year. He loves the way the sun illuminates this beautiful part of the vineyard. [...] The magic happens, he says, during maceration, when the aromas of candied fruit and honey fill the cellar. It is a beautifully balanced wine based on three carefully aligned pillars: sugar, acidity, and alcohol. [...] The result is a sweet wine that seems almost dry thanks to its internal complexity and generous composition. Base notes of teak, fragrant sandalwood, nougat, and Turkish tea will emerge more strongly as the wine continues to evolve in the bottle. According to Matthew Day, Vin de Constance generally reaches its peak after five years in the bottle, then begins a second cycle and opens up again. "It's absolutely breathtaking," he says. [...] The bouquet is discreet, so delicate, so refined. 2025-2060

Vinous

About wine:

The 2021 Vin de Constance comes from 27 different batches that macerated on the skins for two weeks. With 173.5 grams per liter of residual sugar (as in 2020), it has a very pure, effervescent bouquet with notes of quince, orange zest, and a touch of marmalade, wonderfully defined and concentrated. The palate is extremely well balanced, with a viscous attack and very good weight in the mouth, but the acidity (6.3 grams per liter) keeps it lively. Quite spicy on the finish, it lingers long in the mouth, and I can still taste it 30 seconds after tasting it. There is a real freshness and electricity here. Exceptional. 2025-2045

Tim Atkin

About wine:

Produced during what Matt Day describes as a "perfect" year for Vin de Constance, with a long, cool harvest lasting three weeks, the 2021 vintage shows no signs of botrytis, but instead offers astonishing concentration, freshness, and intensity. Made from a blend of 25 batches of grapes, this wine confirms its place among the world's greatest sweet wines, with its complex aromas of orange blossom, jasmine, quince, marmalade, and tarte tatin, its 168 grams of residual sugar, and its remarkable freshness and length on the palate. Drink between 2025 and 2036.

Jane Anson - Inside Bordeaux

About wine:

A long and relatively cool season, with the harvest taking place two weeks later than usual, resulting in exceptional tension and a contrasting texture that is both opulent and tangy. Very balanced and well-proportioned, it offers notes of bitter marmalade, lemon peel, mango, pineapple, caramel cream, and succulent dried apricot, with great intensity and a long finish, enhanced by a touch of nutmeg, flint, and walnut. Matthew Day, winemaker. Aged for 18 months in 500-liter Hungarian and French oak barrels, 50% of which are new, then 16 months in large oak barrels, 173 g/l residual sugar. 2025-2045