Wine Tasting by Fei

The schedule for today revolves around wineries around Stellenbosch. The day started out with our first Winery called Groot Constantia. This winery is supposedly THE oldest in SA according to our guide. The winery was in a beautiful area with a fantastic view of the mountains. We had a guided tour of both the processing floor and storage facility. We learned about the production process of both red and white wines, especially how temperature is important for white while not important for red. The red, however, takes much longer to ferment (couple of months) compared to the white. The red is much more flexible in terms of temperature and can be kept around a larger range of temperatures. She said that the grapes in the Constantia area are especially good for wine making due to the cool breeze from the Atlantic from the northwest.

We learned that the color of the wine entirely depends on the color of the grape skin. While white wine can be made from both red and white grapes, red can only be made with red grapes. The color is achieved with the "pump over" process where the wine is pumped from the top and redumped on the top through the layer of skin floating on top. This is done several times until appropriate color is achieved. We were then taken into the barrel room where French handmade oak barrels were stored. She said that the barrels are quite expensive and completely imported. The oaks can only store wine THREE times, each giving off distinct flavors and characteristics. Experienced wine makers can mix the first with the third and second with first, etc to achieve the desired the effect. We were then taken into the tasting room where five glasses were on display in front of every seat. One was a dry white, one rose, two reds, and one Port (sweet) wine. She went on to explain the lightness of the white and rose and how they are good for picnics; heaviness of the red and how they are good with red meat; and the savoriness of the port and how it is a dessert wine. Not really knowing what I was doing, I went through the motion of swirling, smelling, and tasting each wine. I liked all the wines but I especially liked how the flavor of the red and how the flavors would rush in your nostrils after you take a sip. Many of us ended up purchasing the Gouverneurs Reserve since it was the winery's stable and we rather enjoyed it.

Our next destination was Klein Constantia, which was supposedly part of Groot Constantia a long time ago. This winery was famous for the Van de Constantia, which is a sparkling white wine that Napoleon once enjoyed. We started with the typical dry white and Marlbrook red. All of these were really just leading up to the Van de Constantia. The wine was almost like sweet grape juice and I could barely taste the alcohol content. I asked the bartender why it was so sweet and he said that it is mainly because of the grapes that they produce there, which are especially sweet.

Our last winery had a fantastic view of the vineyard. Although we did not taste any wine at this place, it was hands down the best winery experience. As soon as you walk through the building, you a greeted with a fantastic view of the vineyard with crisp blue sky and cloud shrouded mountains in the distance. While most of us took a break and enjoyed the scenery from a distance, a few of us ventured into the vineyard itself. The scenery was simply stunning and we took pictures after pictures of the grapevines meeting the sky. Although a bit strenuous, the excursion was worth it in every way and we went away with THE vineyard experience we can boast about to anyone.