Oh I’ve been to Beaune and the vines of Riems where I sipped champagne in a cave… I’ve been to paradise but …today I’m going to Klein Constantia.  Just before Christmas 1708 Jan van Riebeeck gave Simon van der Stel permission to establish vineyards in Constantia.  These vines are thus the oldest in South Africa and it would be interesting to hear how the replanting of vines have influenced the wines of Constantia.

I look forward to tasting some of Klein Constantia’s wines especially the iconic Vin de Constance.  If this was good enough for Napoleon, who I suspect had a similar palate to mine after my trip to Epernay and hearing about Napoleon’s frequent visits to the champagne fields, it will do just fine for me.

The surprise was to see on Klein Constantia’s website that they now have a Methode Cap Classique Brut and I look forward to comparing this to the Moet & Chandon for which Napoleon also had an appetite and which I have become so used.