Fermentation

Also known as primary fermentation, the process whereby yeasts convert the natural sugar in the grapes into ALCOHOL and CARBON DIOXIDE. The alcohol will remain a constituent of the wine that results, but in most cases, the carbon dioxide will be allowed to escape as a by-product.

What is Vin de Constance?

A. A crisp white wine from vineyards surrounding Lake Constance near the Swiss-Austrian border

B. A full-bodied red wine made from grapes native to Lebanon

C. A sweet wine from Constantia winery in South Africa

D. A fortified wine from the medieval Constance monastery in eastern France; the wine is thought to have medicinal benefits

Vin de Constance is a dessert wine from South Africa. The celebrated wine was produced in the nineteenth century at Constantia Winery in Cape Town. Founded in 1685, Constantia winery was one of the first wineries in the country. The luscious dessert wine, made from muscat blanc à petite grain grapes, was one of the most sought-after dessert wines in Europe―favored by emperors and kings (Napoléon Bonaparte and King Frederick the Great of Germany) and famous authors and poets. Today, the extraordinary wines are still produced at Groot Constantia and Klein Constantia wineries.

“The beauty of great wine is revealed not by adding adornment, but by removing it.”

—Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle
Lapostolle Winery

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