Photo: @DanLikesWine / Twitter
Photo: @DanLikesWine / Twitter
This weekend, a devoted wine enthusiast splurged almost half-a-million rand on 375ml of Grand Constance – one of the rarest bottles known to man. The 200-year-old treasure – initially sourced in Constantia, Cape Town – will now take pride of place in someone’s cellar. But what exactly makes it worthy of the R420 000 price tag acquired in Stellenbosch?
Nederburg MD and CFRWA director Niël Groenewald set the scene nicely for us beforehand. Ahead of the rare wine auction, he explained that the bottle presented a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity‘ for the die-hard vino enthusiasts.
“A treasure of this calibre presents itself perhaps once in a lifetime, and anyone lucky enough to secure this wine at auction will be rewarded with an unbelievably valuable piece of wine history.” | Niël Groenewald
The Grand Constance was a big hit amongst some of the most important people who ever lived – and it was a desired commodity for the French ruling classes. Everyone from Napoleon to Marie Antoinette is believed to have sampled this blend over the years – and it has a history as rich as its centuries-old composition:
Luckily, the exhilarating moment this bottle went under the hammer was captured on film: A stunned silence sweeps across the audience, as the auctioneer dramatically sets the stage. After fending off a bid of R410 000, the bidder held their nerve and went just a little bit higher, reaching the record-breaking figure without any further challenges.
A single 375ml of Grand Constance 1821 just went under the hammer for R420,000 @CapeFineWineAuc pic.twitter.com/hgvksKndjv
— SardinianMTB (@SardinianMtb) May 23, 2021