A Cape Classic in London: Klein Constantia’s Elegant Winemakers Dinner.

Matthew Day spoke of the variety  as a precise expression of Klein Constantia’s slopes, aspects and granite-derived soils. Members enjoyed comparing the Klein Constantia Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2024,  with the freshness to echo the vegetables and lift the whipped feta, with the Clara Sauvignon Blanc 2021. With extra bottle age it feels broader, more savoury and more layered, picking up the candied walnuts, molasses and creamy salinity rather than simply cutting through them.

Seared red tuna followed, beautifully lifted by green apple and finger lime, with potato gauffrettes adding a luxurious crispness and quiet indulgence. Paired with Klein Constantia Rietbos Chardonnay 2024. The wine’s poise and freshness were carefully mirrored by the citrus and apple, while its texture found a natural companion in the tuna and the finely judged richness of the plate.

The principal savoury course brought the evening to its most opulent register: herb-crusted lamb rump with braised lamb leg croquette, potato fondant, spring greens and rosemary jus. Here the kitchen delivered the kind of classical luxury that makes a wine dinner memorable.

Served with Anwilka 2019 and Estate Red 2018 en magnum, the dish gave the reds the structure they deserved. The lamb carried the wines’ dark fruit and savoury breadth, the croquette added depth and comfort, and the rosemary jus tied the plate together with polished assurance.

Dessert paid lavish tribute to Klein Constantia’s most famous wine. Apricot and almond tart with honey parfait and candied citrus was paired with Vin de Constance 2022 and Vin de Constance 2016, and the kitchen’s restraint was as important as its generosity. Rather than overwhelming the wines with excessive sweetness, the dessert echoed their orchard fruit, spice, honey and citrus-peel complexity with admirable precision. Guests were particularly struck by Matthew Day’s explanation of the extraordinary attention to detail that goes into creating Vin de Constance, from the patient selection of perfectly ripened Muscat de Frontignan grapes to the exacting cellar work required to capture both opulence and freshness. It was a finale of real finesse: golden, fragrant and indulgent, yet balanced enough to let both vintages reveal their individual character.

What distinguished the evening was the rare harmony between vinous scholarship and culinary pleasure. Matthew Day’s presence gave the dinner its intellectual and emotional centre: he guided the room with an engaging authority, revealing the decisions, patience and precision behind each wine without ever turning the occasion into a lecture. His commentary gave depth and provenance to each pour, while allowing the dinner to remain gracious, convivial and sensuous. The kitchen team’s contribution was central to that success. Their pairings showed discipline, imagination and respect for the wines, creating dishes that neither competed with nor retreated behind the bottles, but instead illuminated them course by course.