26 September 2003

David McCay, merchant banker and owner of Constantia Uitsig Wine Estate, takes his wine with a little soda added. His rationale? "Use a good wine, and you end up with a good spritzer. Use a bad wine and at least you can drink what would otherwise be undrinkable."

Nothing if not pragmatic, but what would you expect from one of the directors involved in the collapse of Tollgate in 1992? The industrial group had debts of R400 million before going into liquidation, although those involved emerged largely unscathed from the fiasco.

Luckily, McCay seems to have a better knack for the hospitality industry. Along with wife Marlene, he bought the Constantia Uitsig property in 1988, and set about completely upgrading it. Today, it is home to a luxury country hotel, three top restaurants (Constantia Uitsig, La Colombe and the Spaanschemat River Café) as well as 30 odd hectares of vineyard.

According to Marlene McCay, everything they undertake, from the architecture to the interior decorating to the wine and food, is according to "the ethos of gracious living". "We want our guests to feel pampered, but we want the experience to be tangible. It should be in reach of most." A worthy sentiment, but with an average 3-course meal at La Colombe being R325 a head and hotel room rates starting at R1000, Uitsig will surely be beyond the means of most.

I ask Marlene McCay if she enjoys a sense of satisfaction from having created one of the more prestigious, if expensive, leisure facilities in the winelands. "Sure," she replies, "but I also operate with the knowledge that we can always improve."

What of her working relationship with her husband? "He's simply the groundsman for the cricketfield," she jokes. David McCay is a former WP cricketer, and with the cash to indulge his every whim, Uitsig sports an immaculately maintained cricket oval in addition to all the other facilities.

Though the McCays clearly live well, wine is not a foremost concern. Marlene McCay admits to not being a connoisseur but says her interest is gradually developing.

Mid 2001, and the McCays had the Constanita Uitsig vineyards on the market for R97 million. With a price tag that hefty, the sale was never completed, and the couple have decided to persist with producing wine for the meanwhile.

Constantia Uitsig lacks cellar facilities, so wines are made at nearby Steenberg. "It means we can produce and sell wine under our own label without having to carry the capital expense of building a cellar," Marlene says.

The latest releases under the Uitsig label suggest there is nothing wrong with this arrangement. The Constantia Uitsig Unwooded Chardonnay 2003 is not exactly cheap at R49,50 a bottle from the farm, but redolent of granadilla, it makes for excellent drinking and is well worth exploring. The Sauvignon Blanc '03 has great purity of fruit, but quite a high residual sugar of 5,5 g/l makes it particularly flamboyant. It will sell for R55 a bottle. The Chardonnay Reserve 2002 (R90 a bottle) is in keeping with the elegant style of previous vintages. The Uitsig Sémillon Reserve is consistently one of SA's most accomplished examples of a wine from this variety, and the 2002 doesn't disappoint: delicious wild grass notes on the palate. It goes for R85 a bottle, and is recommended for the aficionado. The Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2000 (R80 a bottle) is easy enough to drink but lacks the complexity to make it great.

Taste the wines and you get a sense that they are to play an increasingly important role in building the Constantia Uitsig brand, ensuring that it is accessible to as many as possible. As marketing manager Lianne Kelly-Maartens puts it, "We really do want as many people as possible to be able to buy a piece of the brand - whether it be a stay at the hotel, a meal at one of the restaurants, or the enjoyment of a bottle of wine".

Smart thinking along the lines of the haute couture model. Not every girl has the money to buy an entire Prada suit, but most will be inclined to acquire a conspicuously labelled and more affordable accessory. Expect Uitsig to remain highly fashionable for many years to come.