Winemaker Notes
89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Shiraz
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Blended of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc and 5% Shiraz, the 2007 Noble Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon comes from a single vineyard in the Bethany sub-region. Deep garnet-black colored, it has intense notes of creme de cassis, kirsch, tar, anise, menthol and a whiff of leather. Rich and full-bodied with a medium-firm level of fine tannins, it has a good amount of invigorating acid and a long finish. Drinking now, it should cellar to 2016+.
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Wine Enthusiast
This full-bodied, richly textured Cabernet features berry and slightly herbal notes on the nose, but the flavors are riper and darker than that, veering toward chocolate and cassis. Finishes long and lingering, with the fruit coming to the fore.
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Wine Spectator
Smooth and velvety, with a cushion of fine tannins holding an array of creamy currant, plum, mint and spice flavors, lingering enticingly. Drink now through 2015.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Historically and presently the most important wine-producing region of Australia, the Barossa Valley is set in the Barossa zone of South Australia, where more than half of the country’s wine is made. Because the climate is very hot and dry, vineyard managers work diligently to ensure grapes reach the perfect levels of phenolic ripeness.
The intense heat is ideal for plush, bold reds, particularly Shiraz on its own or Rhône Blends. Often Shiraz and Cabernet partner up for plump and powerful reds.
While much less prevalent, light-skinned varieties such as Riesling, Viognier or Semillon produce vibrant Barossa Valley whites.
Most of Australia’s largest wine producers are based here and Shiraz plantings date back as far as the 1850s or before. Many of them are dry farmed and bush trained, still offering less than one ton per acre of inky, intense, purple juice.