Winemaker Notes
Rich cassis and lifted violet aromas lead into spiced clove, mocha, and cedary oak. Blackcurrant and blueberry flavors give way to savory notes of black olive, coffee, and dark cocoa. Medium bodied with fine tannins, delivering a long length and a persistent finish. 18 months in French oak.
Professional Ratings
-
Australian Wine Companion
This has been extracted with precision and early to mid-term drinking in mind, without sacrificing flavour or the integrity of cabernet's inherent graphite tannic strictures. There is a dollop of merlot (11%) and franc (4%) for fill and lift respectively. 18 months in quality oak. Delicious. Currant and berry fruit. Hedgerow tannins, gently guiding. This is gorgeous Yarra cabernet The wont: sensitive extraction.
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.
As the most important area of wine production in Victoria today, the Yarra Valley is most popular for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which account for over half of vineyard acreage. A gentle, rolling and rural region alongside the Margaret River, the Yarra Valley has a cool maritime climate with a lengthy growing season, perfect for these cool-climate varieties.
Two styles of Pinot Noir are possible here. The warmer Lower Yarra Valley with sandy, loam soils, produces plush and fruity Pinot Noir while the cooler, higher-elevation Upper Yarra Valley with soils of young red basalt, produces more angular and mineral-driven Pinot Noir.
Yarra Valley Chardonnay is among the best in Australia. To preserve the floral aromatics and fresh citrus flavors for which this area’s Chardonnay is so appreciated, time in barrel is restrained (though barrel fermentation is common). The best Yarra Valley Chardonnays display brilliant acidity, leesy characteristics, citrus, stone fruit and flavors of ginger and spice.
Shiraz and Cabernet find success in parts of this region as well.