Winemaker Notes
The grapes were grown on the Longbottom vineyard in Padthaway, the Mollydooker vineyards in McLaren vale and the Belladarren vineyard in Langhorne Creek.
Pairs with Chicken liver paté, duck, roast lamb, mushroom risotto, veal, quail and pork.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Aged in 77% American oak and 33% French, 49% new, the 2009 The Maitre d' Cabernet Sauvignon has a very deep garnet-purple color. It presents intense cassis, vanilla and choco-mint notes with hints bay leaf and cedar. Full-bodied with medium-firm grainy tannins and medium-high acid, it provides ample flesh if slightly simple, finishing long. Drinking now, it should hold its fruit to 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.
Known for opulent red wines with intense power and concentration, McLaren Vale is home to perhaps the most “classic” style of Australian Shiraz. Vinified on its own or in Rhône Blends, these hot-climate wines are deeply colored and high in extract with signature hints of dark chocolate and licorice. Cabernet Sauvignon is also produced in a similar style.
Whites, often made from Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc tend to be opulent and full of tropical, stone and citrus fruit.