1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
VINTAGE
Following an unusually cool March we were blessed with a marvellous warm sunny April and this, combined with our low crop level, ensured the highest sugar levels we have ever achieved in our red grapes. Ripeness is crucial for richness of flavour and our experience has been that the warm sunny vintages such as 1997 produce our finest red wines.
TASTING NOTES
Aroma: Ripe blackberry fruit with fragrant, floral notes. An earthy element is also present plus a hint of smoky oak.
Palate: Intensely flavoured with the fruit elements and subtle oak apparent on the nose carrying through to the palate. Ripe fruit with mouthfilling richness on the middle palate and a lingering, drying tannin on the finish. Firmly textured but generous and gentle.
TECHNICAL DETAILS
Region: Lenswood, Adelaide Hills
Variety: 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot
Oak Maturation: 24 months in French oak barriques. All from forests in the centre of France. One third new oak.
pH: 3.52 |
Alcohol: 14.5% |
TA: 6.7 g/L
Cellaring: Retains is primary freshness for many years and slowy develops a gentle leather/cedar ageing character of lovely complexity and delicacy. Has the foundation of sufficient natural tannin to underpin the natural ageing tannin evolution. Tannins are at the core of the ageing capacity of any red wine as they soften and add depth to the flavour with time. It will build in complexity while retaining suppleness and the grainy drying texture for many years.
Food Suggestion: Ideal with red meats.
Serving Suggestion: Best between 15 and 20°C