Cabernet Sauvignon

93 points
""Has a strong varietal black fruit base (expected) and an overlay of dark chocolate (unexpected); the overall mouthfeel and balance is good, the tannin structure especially so. Screwcap. 93 points." (James Halliday;s Australian Wine Companion)Fresh, clean, berry notes with a slight hint of mint on the bouquet lead through to a a dramatic whirlpool of rich Cabernet flavours - blackcurrants, cassis together with nuances of plums, violets and leather. The length and persistence of the flavours is remarkable, aided by superfine tannins, leading into a finish that is mouthwatering good. A great Barossa Cabernet that will age superbly.

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Another great Cabernet from Leigh Eldredge's high-altitude vineyard.
Colour is dark brick red with magenta hues. Bouquet of dark berry fruits with a hint of smokiness and spice.
Promises offered by colour and aroma are delivered with great depth and length of fruit flavours with a spice accent that is followed by fine grain tannins and a clean finish.

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Deep ruby in colour, with a classic Cabernet aromas of cassis and blackcurrants. The palate is silky smooth, awash with riots of blackberries and cassis, the finish is beautifully balanced between fruit and oak. One to be enjoyed now or cellared for a few years yet. Another winner from Pondalowie

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This is a great Barossa Cabernet. The Willow's Cabernet vines are planted near to the banks of the North Para River, dotted by gum trees, as it winds it way through the Scholz vineyards. So, it is no surprise to find eucalyptus aromas along with the more classic Cabernet characters on the nose with this wine. The French would call this "terroir", but Peter Scholz insists that this is how it's always been down in that part of the vineyard.
The palate's complexity of blackcurrant, fruit, integrated oak and fine ripe tannins combine to make this a wine of immediate appeal, whilst its length and structure indicate a cellaring potential of five years or more.

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"Serious, balanced, rich Cabernet, marvellously dense, a perfect example of why Clare is such a special growing environment: the sun has ripened the grapes to their max, but the cool conditions have preserved a mouthwatering freshness. It still needs a few years' age, but if you like your reds thick and strong you can lay into it now. The mixture of leaf and blackcurrant in its smell is Bordeaux-like, and the dark blackcurrant fruit, lightened by mint yet hemmed in by tannin and acidity, is reminiscent of a young Pauillac. If that's not high praise, I don't know what is."
Oz Clarke (2009 Oz Clarke Wine Buying Guide)
Tim Adams has taken the best Clare Cabernet fruit he can find and beefed it up with 11% Malbec The addition of the Malbec adds to the complexity of the palate which is dominated by fresh blackcurrant and rhubarb aromas and flavours. Twenty-four months in French oak provides spice and balance to this full-bodied style. I will cellaring well for up to ten years.

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Since 1988, Joe Grilli has produced this exotic blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot using the amarone method made famous in Italy. Fruit from Joe & Dina Grilli's Clarendon vineyard is hung on racks and air-dried prior to crushing, creating a deep, brooding wine with great depth, balance and concentration of flavour.
A regular in the top wines in the Oz Clarke Wine Guide, our experience of older vintages of this wine (hard work, but someone has to do it!) confirms that this is a sensational wine which fully reward cellaring for up to 15 years. While drinking beautifully now, it really starts to show its wares from 7 years of age.

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A top class Barossa Cabernet from one of our favourite producers which is drinking beautifully now. Rich blackcurrant fruit, superbly balanced oak and a long, rich finish.

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" Doug Bowen makes some of the most elegant wines in Australia." Tim Atkin (The Observer)
At Bowen Estate there are 12 individual Cabernet vineyards, which combined produce our 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine. Each vineyard is hand pruned using an arched cane system pioneered in Coonawarra by Bowen Estate. This system allows ultimate control over quality, ensuring consistency over vintages.
All vineyards are picked separately during the harvest to assess quality and are individually made, finally being blended prior to bottling.
This is a wine of vibrant colour, ripe fruit with hints mulberry, blackberry and dusty oak tannins. Palate medium bodied with good weight and abundance of fruit flavours finishing with velvety smooth tannins. The use of both French and Russian oak gives this wine great complexity and depth whilst showing integrated elegant fruit characters.


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A great Cabernet, probably the Barossa's best. It proves the old adage that great winemakers make great wines in tougher years as well as in standout vintages. The various individual vineyard parcels were kept separate and underwent a rigorous selection process before the final blend was assembled.
It's about time that Rockford's top class Cabernet Sauvignon moved from out of the shadow of their icon Basket Press Shiraz and this is the vintage that should do it!

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"Joe Grilli is one of Australia's great innovators. He could have decided to make a high-quality Cabernet-Merlot blend in the classic Bordeaux style, But no. He says he doesn't want to make a slightly better Cabernet than someone else. He wants to dazzle people. He says he believes the role of small wineries is to explore the unconventional, so he makes his Cabernet-Merlot as though he were making an Amarone in Valpolicella in Italy! He partially dries the grapes before fermenting them. This gives the wine a fantastic richness but also a thrilling black chocolate bitterness that gnashes its teeth at the dense, ripe, black plum and black cherry fruit and, in time, five years maybe, will blend into a bittersweet beauty rarely equalled in a red wine. This is still very young - magnificent but unresolved. By all means drink it now for its pent-up power "
Oz Clarke (Oz Clarke Wine Buying Guide 2009)
Since 1988, Joe Grilli has produced this exotic blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot using the amarone method made famous in Italy. Fruit from Joe & Dina Grilli's sensational Clarendon vineyard Clarendon is hung on racks and air-dried prior to crushing, creating a deep, brooding wine with great depth, balance and concentration of flavour.
A former top wine in the Oz Clarke Wine Guide, our experience of older vintages of this wine (hard work, but someone has to do it!) confirms that this is a sensational wine which fully reward cellaring for up to 15 years. While drinking beautifully now, it really starts to show its wares from 7 years of age.


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