Nose

The wine has attractive aromatic notes of mulberry, black cherry & plum that are enhanced by hints of dark chocolate, liquorice, nutmeg & pencil shavings.

Palate

Medium-bodied, supple & elegant; filled with dark skinned berry and currant fruit of considerable depth & length, seamlessly integrated oak & firm, but ripe tannins.

Growing Conditions

2016 was one of the longest vintages for the region on record, preceded by good winter rains. A rainfall event in January helped arrest rising sugar concentrations allowing tannin & flavour development in the red varieties to catch up & reach perfect equilibrium.


Harvest

Cabernet Sauvignon (89%) was picked on 2nd April at 13.8° Bé, Merlot (8%) & Cabernet Franc (3%) were picked on 8th April at 13.0° Bé & 14.2° Bé respectively. The Karridale vineyard is sustainably farmed following organic principles.

Bottling

The wine was bottled on 29th January 2018

Winemaking

The fruit underwent a four-day cold soak, & was hand-plunged in open fermenters, spending 19/10/8 days on skins for the Cabernet/Merlot/Franc respectively. MLF took place in barrel).

Aging

18 months in French barriques (45% new). This was followed by barrel selection, blending & bottling

Appearance

Deep red in colour with purple hues.

Food Pairing

Grilled lamb chops in Bordelaise sauce