AUSTRALIA WIDE SHIPPING INCLUDED
It’s a graceful style of Cabernet, fine boned and fresh. Blackberry, strawberry, redcurrant, potpourri, slight smoky bacon bone character, and a sea spray/brine kind of thing. Tannin is tight with an emery board texture, subtle tobacco/leafy perfume, and a cool red fruited finish of excellent length, those high quality tannins really stretching it out. Subtle. Lovely.
95 points. Gary Walsh, The Wine Front
IDEA
This wine is the realisation of a dream seeded by Rob’s grandfather, Jack Mann, a departure from the orthodox, to achieve a unique expression of Margaret River Cabernet. Variety, place and experience are woven together to redefine what’s possible.
THE YEAR
Western Australia still cocooned from Covid – yep. Cyclone – just missed it. Rain – just enough. Pickers – not enough. Fruit – almost perfect. Wine – pretty tasty. Holidays – still waiting. That was another challenging year.
The great thing about Cabernet is, after one sip, you get to forget all that. You appreciate joy in the anticipation of drinking Cabernet, enlightenment as it dances across your palate and satisfaction after that glass is emptied. We’ll drink to that.
THE FRUIT
The fourth release from our dry-grown, organically farmed Calgardup Vineyard. Located just 2km inland from the famous Redgate Beach in Margaret River. The fruit was harvested by hand in early April and individually berry sorted prior to natural, whole-berry fermentation in a single French-oak vat. Maturation followed in seasoned French-oak demi-muids and barriques for 10 months.
THE FACTS
100% Cabernet Sauvignon (126 clone planted in 2002) from the Calgardup vineyard in Redgate, Margaret River. Planting density is 1785 vines per hectare on Keenan gravelly loam. The fruit was picked on 6th and 9th April 2021. Alcohol 13.5%; pH 3.74; total acidity 4.81g/L. Bottled 17th February 2022.
THE WINE
We love wines with spine and structure that comes from the grape and not from an oak tree grown on the other side of the world. No fancy winemaking or oak influence, just a relentless pursuit of perfection in the vineyard. This wine tastes of the grape, the dirt and the season without pretention, which is exactly what we want. Crème de cassis, Kalamata olives, dried thyme and salt bush excite the senses while the characteristic spine of fine tannins underpin the luminous, expressive fruit flavours that linger against a backdrop of briny, savoury and mouth-filling texture. – Rob & Gen Mann
