Xanadu DJL Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 (Australia)

Description

• French oak
• Ripe berries & plum
• Mocha chocolate
• Fine tannins

Deep red with garnet hues. Ripe berry fruits, blackcurrants and plums are complimented by subtle spicy oak characters with hints of sage and dried herb. A medium to full-bodied Cabernet with plenty of depth offering blackberries, mocha chocolate and cassis. The pristine fruit and fine tannins combine to produce a very complete wine, distinctly Cabernet with an elegant structure and a wonderful persistence of fruit. Perfectly approachable in its youth, this wine will comfortably cellar for several years.

The growing season began with a late budburst after a relatively cold Winter with reasonable rainfall. The cool Spring which followed resulted in some uneven flowering and fruit set, and generally lower than average yields. We experienced a significant (and unusual) rain event mid-January which was timely due to the later season, and this was followed by some fine, mild weather to get vintage underway.

There was a complete lack of Marri blossom leading up to and during harvest which meant that bird pressure was extreme! Bird-netting was absolutely vital this season. There was a minor rain event coupled with high humidity mid-March which presented some challenges requiring careful fruit selection with some white varieties; however, this gave way to some beautiful weather right through until late April.

Estate grown fruit from our Boodjidup and Stevens Road vineyards accounts for 56% of the blend and is supplemented with fruit sourced from a few other mature vineyards from across the Margaret River region. The subregional split in the final blend is 67% Wallcliffe (predominantly estate grown fruit), 28% Wilyabrup, and 5% from the Treeton sub-region.

The various batches of fruit were crushed and destemmed then fermented predominantly in static fermenters at 26°C for 5 – 7 days. A portion of the blend was left for a period of extended maceration on skins followed by a gentle pressing adding plushness and a savoury textural element to the wine. The various batches underwent MLF in a combination of tank and barrel before 14 months’ maturation in a selection French oak barriques (25% new) before the blend was assembled, filtered, and bottled without any fining.