St. Andrews

Cabernet Sauvignon - Back Vintage 2013

Complex and elegant, offering rich fruit characters of cassis and blackcurrant with earthy nuances. French oak giving hints of cedar and tobacco to finish.

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Wine details

Tasting Notes

At release, the wine is a deep, dark garnet colour with a subtle purple hue to the edge. The wine has an enticing, lifted bouquet of violets, blackcurrants, blackberry and a hint of chocolate. The overall aroma is one of understated richness and elegance. On the palate it is a very well-balanced wine with ripe black fruit characters, coffee and chocolate interweaving harmoniously. There is an understated power to the wine, with layers of complexity building across the palate and then finishing elegantly with long, fine tannins. It is a generous wine yet retains poise and the elegance of great Cabernet Sauvignon.
Vinification

Once harvested, the grapes for this wine were taken the short distance to the winery where they were gently de-stemmed to protect the vibrant fruit characters and minimise any maceration and extraction of harsh tannins. The fruit was then transferred to stainless steel tanks where it was left to cold soak on skins for a period of 5 days before being inoculated with a specialist Cabernet Sauvignon yeast strain. Fermentation then ensued at a constant 22 - 25 degrees Celsius and the must was gently mixed twice daily. The wine was allowed a period of extended skin contact before being pressed and transferred to French oak barrels to complete the secondary malolactic fermentation. Once MLF was completed, the wine was racked off lees, fined and then then transferred back to fine-grained French oak barrels (50% 1 year old, 50% 2 - 3 year old) for maturation. After a period of 18 months oak maturation and minimal filtration, the wine was bottled in August 2015.
Vintage conditions

In the Clare Valley, growing conditions leading up to vintage 2013 could best be described as benign, apart from a frost event of mid-October which impacted several blocks on our estate vineyards. There were very few significant rainfall events over the growing period with the season being described overall as dry. The first week of December saw a 30mm down pour which was most definitely a season changer. Without the rain event, the overall yields from 2013 would have been very low. Harvest conditions were excellent with the first white varieties picked in early February. Our winemakers report that quality is outstanding across all varieties, with excellent acid balance and flavour development displayed in the resultant wines.

St Andrews Vineyard, Blocks A70 – planted in the river flats or on a gentle east-facing slope, in the wind shadow. The soils are predominantly red loam with chalky limestone substrate.
Vineyard

Clare Valley
Technical details
- Acid: 6.72
- Alc %: 14.69
- PH: 3.55
- Residual Sugar: 0.50
Cellaring Notes

This wine is evolving well at release yet should cellar well to 2028 or possibly longer.

Winemaker NotesAt release, the wine is a deep, dark garnet colour with a subtle purple hue to the edge. The wine has an enticing, lifted bouquet of violets, blackcurrants, blackberry and a hint of chocolate. The overall aroma is one of understated richness and elegance. On the palate it is a very well-balanced wine with ripe black fruit characters, coffee and chocolate interweaving harmoniously. There is an understated power to the wine, with layers of complexity building across the palate and then finishing elegantly with long, fine tannins. It is a generous wine yet retains poise and the elegance of great Cabernet Sauvignon.

Once harvested, the grapes for this wine were taken the short distance to the winery where they were gently de-stemmed to protect the vibrant fruit characters and minimise any maceration and extraction of harsh tannins. The fruit was then transferred to stainless steel tanks where it was left to cold soak on skins for a period of 5 days before being inoculated with a specialist Cabernet Sauvignon yeast strain. Fermentation then ensued at a constant 22 - 25 degrees Celsius and the must was gently mixed twice daily. The wine was allowed a period of extended skin contact before being pressed and transferred to French oak barrels to complete the secondary malolactic fermentation. Once MLF was completed, the wine was racked off lees, fined and then then transferred back to fine-grained French oak barrels (50% 1 year old, 50% 2 - 3 year old) for maturation. After a period of 18 months oak maturation and minimal filtration, the wine was bottled in August 2015.

In the Clare Valley, growing conditions leading up to vintage 2013 could best be described as benign, apart from a frost event of mid-October which impacted several blocks on our estate vineyards. There were very few significant rainfall events over the growing period with the season being described overall as dry. The first week of December saw a 30mm down pour which was most definitely a season changer. Without the rain event, the overall yields from 2013 would have been very low. Harvest conditions were excellent with the first white varieties picked in early February. Our winemakers report that quality is outstanding across all varieties, with excellent acid balance and flavour development displayed in the resultant wines.

St Andrews Vineyard, Blocks A70 – planted in the river flats or on a gentle east-facing slope, in the wind shadow. The soils are predominantly red loam with chalky limestone substrate.

Clare Valley

Acid: 6.72

Alc %: 14.69

PH: 3.55

Residual Sugar: 0.50

This wine is evolving well at release yet should cellar well to 2028 or possibly longer.

Reviews

Joe Czerwinski, Buying Guide

17 Feb 2019

92/100 Cellar Selection

Grilled-toast notes swirl around the bouquet of this cassis-scented wine. Leafy elements add complexity without being green, while a lifted cherry element brings vibrancy to the mix. This firm, structured wine features a long, mouthwatering finish that bodes well for cellaring. Try it after 2020.

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Yvonne Lorkin, Sips to dazzle taste buds

18 May 2019

You could, based on the number of gold medals on its grill, deduce this wine is more than a tad flash, and you

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St. Andrews

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Wine details

EXPERT APPRAISALS

Reviews

Joe Czerwinski, Buying Guide

Yvonne Lorkin, Sips to dazzle taste buds

The Visionary

Cabernet Sauvignon

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