2020 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon, Cape Mentelle

Margaret River, Australia

“A wine that represents the pinnacle of our energies and research, the embodiment of our experimentation and exploration and the symbol of our legacy”

In the glass, the aromatics are deep and complex consisting of a mineral blackcurrant core with touches of anise, bay leaves and dark chocolate. Rich elements of rosemary, spearmint and moist forest floor reveal themselves as the tightly wound profile gently unfurls.  The palate has a powerful rush of cocoa powder, with dark forest berry fruits of blackcurrant and mulberry, peppered with notes of spiced ginger and caramel toffee. The seamlessly integrated palate of powdery tannins frame the perfectly weighted earthiness and fruit, giving a long texture that harks of the saline coastal influence.

Whats in the bottle
Cabernet Sauvignon 90%, Petit Verdot 5%, Merlot 5%.

Notable Awards
Erin Larkin 95 points. “90/5/5% cabernet sauvignon/merlot/petit verdot. Hand-picked fruit, on skins for up to 91 days. Matured for 18 months in mainly French oak (10% Hungarian), 58% new. 2017 was cool and wet, yet here is responsible for a wine that is ripe and rich. The red fruit on the palate has both density and power, yet is nuanced by a soft, leafy, floral character. The palate is plush and bolstered by oak, which is making a significant impact right now, but the tannins remain fine. Clove bud and aniseed lace together through the finish. The length of flavour is the ultimate testament to quality here. “

£44.95
Taxes included.
  • Producer Information
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As one of Margaret River’s ‘founding five’ wineries, Cape Mentelle pioneered many of the region’s renowned wine styles and today is a benchmark for the quality of the region’s wines.
The winery takes its name from the nearby Cape, named by the French ‘Baudin Expedition’ which charted the coast of Western Australia in 1801. They named the Cape after two notable French scientists, geographer Edmund and his cartographer brother Francois-Simon Mentelle, who lived in Paris in the early 1700’s.
Wine industry pioneer David Hohnen and his brothers Mark and Giles established Cape Mentelle Vineyards in 1970. Our phenomenal Cape Mentelle journey started small with just 16 hectares of vines planted on what is now referred to as the ‘Wallcliffe Vineyard’. In the early years David Hohnen experimented with grape varieties including shiraz, cabernet, zinfandel, sauvignon blanc and semillon. Many of these original plantings are the source of the distinctive wines that have come to characterise Cape Mentelle. The winery’s flagship Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced primarily from the original Wallcliffe Vineyard.

After destemming, individual berry sorting and light crushing, select vineyard batches were fermented on skins for an average of 55 days (with some lots going out to 98 days). Ferment management was decided every day by tasting and follows no recipe. At the desired balance of fruit and tannin extraction, each batch was gently basket pressed, then racked to barrel to complete malolactic fermentation. The wines were matured on “fine lees” for 18 months in selected barriques (mainly French with a tiny amount of Hungarian wood), of which about 58% were new. The wine remained unfined and lightly filtered prior to bottling.

Grape
Cabernet Sauvignon
Country
Australia
Region
Western Australia
Producer
Cape Mentelle
Size
750ml
Sub-Region
Margaret River
Vintage
2020
Types
Red Wine

2020 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon, Cape Mentelle

£44.95

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