Magpie Hill Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

Appearance: dark deep purple magenta with dark red edges

Aroma: powerful dark cassis and blackcurrant, red cherry, crushed red currant and raspberry, lifted fresh red rose petal, shaved milk chocolate, cinnamon, baking spices, wild raspberry bramble, vanilla pod

Palate: bright lifted red forest berry fruits, cassis, bramble, raspberry, blood orange zest; fine grained, persistent, plush; taut, poised and elegant; refined long, complex and tightly wound cherry skin; complete velvet tannins which hug and elevate the fruit and oak, with a hint of milk chocolate and red currant on the finish

A cool dry winter gave way to a very wet and cool spring, topping up soil moistures but chilly periods led to issues with flowering resulting in low crops (up to 50% down). Slow vine growth indicated a late harvest yet the new year brought dry windy conditions, necessitating some targeted critical irrigation. Nets went on early to ward off hungry birds. Typical sporadic rain events peppered March and April, followed by a week of sunny, warm, breezy weather, perfect to pick fully ripe, clean red fruit through April.

Selectively harvested one early morning in late April, the fruit was cool when it arrived at the winery. It was destemmed into a closed top fermenter and allowed to cold soak naturally before the ferment was allowed to proceed, followed by daily gentle pumping over 1-3 times. Some post-ferment maceration ensued for complexity and structure, building complete tannins with intense colours for a total of 18 days on skins. The skins were then pressed gently, creating a powerful, silky, restrained yet refined and complete wine.

Aged in 100% French oak (34% new, 27% once used) of 225L barriques and 300L hogsheads for 14 months on fine lees. The smaller format vessel allowed better integration and retention of greater power and length. Blending occurred with no fining and minimal filtration.