2018 Fermoy Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Margaret River

Pure and powerful Margaret River cabernet from right in the Wilyabrup dress circle. Opens with a salvo of fruit nuances on the nose. Blackcurrant and blackberry with some interesting blue fruit touches. Then there is the lifted bay leaf and minerally oyster shell. It is so classically cabernet. The palate is elegantly presented but deeply intense with dark fruits lifted by that bay leaf and slightly graphite edge. Fine grained oak and fine firmish tannins hold the line to focus on a long finish. Drink to 2038.

98 points Ray Jordan, Wine Review 2026

Supple, briny cassis rises up to greet you on first sniff. In a word, pretty. Vibrant. Also joyful. The wine takes a very serious turn on the palate. This is finely structured, shaped by chalky tannins that carry ripe, medium-weight fruit over the tongue and through to the finish. Caresses more than it asserts, making it a subtly spicy, elegant and willowy cabernet, capable of years of grace in the cellar. Brilliant fruit. Drink to 2046.

96 points Erin Larkin for Halliday Wine Companion, August 2021

Perfumed and lifted nose displaying scents of dark rose buds, violets, vanilla spice, cedar and masses of minty cassis and smoked plums. Sumptuous palate, creamy.

96 points I Gold I 2023 Decanter World Wine Awards

A poised and elegant nose of lead pencil, blackcurrant leaf, cassis and allspice captivates with the first few whiffs. And the palate doesn't disappoint—it’s an intense flow of fruit and spice contained by a spine of fine yet firm tannins. This is a powerful and expressive cabernet with regal ambitions that commands your attention with each sip. It's still so youthful and tightly wound and has a long life ahead. Drink to 2032.

95 points Gabrielle Poy for The Real Review, February 2022

The 2018 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is forthright, full-bodied and complex, shaped by a savory skein of tannin that thrusts through the mouth. There are notes of tobacco leaf, blackberry bramble, cassis and raspberry. This is a step up from the 2015 and 2017 tasted prior, and it shows a balance and power that feels naturally inherent in the wine. The season was excellent, unmarred by heat spikes or weather events, the seemingly unending hunger of the silvereyes (birds) sated by the profusion of marri blossom during that summer. You can drink the 2018s now; they are plush and full of pleasure, but they are at the beginning of a very long road and are only just starting to hint at the potential to come. Drink to 2048.

95 points Erin Larkin for The Wine Advocate, July 2023

Fermoy Estate sits by the Wilyabrup Brook just a few kilometres from the Indian Ocean in the heart of northern Margaret River. The estate vineyards sit on the gravelly loam that, with the region’s mild maritime climate, contribute to its world-famous wines. Established in 1985, senior winemaker Jeremy Hodgson and vineyard manager Andy Keig have worked side by side since 2014.

The Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is considered the pinnacle of Fermoy’s wines, with fruit sourced from the original 1985 estate plantings of the famed Houghton clone.

2018 might have been the Cabernet Sauvignon vintage of that decade for Margaret River, with ultra-fine, perfectly ripe tannins, moderate sugars and good natural acidity. Handpicked fruit was destemmed to open fermenters prior to cold soak, with controlled temperatures allowing for considered and gentle maceration on skins. Malolactic fermentation was completed before pressing for a settle prior to racking to oak. After 18 months in barrels with no racking or movement, the final Fermoy Cabernet blends were assembled through a further barrel selection, lightly fined with egg whites, settled in stainless steel and filtered ahead of bottling.

Textbook Cabernet, expressive and elegant from the first whiff, with blackcurrant fruit and leaves at the fore supported by allspice, graphite and bay leaf notes. The harmonious palate is where things get serious and structured. The fruit might only be medium-weight but it is complex, dense and plentiful, with a commanding presence at the long savoury finish.

2018 Margaret River Cabernets can be approached now but will reward the patient over the next 10+ years. For now, decant, prepare the smoker, then pour for good friends over smoked treats like king oyster mushroom barbacoa with black bean tlacoyos or quail and black cherry tostadas with shaved pine mushrooms.