2023 Brokenwood Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot, WA & SA

Pour with purple hues, and opens with cedar, blackcurrant and sage notes as well as light touches of vanillin and nutmeg. Sweetly fruited up front, the oak framed, velvety palate follows the nose.

Slow-cooked lamb shoulder would sit perfectly here, or, simply put together a light evening snack of mushroom and gruyère crostini, maybe with some caramelized shallots, thyme, and a drizzle of aged balsamic.

About this wine

This is the 41st vintage of Brokenwood’s Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot. It is a 55/45 blend of Margaret River and McLaren Vale fruit, with Cabernet Sauvignon leading the way with 67%.

The Margaret River component was machine harvested during the night, fermented in a closed top fermenter, pressed off skins and sent to the Hunter Valley post-fermentation. The McLaren Vale component was machine harvested, crushed and chilled to tanker in McLaren Vale, with fermentation in the Hunter.

Not overly worked, as the winemaking team was looking for soft tannins. The wine matured for 18 months in French barriques of which 28% were new.

About this producer

Hunter Valley based Brokenwood was established in 1970 by Tony Albert, John Beeston, and James Halliday, with first vines planted in Pokolbin the year after. Since the early 1980s fruit sourcing has expanded beyond the Hunter, and today, the well-regarded wines are made from grapes grown in Orange, Central Ranges, Gundagai, Canberra District and Tumbarumba (NSW) as well as Beechworth (VIC), Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale (SA), and finally Margaret River (WA).

The winemaking team is lead by Stuart Hordern and Kate Sturgess, while work in the 64-hectare vineyards is guided by Katrina Barry.