2023 Flametree SRS Cabernet Sauvignon, Margaret River

A thoroughly brilliant example of the ’23 vintage in Wilyabrup. The unmistakable aromas of blackcurrant with a lift of violets, crushed berries and oodles of dark, syrupy chocolate spell out Wilyabrup. The palate is medium-bodied, but my oh my, there is some deep, concentrated fruit here. It’s brilliant and bright with a firm thread of chalky tannins and precisely integrated and slightly toasty oak supporting a sustained finish. The journey has only just begun, but this is something special. Drink to 2046.

98 points Ray Jordan, Wine Review 2026

Deep red-purple colour; the bouquet is quite oaky on first sniff, with classy cassis cabernet fruit backing up. The wine is bright and intense, full-bodied and very firm on palate, with abundant gripping tannins providing great structure, impact and persistence. A full-throttle and very serious cabernet which demands patience and promises much if cellared. Drink to 2045.

96 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, September 2025

Like a well earned bruise this is all the hues of blue, rouge and black tones, but unlike a sore point, this wine is soul restoring. Ribena, kirsch and Davidson plums are met with tapenade, wild thyme and volcanic ash. The palate shows it can still greet you with the kiss of raspberry and cranberry whilst showing you too its savory, granitic side. Some black pepper and poppy seed bitterness, the wine is medium bodied and tannins are supple and feel more skins than oak. The palate leaves you with the cocoa nib and raw dustings of cocoa. This is perky and astute now and will reward with long term cellaring, this is one of my go-to long haul buys. No S.R.S has ever been disappointing with 5-8 or so years in the cellar. Once again, it’s some of the best Margaret River wine you can buy for the price. This will continue to get better as well. Ideal with crispy remnants left on the rib eye bone, the best bit in my opinion. Drink to 2033.

96 points Shanteh Wale for Wine Pilot, October 2025

The S.R.S. range – from the sauvignon blanc and chardonnay to this cabernet – is all about the best of the best for Flametree. They are a highlight, a testament to excellent fruit sourcing coupled with thoughtful winemaking. This is a few years off from being at its best as it’s still coming together. Cellar it if you can. Today, it’s an inky red with mulberries and cassis, lots of menthol, then a ripe to over-ripe fruit note lurking, just a smidge. It’s fuller bodied yet the palate remains elegant and refined thanks to the fine tannins (plenty of them though). There’s a density across the palate with cedary oak and a green walnut character coming through before fresh acidity takes over. Drink to 2036.

95 points Jane Faulkner for Halliday Wine Companion, June 2025

Aromas of blackcurrants, graphite, bay leaves, cedar, mulberries and dried herbs. The palate is full-bodied with firmly framed tannins and bright acidity, offering a compact, mineral-driven mouthfeel with a long, savory finish. Classic Margaret River cabernet with precision and poise. Drink or hold.

95 points James Suckling

More about this wine

The S.R.S. tier of subregional wines are complex, cellar-worthy wines that represent the pinnacle of Flametree’s offer.

This Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 2023 fruit, a prolonged, dry season of moderate temperatures and cool nights that saw the variety excel. The fruit was sourced from Mark and Tanya Jolliffe’s vineyard at the corner of Pusey and Metricup Roads in the northern Wilyabrup subregion, a small east to north-east– facing gravelly slope, with skeletal surface soils over gravel and quartz subsoils. The site is planted to Houghton clone cuttings sourced from Moss Wood.

Cold soaked in small open fermenters before inoculated with a select Bordeaux-sourced yeast strain. Gentle pump-overs were employed throughout the fermentation period, and temperatures were maintained around 26 degrees. The wine was matured for 14 months in Bordeaux coopered oak barriques of which 40% were new.

While approachable in its youth with generous decanting, the wine will reward careful extended cellaring.

About Flametree

Established by the Towner family in 2007, Flametree built its reputation quickly — winning the Jimmy Watson Trophy with their very first red wine and establishing themselves as a serious Margaret River producer from day one. Winemaker Cliff Royle selects fruit from growers across the region’s distinct subregions, with the S.R.S. — Sub Regional Series — representing the pinnacle of that selection.