The Cannonball is a blend involving Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. We source from the warmer northern end of the Margaret River region as driving south of Witchcliffe to look at green Cabernet Sauvignon that struggles to ripen is a waste of time.
What does this mean? Cabernet ripens beautifully and Merlot on the right sites has power and generosity to match the structural class of the Cabernet and Petit Verdot. That late ripening bastard Petit Verdot needs the extra heat so they could finish vintage before July…
Handpicked and de-stemmed to small open-top fermenters, they let the ferments go wild. Hand-plunging often and vigourously we press ferments off skins when the tannins are melting in your mouth, about 5 weeks after ferment starts. Maturation was in a mix of old and new (47%) French oak puncheons and barriques for 15 months.
The 2018 Cannonball has plush blackberry, cassis, dried sage, olive and grilled tomato fruit aromatics with complexing white flower and dark chocolate as the wine opens up. The palate has silky and rich black fruits with the underlying savoury complexity of the 3 varieties. The layered tannin structure offers depth finesse and length with chocolate and emery texture.
61% cabernet sauvignon (providing the grunt), 30% merlot (seduction), 9% petit verdot (the cannonball). It all comes together well, and there's no argument about the grunt provided by the cabernet, or the overall length. The flavour descriptors, incidentally, are those of Snake and Herring.
94 points James Halliday winecompanion.com.au
Product/Service Sold Out | No |
---|---|
En Primeur | No |
New Arrivals | No |
Wine Type | Red Wine |
Wine Style | Traditional |
Country | Australia |
Region | Margaret River |
Varietals | Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot |
Vintage | 2018 |
Bottle Size | 750ml |
Wine Points | 94 |