Clairault Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
WHY WE LOVE IT
- A classic Margaret River blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot.
- This wine comes from two vineyards, Clairault Vineyard, Wilyabrup and Yallingup Protea Farm & Vineyard, Yallingup.
- You can cellar this wine up to 8 years, however we enjoy it for freshness now.
Varietal Composition: 79% Cabernet Sauvignon; 18% Merlot; 3% Petit Verdot
Elaboration: The Cabernet Sauvignon portion of the blend is de-stemmed and crushed, so that each berry is just split. This is to ensure minimal berry degradation during the fermentation process. Our Merlot is crushed as to fully expose the delicate flesh and promote a more refined and elegant textural development. Our ferments are, by industry standards, cool and gentle, allowing slower, more controlled extraction of tannin and flavor. The wine is pumped over three times a day and then judiciously backed off as the wine develops. This wine was on skins in the fermenter for 14 days, before gentle pressing and barreling down. The result is clean, pure fruit flavors, boasting supple yet powerful tannin. The wine was aged in French oak for 10 months bottling.
Tasting Notes: Red fruits, cedar, cassis leaf and black cherries. The palate is red and black fruits, plum blossom and roasted coffee.
PRESS
2016 – 94 James Halliday
2015 – 91 Wine Enthusiast
PRODUCER BACKGROUND
Clairault-Streicker Wines are a family of premium wines, crafted from privately-owned vineyards in the Margaret River Wine Appellation of Western Australia. Since 1976, the vineyard has grown to encompass the diverse climate and soil conditions of three renowned sub regions. Their portfolio includes a trophy winning, cold-climate Streicker Syrah, outstanding single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons and Chardonnays and the exceptional wines of the original Clairault Vineyards.