Cabernet Sauvignon

Craneford wine is crafted to epitomize the best fruit of the vintage whilst continuing to express the unique characters of the each vineyard. All the wines produced show classic Barossa flavours, complex and well balanced. Craneford’s aim is to continually produce the highest quality wine from the best Barossa fruit available.

Craneford wine is crafted to epitomize the best fruit of the vintage whilst continuing to express the unique characters of the each vineyard. All the wines produced show classic Barossa flavours, complex and well balanced.

Craneford’s aim is to continually produce the highest quality wine from the best Barossa fruit available.

Craneford wine is crafted to epitomize the best fruit of the vintage whilst continuing to express the unique characters of the each vineyard. All the wines produced show classic Barossa flavours, complex and well balanced. Craneford’s aim is to continually produce the highest quality wine from the best Barossa fruit available.

Chester Osborn, the remarkable person behind this enormous array of both impeccably high quality and value-priced wines, deserves considerable accolades for what he is able to achieve at all price ranges.

If you love Australian wines, d’Arenberg is a winery to seek out as these offerings all possess abundant soul as well as character. In short, the accolades that proprietor/winemaker Chester Osborn receives not only from The Wine Advocate, but virtually everybody in the wine world, are all well deserved.

Food Matching:

Spice crusted barbecued butterflied leg of lamb, linguine pasta with mushrooms and caramelised onions.

Strong bright rim with a mid-deep red core.

The hints of blackcurrant and blackberry are typical characters of this variety. Typically McLaren Vale produces a dark, spicy chocolate character in Cabernet and this is evident. However, this wine has fascinating aromas of mint, leather and dark cherries. The oak shows when the wine is first poured, but with a little time in the glass yields to give a subtle cinnamon, char and cherry combination.

As a young wine, the palate is a little tight. The cherry and chocolate come through as does a blackberry fruit character. The tannin and acidity are firm, but balanced for a wine that will drink well when young, preferably with food. It will develop further complexity with cellaring.

This range of wines reflects exactly Henry’s Drive Vigneron’s approach to winemaking. The fruit is carefully graded with only the very best from small sections of the vineyard being selected for Henry’s Drive. Made with minimal intervention, each are single varietal wines of great length and longevity that are a true expression of their vineyard, region and variety.

Kay's are specialist traditional red wine makers utilising grapes from their own 22-hectare Amery Vineyard. The grape varieties grown are Shiraz (including the 1892 Block 6), Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Viognier, Grenache, Mourvedre (Mataro) and Muscat Blanc.

Colin Kay's winemaking philosophy is to make rich full-bodied fruit-driven wines (using the original Open Fermenters and Basket Press) with small oak cask maturation.

The taste has mouth filling rich fruit; again berries and currants carrying through with vibrance and superb extension. The finish has the finest grain of tannins, velvety with the wood and fruit extracts beautifully matched and textured.

The Cabernet Sauvignon for this wine originates from wines planted in 1972 above the Lime Cave, on the crest of the estate vineyard. The intense concentrated dark berry and mint, lingering tanins and the finely balanced nature of the wine reflects the individual terrior of the McLaren Vale.

The wine sees neutral French and American oak that seasons the pure fruit. There are aromas of violets, black current, dark cherry and a mineral note.

These elements come together on the palate with soft tannins and a touch of bittersweet chocolate that follow through with fine length.

The palate is rich with sweet berry flavours and strong oak and grape tannins, to balance and meld with this years strong flavours. The key elements in this wine are its rich varietal flavours, choice of oak types, finely tuned acid and astringency. A complex wine that shows a deep and ripe palate. Fruit flavours dominate the style this year. Soft fine oak tannins but not the stringency of the 1999. Best defined as medium to full bodied from a great, low yielding year.

Deep crimson red in colour with some purple highlights. The nose is extremely complex with cool vintage fruit characters of black olive, prune and seaweed notes, combined with sweet earth and truffle. The oak is beautifully integrated. A sweet and dense palate with super fleshy mouth feel and dense dark fruit flavours of cassis, prune with cedar and liquorice.

The finish is long with firm tannins and an overall balance and depth of fruit, making it one of the best Parker Terra Rossa Cabernet vintages. The outstanding feature was the extremely low crop levels. The season also turned out to be cool and fruit ripened late in the season and consequently elegant with softer tannins and refined delicate flavours. Made for extended cellaring for 15 or more years. Decant before serving.

Craneford wine is crafted to epitomize the best fruit of the vintage whilst continuing to express the unique characters of each vineyard. All the wines produced show classic Barossa flavours, complex and well balanced. Craneford’s aim is to continually produce the highest quality wine from the best Barossa fruit available.

The nose shows intense blackcurrant and cranberry fruit, and the subtle cedary cinnamon spice, barrel-ferment and oak derived aromas, violet and mint scents, as well as liquorice and chocolate smells. Interwined is this wounderful green edge that lifts the wine into a cool climate sepctrum which typifies the cold year. These aromas combine with some cassis, blueberry, and cranberry, with lingering mocha and plumy fruit and are just showing through amongst a long, intense vibrant, gritty fruit tannin finish.

Deep red central core with vibrant purple rim. Showing typical McLaren Vale Cabernet aromas of spicy blackberry and chocolate together with mint and dark cherries complexed by lifted oak char and cinnamon. Intense black fruits and cherries are supported by firm acidity and enveloping tannin structure giving great balance to the depth.

Vibrant deep red black with intense violet rim. Powerful lifted complex fruit aromas of cassis, tobacco leaf and subtle spicy oak. Intensely fresh cassis and blackberry flavours with cinnamon and licorice complexity. The fruit weight is balanced by enveloping firm tannin structure and the finish has great length.

Kay's are specialist traditional red wine makers utilising grapes from their own 22-hectare Amery Vineyard. The grape varieties grown are Shiraz (including the 1892 Block 6), Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Viognier, Grenache, Mourvedre (Mataro) and Muscat Blanc.

Colin Kay's winemaking philosophy is to make rich full-bodied fruit-driven wines (using the original Open Fermenters and Basket Press) with small oak cask maturation.

Food Matching:

Ribeye and sirloin, beef short ribs, portobello mushrooms, Cheddar or Gouda cheese.

The Cabernet Sauvignon for this wine originates from wines planted in 1972 above the Lime Cave, on the crest of the estate vineyard. The intense concentrated dark berry and mint, lingering tanins and the finely balanced nature of the wine reflects the individual terrior of the McLaren Vale.

This wine exudes the elegance and purity of a McLarenVale Cabernet. The nose is refined with aromas of blackcurrant and plum fruit. In the mouth the fruit is rich, harmonious and integrated. The palate is layered, with a beautiful delicate fine structure and a generous smooth finish.

This wine is dark ruby red in colour, juicy and aromatic on the nose with hints of leafy and tobacco varietal characters. The palate is instantly rich and mouth filling with ripe cherry and blackcurrant fruit. Well structured with mocha and chocolate flavours and fine emery tannins. White pepper and cloves combine to give a lengthy, spicy finish.

Owners Paul and Lynn Shirvington have replaced winemakers Sarah and Sparky Marquis with Kim Johnston, who appears to be following in the same footsteps, producing bigger than life, bold, rich, but beautifully linear and precise wines. Both of these cuvees are barrel-fermented and aged in 75-85% new oak, primarily American. The vines are young, which makes the quality even more remarkable.

The wine exhibits a deep, dense plum red colour. The intoxicating aromatics are evident as soon as the cork is pulled.

There is a concentrated array of wild blackberries and fruits of the forest, intermingled with freshly ground cinnamon and nutmeg. The palate is equally as rich with juicy, sweet fruit, evolving into a silky, creamy mid palate.

Opaque black/purple in color with a fabulous nose of black fruits, cedar, Asian spices, black licorice, and truffle. Highly-extracted, with super-jammy, ripe fruit, and Low acidity.  A long lingering finish.

Opaque black/purple in color with a fabulous nose of black fruits, cedar, Asian spices, black licorice, and truffle. Highly-extracted, with super-jammy, ripe fruit, and Low acidity. A long lingering finish.

The Benbournie region was settled in 1853 by Catholic German friends of local priest, Father Kranewitter. The tiny settlement comprises about 15 mud huts surrounded by a Roman Catholic chapel. The small community’s optimism was built on copper mining, however the industry’s decline signalled its demise before the turn of the century.

All that remains today are a few ancient vines, fig and almond trees. Wine has been flowing in the Clare Valley since 1851 and is an integral part of the culture.

It is one of Australia’s most prestigious premium wine regions, most famous for its Riesling and Shiraz. A small area, accounting for less than 1.5% of Australia’s total wine production. With its beautiful, rolling hills, ideal winter rainfall and Mediteranean climate, the Clare Valley carries a unique history and winemaking heritage.

Tasting notes:

This wine is a deep crimson red in the glass. Intensely aromatic with a mix of both red and black currant fruit with a hint of savoury spice and dark mint chocolate.

Opens with a burst of dark vine fruits countered with notes of sage and clove spice. Layers of fresh currants, spice, earth and chocolate give the palate great intensity and depth of flavour.

This vibrant core of fruit runs long with fine, graphite like tannin and cedary oak. A soft, layered, tireless finish closes out a wine of great balance and cellaring potential.

Food Matching : rack of baby lamb

Terroir & Site:

The Menzies is in the heart of Coonawarra terra rossa country. The vineyard site is reasonably level, with the defining terroir difference coming from the soils. Our soil is red sandy loam over limestone, which is classic Cabernet Sauvignon dirt. Most of the vines for Yalumba The Menzies were planted in 1985 and are trellised tall with wide rows. Bunches are usually small with small berries giving a concentration that favours the creation of full bodied reds.

Winemaking & Viticulture:

2013 was an excellent vintage; it was preceded by good winter rains and mild conditions during flowering, giving a good even set of berries. The warm conditions continued through harvest allowing the winemakers to pick ripe grapes at the ideal colour, flavour and tannin accumulation; it is a vintage to collect. The Menzies is made by small batch winemaking, maintaining the integrity of each eight-tonne vineyard parcel through vinification and initial barrel maturation. The grapes were crushed to small static fermenters where the liberation of colour and tannin is controlled either by plunging the skins, irrigating the fermenting wine over the cap or draining all the wine from the skins then flooding it back. Selected parcels are given extended skin contact before pressing.

Tasting notes: 

Full depth in colour with a plum red hue. The bouquet leads with violet and lilac floral notes to the tangy counterpoint of seaspray and pepper. The palate is rich and powerful; red fruits and dark chocolate on a robust tannin framework. The finish is long, complex and well worth contemplating. A char-grilled rib-eye on the bone is an excellent food accompaniment.

This wine is bright plum in colour with purple tints. The nose shows intensely complex characters of blackcurrant and cedar spice. This is followed on the palate by an eruption of fruit flavours -primarily dark cherry and blackberry, with a distinctive Coonawarra cassis character. The tannins are fine grained and supple and the wine has a long, integrated finish. As with previous releases of ‘The Cover Drive’, the wine displays harmonious balance.

This wine has been named in commemoration of the Penola cricket ground, which used to lie on the very site where Jim Barry now grows this premium Cabernet, which is blended with small parcels from the family's Clare Valley estate, then aged in French and American oak. The nose is very fragrant, dominated by intense cassis and cedar, with nuances of fennel and damson. A generous palate with succulent tannins framing blackcurrant, liquorice and cherry flavours. Can be enjoyed immediately, but will reward cellaring for 5 years or more.

For more than 50 years, Jim Barry Wines has consistently produced wines of international acclaim. The late Jim Barry was a pioneer of Australian table wine, graduating with the 17th diploma in winemaking in Australia. He went on to become the first qualified winemaker to work in the Clare Valley of South Australia and with his wife, Nancy, built a successful wine business which has produced trophy-winning wines since its establishment in 1959. Today, the custodian of Jim Barry Wines is their second son Peter, who joined the family winery in 1977, also graduating as a winemaker. Peters eldest son Tom completed his Oenology degree in 2009 from the same university, making Jim Barry Wines the first family owned winery in Australia to have three generations of graduates from this course. (James Halliday)Jim Barry Wines has an innovative approach to viticulture and a strong commitment to technological excellence in winemaking. This philosophy is fundamental to the company's ability to consistently produce wines of the highest quality which have won international recognition.