Good winter rainfall provided cover crops for a moisturere taining mulch throughout the dry spring and summer. The lack of rainfall over the growing period led to lower yields. Summer saw mostly cool temperatures and an early vintage with most of the region’s fruit off by early April. The Langhorne Creek wine region benefits from cooling afternoon breezes from Lake Alexandrina and this season was no exception. The welcome breezes helped keep overnight temperatures down, enabling fruit to maintain natural acidity. The fruit was crushed into 8 tonne open fermenters and left on skins to cold macerate for three days prior to fermentation. Fermentation occurred at or under 23°C with our Rhône isolate yeast. This helped to extract the skin tannin while maintaining aromatics. The wine underwent its malolactic transformation in oak, was then racked and returned to French and American oak for a 12-month maturation.
This is a rip-roaring Cabernet Sauvignon that is more than a match for anything you can throw at it. The rich intensity is a tribute to the classic style of Cabernet Sauvignon that made this region and Australian Cabernet famous around the world. This 2015 vintage has dark fruit and classic herb and cigar box undertones that keep the senses engaged to the last drop. - Ben Glaetzer, Heartland