The Woodlands Margaret is, true to its name, a realisation of all that is great about Margaret River, arguably Australias home of the Bordeaux style. Sourced from the Woodlands Vineyards in Wilyabrup this is a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot and 8% Malbec. Considering the price of the Watson familys flagship, the Margaret offers truly outstanding value.
Named after the famed Johann Gramp's grandson, Hugo, this is the very best Cabernet Sauvignon in the stable. From the very best sites in the region of Coonawarra, this wine shows classic regional mint and blackcurrant on the nose with a silky supple palate, elegant fruit characters, toasty oak and long, fine tannins.
From a 37-acre vineyard, Château Pavie Macquin is stunningly situated on the clay-limestone plateau of Saint-Émilion on the right bank of Bordeaux. 2010 has produced a formidable wine: a blend of 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, this is a top release of the harvest year and a highlight from St-Émillion in 2010. Tannins, restraint and inward concentration are motifs, this is a wine for the patient, sophisticated collector who wishes to embellish a cellar with pedigree wines that need time and maturity to come to the fore.
There's a lot to adore about this Cabernet Sauvignon from a beloved family-owned winery. Halliday deemed it worthy of 92 points, and it's picked up four gold medals from Australian wine shows. But if that pedigree doesn't impress you, one sip of this beautiful red will.
Shingleback D Block McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 750MLx3 2018
Concentrated and complex with cocoa, currant, cassis, bay leaf and dusty gravel. There is an underlying violet perfume, which is all wrapped up in savoury-cedar oak. Medium bodied with a long and seamless palate. There are ample fine grain tannins, which gently coat the mouth and will help to age the wine gracefully. Again, the palate shows a good balance between fruit and complex characters, with cassis, mulberry and currants well integrated with bay leaf, cocoa and dusty gravel. A concentrated and complex wine that will gain further complexity with age.
Representing the pinnacle of any given vintage, the Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from the very low yielding original vines on the estate in the Yallingup region of Margaret River and a single growers vineyard in the Yallingup hills. The palate is layered with complex and generous varietal flavours, supported by interwoven French oak characters and a savoury complexity. This is an exceptional Cabernet that will age gracefully will careful cellaring.
Labegorce is found just north of the town of Margaux, opposite Chateau Lascombes. It produces wines that are often favourably compared to its neighbouring classified Margaux Growths, but available for considerably less of an investment. Its instantly recognisable and iconic chateau was constructed in 1821, and the modern estate was purchased by Hubert Perrodo in 1989, now managed by his daughter Nathalie. The wine is typically made up of at least 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by slightly less Merlot and a small balance of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Soils here are primarily sandy gravel with small amounts of limestone.
La Dominique is a Grand Cru Classe growth of Saint-Émillion, leading the way in many fields of modernisation and innovation amongst the chateaux of Bordeaux. Owner Clement Fayat has spent decades on improving everything from vinification facilities, to drainage, to the cellars, to a bright red (and controversially visible from a distance) vat house completed in 2013. Benefitting (similarly to their famous neighbours, Ch. Cheval Blanc) from a proximity to Pomerol, La Dominique produces Merlot-led wines that combine vigour and elegance.