McLaren Vale is home to some of Australia's biggest reds and here's a prize example from the bestselling 'Black Pig' - a cassis-rich Cabernet with wall-to-wall black cherry and bramble tones and a delicious lick of menthol.

Michael Fragos grew up in McLaren Vale, and spent 14 years at Tatachilla before taking over at Chapel Hill in 2004. A three-time ‘Bushing King’, Michael has also been named best winemaker on the planet! James Halliday notes that his “wine quality is unfailingly excellent” . This one has an expressive nose of blackcurrant, bay leaf cigar box and chocolate. The palate is medium to full-bodied, beautifully structured, with a powerful complexity, fine-grained tannins, velvety texture and long, long finish.

"Coriole has earned its reputation as one of the blue-blood producers of McLaren Vale” (James Halliday). "What Coriole does better than any other McLaren Vale maker is to fashion wines of such balance and finesse ... equipped with the structure, balance and layers of fruit to unfold slowly” (Jeremy Oliver). We're not arguing with these fine critics! Clark Hill, named after the land on which the Coriole estate was built, is an impressively rich blend of lush Cabernet planted in 1988, and spicy Shiraz planted in 1969 when Coriole was set up. Savour subtle lavendar aromas and a melee of plum, cassis and redcurrant flavours lifted by elegant, exotic spice.

Ben Riggs has hand-crafted a delicious Shiraz Cabernet Merlot blend here that pays homage to the three-spiked prickle that can be found in the McLaren Vale region and the fact that it's hard to ignore. This unctuous red blend is also extremely hard to ignore with its seamless varietal integration that produces a wine full of richness and opulence. Ripe, dark berry fruits courtesy of Merlot along with spice elements from the Shiraz and a firm, but balanced structure from the Cabernet all come together superbly.

Chapel Hill are in the fortunate position to be the custodians of some of the most unique vineyard sites in McLaren Vale; showcased by The Gorge vineyard planted in 1993. With the gently undulating soils, which are derived from prized ancient rock formations, are further enhanced by the elevation as the site perfectly capitalises on the beneficial coastal influence. Always limited in number, theýGorge Block (formerly TheýChosen) Cabernet Sauvignon proudly showcases the sites wonderful ability to build a complex and concentrated red that will comfortably live in your cellar for the next 10 years if you can resist the alluring primary fruits on display today

Winemaker Paul Gordon is making good use of the beautifully sited mature Hamilton vineyards to produce superb McLaren Vale reds such as this ripe robust deeply flavoured Cabernet.

The rich and full-bodied Coppermine Road Cabernet Sauvignon, named after a neighbouring road, is based on "parent of the Reynell Clone" material, renowned for its low yield, violet blackcurrant aromas and naturally high acidity. This is a classic "best-of-vintage" Australian-style Cabernet Sauvignon, with a great reputation for aging. Typically it shows intense mulberry, violet, cedar aromas with rich cassis, plum, dark chocolate flavours, muscular tannins and underlying savoury oak. After vinification in headed-down open fermenters, fermentation is completed in barrel. 18 months maturation in new and old French oak follows. Older wines may show a touch of earthy, sage, mint characters.