Woodstock Collett Lane Cabernet Sauvignon 2015  £27.95

WOODSTOCK COLLETT LANE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 

It begins in their old McLaren Vale vineyards, this love for capturing quality, and carries through every process from the vine to the bottle.The Woodstock wine portfolio encompasses wines for every occasion, from a range of aromatic whites and rosé, lush yet finely structured reds, and an enduring range of after dinner wines.

2014 was challenging but in the end good vintage for McLaren Vale, producing deeply flavoured wines with structure and balance.  Traditional winemaking practices were used to ensure that colour extraction and fruit concentration are expressed in the final wine.  First fermentation on skins was conducted in stainless steel vats, then the wine was transferred in oak where malolactic fermentation occurred. The wine was then racked and returned to oak for 18 months maturation. Carefully selected of French and American oak barrels were used for oak ageing to guarantee structure and balance. 

This wine is bright and rich in all components; colour, nose and palate. Distinctive garnet red colour with a narrow crimson rim. The nose shows cassis, chocolate, mint and violets with classic cigar box aromas of Cabernet Sauvignon. These powerful aromas demand further exploration and tasting.

The palate is beautifully balanced with firm tannins, acidity and lush fruit giving a velvety texture to the wine. A bigger, bolder wine than the regular Woodstock Cabernet Sauvignon, this single vineyard, barrel selected wine had the benefit of oak and bottle maturation time before release. The rich fruit and complimenting oak will further integrate and evolve for many years with careful, cool cellaring.

Halliday Rating 95/100

Drink By 2034

"Crushed and destemmed, cultured yeast, matured in new and used American and French oak for 18 months. Ramps up its varietal sibling on all sides - not dramatically, but consistently and convincingly. I can only assume new American oak has been kept off the blending bench, for there are no echoes in this sybaritic cabernet.."