2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
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Tasting notes
Full screwcapped bottle 1,350 g. The 50th vintage of this wine! 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Malbec, picked between 24 March and 9 April. 83% was basket-pressed. Spontaneous fermentation throughout. 73% static fermenters, 17% roto fermenters, 8% open-topped fermenters and 2% concrete eggs! Aged for 17 months in French oak barriques (37% new), then two months' blending in tank. Enough percentages for you? Transparent crimson. Pretty lightweight! Hint of iodine and some cassis but definitely rather a pale shadow of some previous vintages. Is this a current fashion? To avoid any concentration? I'm afraid I'm a little disappointed. Tech notes promise ageing potential for 20 years. I'm not convinced, though it does build towards the end. And I couldn't admire winemaker Viginia Willcock more. I'll try and look at it again after 24 hours. (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Erin Brooks, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon marks the 50th vintage of this wine. On the nose, it gives us all the typical red fruit, bay leaf, maritime salt, saltbush and raspberry characters that we have come to love at this estate. In the mouth, the wine shows the 2021 vintage in that it is lighter-framed and less dense than the 2020 tasted beside it. It's no problem, but it just offers a slightly different drinking experience, more of a "claret" framing than the more supple, succulently weighted 2020. I'd be drinking this sooner than some of the warmer/drier vintages around it. 14% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon shows beautifully composed aromas of blackcurrants, dried Italian herbs and red currants well integrated with a touch of fine French oak. Elegantly framed yet retaining focus, the texture is seamless and ethereal over a surprisingly long finish with touches of pouch tobacco. The 2021 is lovely to drink now but has the torque to last.
About the producer
Vasse Felix was the first winery in Margaret River, founded in 1967. Today, it is one of Western Australia’s – and the New World’s – most respected names, crafting outstanding, cool-climate Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from this remote region, south of Perth.