2021 Meerlust Rubicon
Estimated value
Buying options
Tasting notes
Full bottle 1,370 g. 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Varieties underwent separate alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in 300-litre barrels (60% new French Nevers oak and 40% second-fill casks). Aged for 8 months then blended and returned to barrel for an additional 10 months. Winemaker Chris Williams. TA 5.93 g/l, pH 3.48, RS 2.04 g/l. Vegan. Available in Waitrose Cellar only. Deep, concentrated blackish ruby. Dusty nose. Just a little lack of fruit in the middle. Dry finish so it’s ambitious and no simple fruit bomb but I fear that bordeaux could give it a run for its money. Refreshing though. (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Tamlyn Currin, jancisrobinson.com
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Rubicon has quite an extrovert bouquet, more so than the 2001; black plum, dark chocolate and light violet scents emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with fleshy, ripe tannins, more body and depth here, cohering nicely towards the slightly lactic finish that fans out nicely. Fine. Tasted at the Meerlust tasting at Berry Brothers & Rudd in London.
Full bottle 1,377 g. 100% estate fruit from all four of their vineyard blocks: Compagniesdrift (weathered granite on a hilltop); River Terraces (sand and roounded river stones); Quarry (greywacke with interbedded shales); Lowlands (a cool, south-facing block on clay-rich soils from deeply weathered greywacke and shales). A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (48%), Merlot (46%), Cabernet Franc (5%) and Petit Verdot (1%), every parcel of each variety was fermented separately before undergoing malolactic fermentation in 300-litre barrels and large foudres. After eight months in barrel, the components were blended and given another 10 months in barrel. The 2021 sees the more mature Merlot vineyards coming more to the fore with almost equal part Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the final blend. RS 2.04 g/l, pH 3.48, TA 5.93 g/l. Dark, with cooked-fruit richness, brûlée and umami. Chocolate and plum, lavender fragrance, deep violet tones and the cool breath of liquorice on the finish. There is a black sheen of minerality at the core, which, together with the fantastic herbal (fynbos?) aromatic lift and fragrance, flood the flaring fan of ripeness with freshness and length. Well-managed oak. Very competent. Very refined. Classic. (TC)
The 2021 Rubicon matured in 300-liter barrels and a large foudre for 18 months, averaging out to 50% new French oak. It has a tightly wound bouquet with black plum, black olive and light floral scents, finely delineated but needing time to open. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy blackberry and raspberry fruit, firm backbone and a grippy, off-dry finish. I would give this three or four years in bottle to round its edges. Fine.
About the producer
Product details
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot
Red
Dry