Part of the "problem" with our Aussie Cab's is a style thing What we are told is good by the wine show ring and to some extent media, is thin weedy Cab's from cool climates dominated by French oak. Cabernet in particular can show poor canopy charachters and uneven fruit ripeness as herbaceous noses and hard tough immature tannins on the palate.
Big wines can have huge amounts of oak and still be balanced, which is why my new Cab to be bottled in Feb is 16.1%. Haven't heard of a bigger Cab, but I'm sure they're out there.
Cab is very good to grow...Thick skinnned , Good bunch architechture.....I think the fact its OK to hang after a weather event means that its on the last of our lists to pick. It would be the last thing most wineries pick anyway. Maybe we should plan our style and put a bit more effort into Cab to pick it at its best.
Cheers
Smithy
Smithy
One of the faults of any show or rating system is that it can lead to homogenised styles - many would argue that it's the huge extract, oaked to buggery styles that have done well at shows in recent times (& even more so in the states). EDIT: Not that I'm accusing you of that mind!
You know we're not allowed to drink wine over 15% in UK? Obviously we can't be trusted
The really big stuff is copping a hiding in the show ring at the moment. The height of fashion is medium weight heavily French oaked Shiraz Viogners. Especially if they are cooler climate heavily perfumed, ie some green fruit in there.
Not many big Cabs out there but stylistically the same thing is seen in the Show Ring....the Chairman's instructions to the judges are esssentially the same, and this is what sets the style. I'd argue if we want to see big wines getting acclaim, we need some better Chairman of Judges at the major shows!
Can't think of too many big Cabs at all (it is the latest of the major varieties) . Though I do remember a 86 Ch Margaux with some very serious grunt!
Two Hands has a Cab Sauv called Aphrodite. I got a chance to taste both the 2003 and the 2004 with Matt Wenk when we were in the Barossa last December. The '03 is a pretty good wine (Parker gave it 94-96), but the '04 is bloody fantastic. I though the '03 Ares was one of the best, if not the best, wine we tasted, and the '04 Aphrodite was right up there with it.
smithy wrote:The height of fashion is medium weight heavily French oaked Shiraz Viogners. Especially if they are cooler climate heavily perfumed, ie some green fruit in there.
Smithy,
The good thing about fashion is that its always changing, and the sooner they change this one the better.
This is three strikes as far as I am concerned.....
1. Overt Viogner
2. Green fruit from cool climates
3. I'll think of something. I know the Yarra bloody Valley.
I know the Yarra bloody Valley. 