Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay and Reserve Cabernet vertical

[Waiters Friend]

G’day

I had the pleasure of attending a vertical tasting of Deep Woods Reserve wines. The event took place at the light and airy Orangery Gallery in Shenton Park and was hosted by local wine enthusiast Leigh Gerreyn. Leigh is a knowledgeable and enthusiastic wine lover, and his events are always informative and entertaining.

We tasted 8 vintages each of the Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay and the Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines were tasted from oldest to youngest, partially to observe the evolution in winemaking and the ageing and changes in vineyard resources.

A couple of general observations on the Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay. The colour is fairly consistent across the eight vintages, with even the 2016 only showing slightly darker than the 2023, and was a medium yellow with no signs of golden hue. The wines have gradually changed / added vineyard sources over the years, with a mix of Willyabrup and Karridale fruit. The wines generally undergo partial malolactic conversion (30-40%).

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2016: Unlike the remaining wines, this one came from 100% Karridale fruit. There’s a small amount of struck match to open, and this is followed by fairly intense nectarine fruit, cashew nut, grain/meal and lemon/lime. The palate has some preserved lemon, a moderately creamy texture, and good length, with the acid keeping the wine in balance.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2017: From a cooler year, this showed lemon/lime and a touch of grapefruit and some stone fruits and grilled nuts in there. The citrus was fresh on the palate, especially lemon and grapefruit, with tangy acid (one taster described it as ‘taut’) and good length. A more delicate wine than the 2016, and some tasters prefer this.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2018: A more substantial nose, with white peach, nectarine, savoury oak, nuts and vanilla. The palate matched this for weight, with more stone fruits, some lemon on the mid-palate, savoury characters, and clean supporting acid. Excellent length and balance.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2019: Another cooler year, and the wine reflects this. A little struck match initially, with lemon, grapefruit and stone fruits, and savoury / mealy notes. The palate has more citrus than stone fruits (although it has both), a creamy lees texture and medium length. A favourite for some tasters, and demonstrates the biggest is not necessarily best.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2020: A good balance between stone fruits, citrus and savoury characters on the nose, with a little struck match. The palate is substantial, with ripe peach and stone fruits, a small amount of lemon, noticeable acid, a slight tannic grip and leesy notes. A slightly short finish, however.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2021: The nose was a little closed, and what was there showed more citrus than anything else. The palate also showed lemon / citrus, firm acid, and reasonable length.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2022: Similar to the 2020 on the nose, in balance, and with some vanilla notes. There’s tangy lemon on the palate, with nectarine, cedary oak and a creamy lees character. Considerable length.

Deep Woods Reserve Chardonnay 2023: Complex nose, with cedary oak, cashew, ripe and fresh stone fruits, modest citrus, and slight struck match. The palate is excellent, with lots of ripe peach, a little tannic grip, lees texture and very long finish. Lots happening here, but all in balance, and this was my favourite of the chardonnays.

Then to the Cabernet Sauvignons. We tasted eight wines over a ten-year spread. Again, the colour lightened only slightly over the range, with varying levels of crimson. The fruit for the Cabernets comes more from the Yallingup area, and includes the old Abbey Vale vineyard.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2012: A warmer vintage. A dusty nose, with blackberry, blueberry, mulberry, cedar, mocha and eucalypt on the nose. There’s more red and blue fruits on the palate, with mocha, and chunky tannins. It’s medium bodied, with a long and minty finish.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013: The nose is dominated by eucalypt / mint, with some blueberry, blackberry and chocolate. The palate is similarly minty, and some tasters noted that they would have considered it to be a Coonawarra wine if tasted blind. There’s dark fruits, olive, medium length and chunky tannins. An outlier in this tasting.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2014: A Jimmy Watson trophy winner. A complex nose, with a little eucalypt, coffee grounds, black olive, blackberry, cedar, mulberry and blackcurrant. There’s noticeable acid on the palate, with menthol and dark developed fruits. Milk chocolate, and integrated tannins. A long finish and looking pretty good for its age.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2016: A less intense nose, with dark fruits, coffee, chocolate and cedar. The palate has a little more going in, with mulberry, blueberry, savoury and mocha notes, and noticeable acid. Full bodied and long.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2018: A touch of eucalypt opens the nose, with blue fruits, mulberry, cedar, and spicy vanillan oak. Red and dark fruits on the palate with integrated tannins and acid and considerable length. All in balance.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2019: Dark fruits, coffee and chocolate on the nose. More dark chocolate on the palate, with blackcurrant and a touch of eucalypt, cranberry and graphite. Grippy tannins and good length.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2020: A bog nose, with cedary oak, blackcurrant, cassis, capsicum, vanilla and a touch of eucalypt. There’s slightly tart red fruits on the palate, with mulberry, mocha, clean acid, mildly grippy tannins and reasonable length.

Deep Woods Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2022: A fuller nose, with chocolate, blackcurrant and a confected /cola character. The palate is slightly restrained (in comparison to the nose) with blackcurrant and redcurrant. It’s medium to full bodied, with supporting acid and fine tannins and a long finish.


An excellent tasting, which demonstrated differences in preferences among tasters (cooler vs warmer years and the positive development in winemaking over the years. Many thanks to Leigh for putting this together, and I look forward to the next one.

Cheers
Allan