Leeuwin Estate Prelude Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Dark concentrated blackcurrants, blueberries and cherries are lifted by lavender and violets. So many layers and features to nose on offer including black cardamom, cocoa, clove, anise, fennel seed and bay leaf. Highly packaged and complete on the nose. A fine and elegant entry leads to a combination of redcurrants, blueberries and dark cherries. The palate has energy and drive with salivating acid being the foundation. Cedar and cassia notes surround the deep core of fruit, finishing with dusty, graphite-like tannins.
Blend: 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
Deep ruby. Spice-accented red and dark berry scents are complemented by succulent herb, tobacco and smoky mineral flourishes. Juicy, focused and appealingly sweet, offering sappy black raspberry and cherry cola flavors that take on licorice and vanilla notes with air. Closes very long and precise, with repeating cherry and herb notes and supple tannins that add frame and gentle grip.
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Wine Spectator
Aromatic and fresh, with sage and rosemary herbal highlights and a hint of matcha green tea to compliment the pure, lush and juicy core of black cherry, spiced plum and blackberry flavors, finishing with harmony and notes of baking spices. Drink now
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In 1972, legendary Napa Valley winemaker, Robert Mondavi, first identified the future site of the Leeuwin vineyard as being ideal for the production of premium wine and provided early mentorship to owners, Denis and Tricia Horgan in the establishment of Leeuwin Estate. The first vines were planted by hand over a five year period from 1973.
Featuring state-of-the art facilities, the winery building was opened in 1978, celebrating with a trial vintage. Leeuwin enjoyed its first commercial vintage in 1979, and was thrust into the international spotlight when Decanter Magazine gave its highest recommendation to the 1980 "Art Series" Chardonnay in an international blind tasting.
Maintaining a team of highly skilled and dedicated winemakers, Leeuwin Estate is now under the direction of two generations of the founding family.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Home to some of Australia’s most elegant and long-lived red and white wines, Margaret River is situated in the farthest reaches of Western Australia. Relatively warm and dry, the region is cooled by breezes from the Indian Ocean. Margaret River takes some inspiration from Bordeaux, producing top-quality Cabernet Sauvignons and Bordeaux Blends with firm structure, mouthwatering acidity, balanced alcohol and notes of herbs and spice. For white wines, refreshing blends of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon as well as complex, age-worthy Chardonnays are regional specialties.