FAMILY RESERVE CABERNET

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Growing Season

Fruit for this wine was selected from the 'Old Cattle Yard Block' vineyard .Once again the season was dry with below average rainfall. The vines were cane and spur pruned as part of ongoing trials on the vineyard to access the best method for producing premium Cabernet in the region. Due to the dry conditions berry size was extremely small with yields of 4 tonne to the hectare. The fruit was harvested late in the season but was not affected by late season rain which started the day after harvest was complete.

Winemaking

This wine is made using only the finest parcels of fruit selected from low yielding vines. After gentle crushing the must is transferred to the open fermenters where it is cold soaked for 36 hours. It is then warmed up to 24ºc and inoculated with CSM yeast. Fermentation took place over 8 days with hand plunging every 8 hours. The must was then transferred to the basket press and pressed off at 3 baume before being transferred to American oak and seeded for MLF. Following MLF the wine was racked, stabilised and returned to barrel for maturation for 12 months. The wine was then bottle aged for 6 months prior to release.

Tasting Notes

The Family Reserve Cabernet is is made from premium grapes at our winery using traditional techniques. Our Cabernet is made from the oldest vines on the estate. This has resulted in a complex wine with excellent balance and structure.

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