Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 (12 Bottles) Margaret River

This classic Margs Cabernet comes from hand-harvested parcels of fruit off a selection of vineyard blocks. The core components were the Estate Old Block (planted in 1978) and Block 12 from the North vineyard (planted in 1995). This year, a select parcel of 125 clone Cabernet from Weightmans Block 5 also made the cut, along with a small portion of Merlot (contributing lifted aromatics and flesh), and Petit Verdot (bringing a bright violet lift).

The fruit was de-stemmed, retaining as many whole berries as possible, then fermented in open fermenters with regular, gentle pump-overs or plunging. Fermentation lasted 13 days and select parcels were left on skins for up to 26 days before being pressed. Each parcel remained separate during the whole process, which included 18 months of maturation in tight-grained French oak (50% new). The wines were racked every three months to aid clarification. Only after aging was the blend made. The final wine was bottled in January 2018.

This is a really bright, red-fruited and spicy Cabernet with fabulous purity and finesse–all of which reflects the cooler climate Stevens Valley location of these vines (in the Wallcliffe sub-region). Still really youthful of course, it is nonetheless a lovely drink now (especially in a larger glass). Another first-rate release from Voyager.

“Quite a bit of pine and peppermint here over red and black fruits, cedar and some rosy perfume. It’s just over medium-bodied, firm and full of grainy tannin, some rose oil perfume in with red and black fruits, has a quiet power, but also a slightly hard feel to it. A bit angular. It’s a good wine, though it’s not exactly lovable, if that makes sense.” 92 Points, Gary Walsh, The Winefront