95

2021 Stevens Road Cabernet Sauvignon

$100.00
$600.00

1401 in stock

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+

This limited production single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon demonstrates our philosophy of selecting only the very best rows from the very best blocks on the property. Sourced from our Stevens Road vineyard, 3km down the road from the Xanadu winery on the Boodjidup Brook, this wine offers a unique expression of the outstanding quality wine this special little vineyard is capable of producing. Only 8 barrels produced.

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    Delivery Information

    Australia Post delivery timeframes:

    *Please note: these delivery timeframes are subject to change, particularly during Christmas and other periods where transport networks are impacted.

    • Melbourne – 3 to 5 business days
    • Sydney & Adelaide – 3 to 5 business days
    • Brisbane – 3 to 6 business days
    • Perth & Darwin – 5 to 8 business days

    For all international inquiries please email us.

Viticulture

Cabernet Sauvignon 87%, Malbec 13%
2021
Margaret River
We had a great summer leading up to vintage, although a rain event a week before the start of harvest lead to some unusually humid conditions (for Margaret River at least). Careful fruit selection in certain vineyards was required as a result of the humidity, despite experiencing ideal conditions during the white harvest. The end of the whites saw slightly more rain, followed by fine weather for the remainder of March, setting up the Cabernets nicely. In summary, 2021 was a more challenging season than usual, however the extra work in the vineyard ultimately paid dividends with wonderfully elegant wines produced as a result. Fruit for this single vineyard wine is entirely harvested from the bottom of Block 3 at our Stevens Road Vineyard, situated on the Boodjidup Brook approximately 3km from the winery. We consider this mature, low yielding vineyard as our own Grand Cru site, the tiny block (0.6 Ha) consistently producing some of our very best Cabernet each vintage, supplemented with a beautiful portion of Malbec from the same vineyard. Limited to only 200 dozen (only 8 barrels produced), the 2021 Stevens Road Cabernet Sauvignon recognises the outstanding quality that this individual vineyard can produce and highlights the unique personality of this very special site.

Tasting Notes

Deep red with garnet hues.
Wonderful aromas of ripe forest fruits, redcurrants and floral notes framed by high quality oak with hints of tobacco and graphite in the background.
Medium bodied, the elegant palate offers black plums and boysenberry characters, with fine tannins culminating to a beautifully structured wine with a distinct, lingering Cabernet finish.
Vibrant and robust in its youth, this wine will certainly benefit from further bottle maturation and cellar comfortably for 5+ years.

Winemaking

13.5%
750ml
3.50
Fruit was crushed/destemmed before fermentation into a small, static fermenter for a 7-day ferment at 24 - 28oC, during which time the cap was managed with regular, aerative, pump-overs. The wine was gently pressed at 2 Baumé and finished ferment in tank. Once dry, the wine was racked to fine French oak barriques (40% new) and matured for 14 months, before the blend was assembled. The 2021 Xanadu Stevens Road Cabernet Sauvignon is made from qualifying grapes at a winery certified by Sustainable Winegrowing Australia.

Professional Reviews

96
The wet 2021 season in Margaret River did not produce a Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon at Xanadu, but Stevens Road proved eminently worthy of the vintage. A core of varietal integrity is defined in black and redcurrant fruit and more pronounced cedar than usual, impressively lifted by violet fragrance. It’s woven in fine threads of taut tannins that draw out tremendous persistence, certain to carry it long and strong into the coming decades.
95
This was quite a challenging season in many ways, being cooler and quite wet, yet when the fruit has been well managed you finish with top class wines. This is in line with the vineyard and vintage, being slightly angular and fine with aromas of red currant, muted violet and other floral notes. The structured and quite detailed palate is medium bodied. Right now, it is closely held but with time in the bottle it will open up. Make sure you decant first.
94
The 2021 Stevens Road Cabernet Sauvignon hails from a potentially challenging year in Margaret River; it was incessantly wet but not all that cold, which led to mounting disease pressure in the vineyards. Vigilance was key, and I think there were many exhausted producers by the end of that harvest... So, here we have a spicy, fragrant, lightly framed thing, with dried mint and bay leaf, cassis and raspberry pip on the nose. As always, following producers is wiser than following regions or varieties, and we know that Glenn Goodall and Brendan Carr—although he has since moved on—both have a tight grip on all aspects of quality control at this estate. It inspires confidence. Inflections of burnt sugar, pomegranate molasses, tobacco, finely milled black and pink peppercorns, cocoa/malt and green olive brine comprise the personality of this wine. It's 100% Cabernet Sauvignon matured in French oak (40% new) for 14 months. This is a quiet, whispering iteration of this lovely wine, with a huge future in front of it.
94
Elegant, refined, distinguished with its flourish of grippy, gravelly tannins, lots of blue fruits, violets, panforte and some ferrous, earthy elements, including dried herbs and pepper. Lovely stuff. It finds an even keel. A beautiful flow. A flourish of tannin and spice through the finish. A wine needing time, but plenty of that on hand.
94
This wine, well it puts me in mind of cool Victorian Cabernets from the late 90’s, like the old Seppelt Drumborgs. Showing my age here, and therefore likely irrelevant. Anyway, I said it. Blueberry, raspberry, blackcurrant, a little cedar and aniseed, certainly a cool minty feel, but plenty of almost violet perfume too. Medium-bodied, a crisp and gently tangy blue fruited affair with fine dusty tannin, and a sappy, but vibrant finish of good length. It’s a marginal style of wine, but that brisk luncheon claret feel is so very appealing.
95
Xanadu’s top wines are always polished and poised, and this cabernet is no different. It’s almost pared back, yet beautiful. A neat combo of mulberries and boysenberries, nori and tapenade, bay leaves and fennel – there’s lots of savouriness throughout. As usual, this is medium bodied caressed by superfine tannins, with cleansing acidity ensuring this lingers long.

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