Winery & Vintage Info
Cape Mentelle has developed an international reputation for outstanding bordelaise varietals and blended wines which are perfectly suited to the climate and soils of Margaret River. This wine captures the depth and structure of cabernet with the dark fruit and plush flavours of merlot which, when blended with small amounts of cabernet franc and petit verdot, create a well-rounded, full and rich style.
A blend of varietals and vineyards from Cape Mentelle’s Estate, with the fruit coming from the Wallcliffe, Trinders and Crossroads vineyards. The typical soils of these vineyards are geologically ancient, free draining sandy loams with a high percentage of lateritic gravel. The vines are now fully dry grown and, early in the season, manually thinned and leafed to expose the fruit. Picking decisions are made by taste only; picking is by hand in small batches with lot sizes determined by vine vigour and ripeness within blocks.
The preceding winter gave healthy rains, replenishing soil moisture levels which led into a milder spring with higher than average rainfall. Flowering in all varieties was delayed by 10 days compared to the 2016 season, with wonderful sunshine giving excellent set (fruitful flowers into berries) and thus great crop potential across all varieties. With a mild summer, punctuated by only a few hot days (over 30C), veraison (colouring and softening of berries) in early February came three weeks later than 2016 (mid January) giving one of the latest yet highest quality vintages on record.
The fruit is 100% destemmed and lightly crushed to a combination of open and closed fermenters of between 120kg to 2.5 tonne capacity. The ferments proceed with wild yeast and operations are decided day by day without recipe to optimize potential and complexity. Post fermentation macerations are long- up to 120 days- to develop silky tannin structures before light basket pressing. Malolactic fermentation takes place in French oak barriques (5% new), the wine aged on lees (yeast sediment) for 16 months and then blended and bottled.
Able to be opened and enjoyed fresh on release, this Cabernet Merlot may also be aged a dozen years or more in order to develop a rounder, mellow finish. Winery Notes
