True to form, Trueman offers up all the minty, pencil lead, savory dried herb, dark-chocolate and blackberry goodness we’ve come to know and love from top South Aussie Cab. There’s power aplenty in the mouth but feels like it’s always in control, never boisterous—ironfist-in-velvet-glove territory; the savory, chalk dust tannins framing; the acidity freshening. Drink now with a rare steak and garlicky mushrooms at hand, or cellar for 15 years. Hickinbotham. Points: 95/100
Handpicked, destemmed to open top fermenters. 21 days on skins basket pressed to 60% new French oak barriques for 14 months, blended and matured for a further 4 months in French oak. This wine has always had me, at ‘hello’ it’s partly due to its blue tinges of blueberry and lilac but mostly because the wine draws you in, rather than smacks you over the head with its Cabernet -esqueness. Yet all those markers are here too. Blackberries baking in a pie, sage and mulberry. Oak plays its integral role as you might expect it would with clove, mahogany and cinnamon quill. Lets face it, the wines screams pedigree and expertise, Hickinbotham knows Cabernet and Cabernet knows them. Here is demonstrated beautifully and is drinking like a dream on release and will reward time and time again in 5, 10, 15 years. Drink with a scotch fillet so supreme you can cut it with a butter knife. Points: 96/100
The 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Trueman is a claret style. This is composed of gravel and blackcurrant aromas with a strong, cedary oak tone. A dense backbone follows, with blackberry flavors amped up with marked acidity and tannins providing strong foundations to enjoy after at least another decade in the cellar. Points: 94/100
From the original 1971 contour-planted vines and a 2002 block; crushed to open fermenters; a minimum of 21 days on skins; matured in French barriques (60% new) for a total of 18 months. It’s a cabernet of deep and brooding properties but not girth or heft. Indeed, there is considerable refinement here. Cedar and currant, ripe mulberry, cassis, plum and olive, the pitch of leafiness keenly judged, with proper ripeness achieved at modest alcohol. An equally refined but effective line of tannins draws effortlessly long, with oak a key player but stylish about it. An excellent release. Points: 96/100
An exceptional cabernet of flare and precision. Dried sage, bay leaves and a smear of black olives serve as a savory balance to the wave of currants and mint, all riveted to refined tannins and a briny maritime freshness. The more I spend time in the Vale the more I realize just how good cabernet can be. A leader of the pack. Drinkable now, but best from 2030. Screw cap. Points: 96/100
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