Arguably Tasmania's greatest Cabernet and up there with the best mainland versions. Usually long lived. And like Clare and sometimes Coonawarra i have found Domaine A cabs to be quite minty. But this mintyness is wrapped in small dark blue and red berried fruit with a wonderful opulent oily palate. Quite a full bodied wine and still with 10+ to go but hitting its straps right now. Outclassed by the 90 Wantirna against it but a beautiful wine and one worthy of a place in Yodamarks cellar. let me think if I have some of these...hmm. yes lots!!! Thx Jezza
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Zoom blind tasting #4: Bordeaux (At home during circuit breaker): Pretty good, but very distinctly styled. This was meant to be the ringer in a pack of Bordeaux, but it stood out immediately. The tiny bit of Cabernet Franc that went into the blend came out really strongly on the nose, with a green capsicum and asparagus character coming out right at the fore, before some cassis fruit and a bit of mint-leaf emerged along with some earthier notes. A bit of new oak showed-up in there as well. So green at first, that I would have thought Loire if we were tasting fully-blind, rather than half-blind, on that nose alone. The palate had more of those green notes - peas and more asparagus this time - and then sweeter fruit notes of cassis, plums and blackberries, before a finish of spice and mint set in. The green did go down with time, allowing more of the fruit and earth to emerge. Fine tannins, and nicely balancing acidity then completed the picture. An elegant expression of Cabernet - very different from the Bordeaux we had, but really quite nice in its own way. Drinking well now too. One must be able to live with the green though.
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Cellaraid Discovery Box; 5/19/2017-5/26/2021 (Delivered to Home): Good ruby depth, and a pronounced nose of mainly cassis and strawberry, in fact quite a fruit bomb, whilst having a bit of cloves, mint and liquorice. Full bodied, and hugely structured on the palate, with lots of earth, bricks, and wood. Then later comes some strawberries and mint, followed by strong alcohol burn. Fairly long with the strawberries sustaining
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I do enjoy the Domaine A Cabernet. So tight and restrained, but with powerful fruit. The balance is excellent. Tannins are integrated but definitely present.
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This bottle was excellent. Definitely still got blackberries, this time with plums and a hint of redcurrant. Again medium bodied with good length. The tannins are silky and tightly integrated. This particular bottle had more freshness about it, with refined acidity still present. Made me think this could still get a little better, but in any case it is drinking superbly right now, and will for another 3 - 5 years.
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Best bottle of the '04 I've had. Intense nose of cassis and savoury spice. The palate still has plenty of blackcurrant, blackberry and plum. There's dry earth, savoury spice and oh-so-smooth tannins. A real mouth coating feel with a nice long finish. Less forest floor funk than previous bottles. Excellent Bordeaux style blend.
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Balanced wine with good structure. Blueberry again, but less black fruit than the last bottle. Tannins are again silky, the wine medium bodied with good length. Probably at its peak now, but yet to show signs of ageing.
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Wow. My first Domaine A Cab Sauv - and a massive 95+/100 (4.3/5.0) from me. Domaine A is situated in the Cool Valley of Tasmania. The wine is batch vinified in stainless steel tanks before spending 2/3 years in new oak. And you can tell.
Colour: impenetrable dark garnet. Nose: rich, sweet cherries, plums, blackberries, with a fresh mineral undertone. The palate is huge, as those flavours peak mid palate, leaving a cherries, leather, mint, eucalyptus, white pepper and stainless steel finish lingering long into the night. At its peak.
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Opened this thinking it might go well with beef chipolata sausages, given it's reputation as a medium bodied Cabernet. Didn't pair very well, but did go well with Royce champagne infused dark chocolate eaten afterwards. Blackberry/cherry flavours, smooth tannins, medium bodied. Drinking well now or I believe it'll also be fine for another 5 years in the cellar.
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Brought by a friend to a party. Last bottle of the night after 3 fantastic Italian wines. Popped and poured straight from bottle. Tasted blind. Strong nose of French oak but nothing much else. Young New World taste on the palate. Big tannins, strong fruit. Was overall nice but lacking in complexity though. May do well with a few years of age. To be fair to the wine , I wouldn't mind trying another in optimal conditions at the start of the night, with proper air time and temperature control.
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Derwent & Coal Valley wineries; 4/20/2011-4/21/2011 (Hobart, Tasmania): {cork, 13%, A$70} Twelve months on, and there's little to shout about here. It's still distinctly green, with a strong asparagus note. There's a touch of dirty tobacco on the palate, with blackcurrant and ropey greenish tannins. The palate is quite evenly structured (good presence along the tongue) but it's still far from generous. Gosh, I wonder whetherthey hesitated about releasing this as Domaine A; it must have come awfully close to being declassified back to the Stoney Vineyard label. This is a pass for me; I advise waiting to taste the 05 vintage due in September.
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WES - Tasmania (LSE Holbourn): Very intense, almost opaque. Starting to pale but little colour change so far. Leafy, earthy and rich. Dry clean , soft tannins and intense.
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One of the most exciting wines I've had at this price point for a while. Absolutely bursting with delicious complex earthy aromas even as the wine first hits the decanter. Almost reminiscent of Mouton in terms of its powerful nose, and complex savoury more subtle palate. Excellent. Had alongside an 08 Woodlands Cab Merlot and it blew it away. Tasted again Jul 11. Again, was extremely impressed and decided we had to buy more! (94 Excellent wine)
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You can certainly tell this is from a marginal climate but yet again it pulls it off. Red capsicum, tea, blackcurrant leaf, grass and hint of cloves; delicious pencilly oak. Fine powdery tannins support a surprising depth of black fruit and dried herbs. One of Australia's best cabernets.
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Coal Valley Winery Visits Apr 10 (Coal Valley, Tasmania): {cork, 13%, A$70} The vintage speaks loudly - this is a rather more focused version of the 04 Stoney Cabernet. It's less alarming in the greenness of the nose, but still a bit of a shock for a bottle of this price. The palate improves considerably, with ultra-fine tannins, persistent curranty fruits that grow stronger, and a long finish. Medium bodied again - there's nothing in Domaine A's production that would ever be called full-bodied - but that forms part of its strength. But it needs cellaring, or vigorous splash-decanting some hours before consumption.
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8/3/2021 - yodamark Likes this wine: 96 Points
Arguably Tasmania's greatest Cabernet and up there with the best mainland versions. Usually long lived. And like Clare and sometimes Coonawarra i have found Domaine A cabs to be quite minty. But this mintyness is wrapped in small dark blue and red berried fruit with a wonderful opulent oily palate. Quite a full bodied wine and still with 10+ to go but hitting its straps right now. Outclassed by the 90 Wantirna against it but a beautiful wine and one worthy of a place in Yodamarks cellar. let me think if I have some of these...hmm. yes lots!!! Thx Jezza
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5/16/2020 - Paul S wrote: 91 Points
Zoom blind tasting #4: Bordeaux (At home during circuit breaker): Pretty good, but very distinctly styled. This was meant to be the ringer in a pack of Bordeaux, but it stood out immediately. The tiny bit of Cabernet Franc that went into the blend came out really strongly on the nose, with a green capsicum and asparagus character coming out right at the fore, before some cassis fruit and a bit of mint-leaf emerged along with some earthier notes. A bit of new oak showed-up in there as well. So green at first, that I would have thought Loire if we were tasting fully-blind, rather than half-blind, on that nose alone. The palate had more of those green notes - peas and more asparagus this time - and then sweeter fruit notes of cassis, plums and blackberries, before a finish of spice and mint set in. The green did go down with time, allowing more of the fruit and earth to emerge. Fine tannins, and nicely balancing acidity then completed the picture. An elegant expression of Cabernet - very different from the Bordeaux we had, but really quite nice in its own way. Drinking well now too. One must be able to live with the green though.
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2/25/2019 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 90 Points
Cellaraid Discovery Box; 5/19/2017-5/26/2021 (Delivered to Home): Good ruby depth, and a pronounced nose of mainly cassis and strawberry, in fact quite a fruit bomb, whilst having a bit of cloves, mint and liquorice. Full bodied, and hugely structured on the palate, with lots of earth, bricks, and wood. Then later comes some strawberries and mint, followed by strong alcohol burn. Fairly long with the strawberries sustaining
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6/25/2018 - Andrew67 Likes this wine: 93 Points
I do enjoy the Domaine A Cabernet. So tight and restrained, but with powerful fruit. The balance is excellent. Tannins are integrated but definitely present.
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4/21/2018 - argeeh Likes this wine: 95 Points
Bday with everyone
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8/23/2017 - Andrew67 Likes this wine: 94 Points
This bottle was excellent. Definitely still got blackberries, this time with plums and a hint of redcurrant. Again medium bodied with good length. The tannins are silky and tightly integrated. This particular bottle had more freshness about it, with refined acidity still present. Made me think this could still get a little better, but in any case it is drinking superbly right now, and will for another 3 - 5 years.
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7/21/2017 - Seb-HK wrote: flawed
Oxidized
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1/20/2017 - AnonymousCoward Likes this wine: 93 Points
Best bottle of the '04 I've had. Intense nose of cassis and savoury spice. The palate still has plenty of blackcurrant, blackberry and plum. There's dry earth, savoury spice and oh-so-smooth tannins. A real mouth coating feel with a nice long finish. Less forest floor funk than previous bottles. Excellent Bordeaux style blend.
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7/15/2016 - Andrew67 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Balanced wine with good structure. Blueberry again, but less black fruit than the last bottle. Tannins are again silky, the wine medium bodied with good length. Probably at its peak now, but yet to show signs of ageing.
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6/1/2016 - Andrew67 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Black fruits, blueberries, eucalyptus and liquorice. Lovely example of Cabernet. Medium bodied, with silky tannins and good length.
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2/23/2016 - Wozza Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wow. My first Domaine A Cab Sauv - and a massive 95+/100 (4.3/5.0) from me. Domaine A is situated in the Cool Valley of Tasmania. The wine is batch vinified in stainless steel tanks before spending 2/3 years in new oak. And you can tell.
Colour: impenetrable dark garnet. Nose: rich, sweet cherries, plums, blackberries, with a fresh mineral undertone. The palate is huge, as those flavours peak mid palate, leaving a cherries, leather, mint, eucalyptus, white pepper and stainless steel finish lingering long into the night. At its peak.
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2/1/2016 - AnonymousCoward Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opened this thinking it might go well with beef chipolata sausages, given it's reputation as a medium bodied Cabernet. Didn't pair very well, but did go well with Royce champagne infused dark chocolate eaten afterwards. Blackberry/cherry flavours, smooth tannins, medium bodied. Drinking well now or I believe it'll also be fine for another 5 years in the cellar.
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1/17/2016 - Andrew67 Likes this wine: 91 Points
More blackberry and blackcurrant than I was expecting. Nice balance though. Medium bodied with soft tannins.
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5/28/2015 - clairenclarence wrote: 87 Points
pop n pour
nose;tobacco,mint,leafy,plum,evident herbacious
stucture:ctg; intensity:abv average; depth:abv avrerage; depth:abv average: complexity:abv average; acidity:gd; energy of fruits;abv average
palate:tobacco,plum,herbacious,sign of cherry
conclusion:tis bttl seriously lack of fruits support due to overwhelming tertiary notes.for the fans of herbacious n tobacco notes.
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7/14/2013 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 89 Points
Brought by a friend to a party. Last bottle of the night after 3 fantastic Italian wines. Popped and poured straight from bottle.
Tasted blind.
Strong nose of French oak but nothing much else. Young New World taste on the palate. Big tannins, strong fruit. Was overall nice but lacking in complexity though. May do well with a few years of age.
To be fair to the wine , I wouldn't mind trying another in optimal conditions at the start of the night, with proper air time and temperature control.
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4/21/2011 - graemeg wrote:
Derwent & Coal Valley wineries; 4/20/2011-4/21/2011 (Hobart, Tasmania): {cork, 13%, A$70} Twelve months on, and there's little to shout about here. It's still distinctly green, with a strong asparagus note. There's a touch of dirty tobacco on the palate, with blackcurrant and ropey greenish tannins. The palate is quite evenly structured (good presence along the tongue) but it's still far from generous. Gosh, I wonder whetherthey hesitated about releasing this as Domaine A; it must have come awfully close to being declassified back to the Stoney Vineyard label. This is a pass for me; I advise waiting to taste the 05 vintage due in September.
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4/4/2011 - hadwin Likes this wine: 90 Points
WES - Tasmania (LSE Holbourn): Very intense, almost opaque. Starting to pale but little colour change so far. Leafy, earthy and rich. Dry clean , soft tannins and intense.
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3/28/2011 - G.M. wrote: 94 Points
One of the most exciting wines I've had at this price point for a while. Absolutely bursting with delicious complex earthy aromas even as the wine first hits the decanter. Almost reminiscent of Mouton in terms of its powerful nose, and complex savoury more subtle palate. Excellent. Had alongside an 08 Woodlands Cab Merlot and it blew it away. Tasted again Jul 11. Again, was extremely impressed and decided we had to buy more! (94 Excellent wine)
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3/12/2011 - mattwoolley wrote: 92 Points
You can certainly tell this is from a marginal climate but yet again it pulls it off. Red capsicum, tea, blackcurrant leaf, grass and hint of cloves; delicious pencilly oak. Fine powdery tannins support a surprising depth of black fruit and dried herbs. One of Australia's best cabernets.
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4/23/2010 - graemeg Likes this wine:
Coal Valley Winery Visits Apr 10 (Coal Valley, Tasmania): {cork, 13%, A$70} The vintage speaks loudly - this is a rather more focused version of the 04 Stoney Cabernet. It's less alarming in the greenness of the nose, but still a bit of a shock for a bottle of this price. The palate improves considerably, with ultra-fine tannins, persistent curranty fruits that grow stronger, and a long finish. Medium bodied again - there's nothing in Domaine A's production that would ever be called full-bodied - but that forms part of its strength. But it needs cellaring, or vigorous splash-decanting some hours before consumption.
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7/19/2009 - hadwin wrote: 90 Points
MASSIVE cassis nose with a hint of green peppers. Smooth tannins, good acidity and bags of cassis fruit – almost like a mainland wine!
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6/1/2009 - kristjan wrote: flawed
Really horrible - don't think it was flawed other than it shouldn't have been made.
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