Dr S
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2021 Wendouree Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley
4/27/2024 - Dr S Likes this wine: 95 Points
The first straight Wendouree Cabernet since the 2018 and it's a beauty. I thought the 2018 classy but this may be a notch or so above. Beautiful purples, dark plum hues.
Classically Cab aromas that smell of perfectly ripe fruit, picked at the right time and made with the right touch. Black currants and berries, plums, a smattering of cedar and mint. Only later did the house characters emerge - walnut, bay leaf, aniseed. The striking point about these trademarks was they were sotto voce, nuanced, not the usual distinctive Wendouree stamp. In that sense, more varietal than regional (no gum or Eucalypt for me), with only a light Wendouree thumprint. Perhaps time will see the latter make itself more evident.
The palate is equally as deft. Long, flowing, tempered intensity, very fine lines, almost powdery tannin verging on velvet. Texture to die for, in my book.
For a winery rightly famed for Shiraz, this is a standout. I confess to not keeping up with top rank Oz Cabernet and accept this verdict may be open to challenge. But I'm confident this wine would be right at home alongside the Cullens, Yarra Yerings, Wynns John Riddochs and the like. It made an otherwise very stylish Coonawarra, which costs twice as much (AUD150 v AUD70 from Wendouree direct) appear a little coarser and forced.
The Bradys, who own Wendouree and make the wine, are getting on in years. A wine like this makes you pray they hang in there for as long as possible. They are just getting better and better at their craft. This wine too will get better with age.
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2017 Wendouree Shiraz Malbec
4/20/2024 - Dr S Likes this wine: 91 Points
A very fine wine, but as a Wendouree it brought to mind the following lines from John Hiatt:
'He said, "Girl you're a beauty like I've never witnessed,
And I've seen the Northern Lights dance on air
But I've felt the cold that can follow the first kiss
And there's not enough heat in the fires burning there".'
This has a soft inner glow, not an Icey Blue Heart. But despite the fine lines and beautiful fruit, it never quite fires as usual for a Wendouree and particularly this inimitable blend.
A touch more faded on the rim than expected for six years, the nose shows poached strawberries, warm spices, oak dusting, dried meat hints. A study in subtlety.
The palate is all style. Filigreed tannin, medium body and medium intense red fruits. It speaks to the refinements made over the last 10-15 years that have made for better, more accessible wines without sacrificing their individuality or sense of place. For all its class, this doesn't quite possess the depth or personality of those other years (esp 2012, 2013, 2019, or from an earlier period, 1998, 2004, 2006 etc). It's a more bespoke wine than the 2003 S/Mbc tasted alongside it, but the latter etched itself into the senses with its darker, deeper, more complex character (and not least that it rose above an unforgiving hot vintage).
Mindful of comparing cool year 'apples' with hot year 'oranges', I held over 2/3s to assess the 2017 in its own right the next evening. With nearly all Wendourees, a day to breathe up usually sees the the inner strong characters emerge and muscle up (eg, see TNs for the 2015 and 2016 S/Mbcs). But not this time. The characteristic jube gum (Malbec) and acid shot remained strangely elusive, as did the iron filings and coal dust. Incidentally, both the 17 and 03 weigh in at 13.2%. Go figure.
The Wendouree 2017s attracted mixed reviews on release, mostly ill-founded for mine. The Shiraz, Cab Malbec and three-way Shiraz/Cab/Malbec Pressings are each in their own way terrific but without the usual grunt. The Shiraz Malbec seems similar to the Shiraz Mataro from the year. As a self-confessed Wendoureephile, I enjoyed it, but the spark was missing. A perfectly good wine, albeit not A Perfectly Good Guitar.
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2003 Wendouree Shiraz Malbec
4/20/2024 - Dr S Likes this wine: 93 Points
This strikes me as representing the mid-way point between the ‘old Wendouree’ and the new. The cool long 2002 and mild undervalued 2004 vintages presaged the more refined wines seen in the 2010s on (including the elegantly powerful 2009). The hot, unforgiving 2003 season shapes what the winemaking team could work with it, but the absence of astringent tannins, jaded overripe characters (raisins) and heat (it’s 13.2%) tells you they picked at the right time.
Brick rim to faded red, then dark core. Once you let it breathe (an hour or so) and work through the secondary walnut, caraway seeds and aniseed, surprisingly fresh fruits appear - chopped dark cherries, dark plums, blackberries - then a sprinkle of brick dust. Distinctly Wendouree that tastes 20 years old plus, yes, but gnarly or burly, no.
Palate continues the theme. Sinewy tannins snake their way through more cherry, plum, raspberry. There’s an understated darker, dry vintage port note too, reminiscent of the 03 Shiraz and older Wendouree - it complements, not dominates the other characters. Hints of beef brisket, or is that my belly saying feed me brisket with this wine? Only upper medium bodied at most that carries itself well. No heat, no edges, no guru, no method, no teacher (apologies to Van Morrison).
I’ve ranked it just below CT Outstanding, mainly relative to scores for the more prodigious vintages of this wine (2004, 2012, 2013, 2019).
The 2003 Sth Australian vintage is one at this point I’d be wary of, but this is an exception. I searched for signs of decline but found none. It’s still vibrant. The road may not go on forever but the party has yet to end (thanks Robert Earl Keen).
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