Medium to deep crimson with purple hues coat the glass, whilst the rich, dark fruits of boysenberries and black currants dominate the aroma with lovely hints of Anzac cookies to really get the mouth watering. Luscious, ripe and bright fruits coat the palate and mingle with brambly spice, hints of liquorice and velvety, fine tannins which flow onto the long and fruitful finish.
From the Winery
Whilst the Barossa is synonymous with full-bodied Shiraz, its Cabernet Sauvignon can equally produce wines of intense flavour and body. This is such a wine. With a full middle palate, showing good varietal Cabernet character, superbly structured and displaying fine tannins. This wine may be enjoyed now but will develop further in the bottle for at least another ten years.
Langmeil dry grows many of its own vineyards and encourages its growers to do the same. Because the vines are not irrigated, they search for water and push their roots deep into the ground. The result is fruit of outstanding quality, with depth, colour and flavour not found in other irrigated vines. Australia is the driest continent in the world and South Australia, the state in which the Barossa is located, is the driest state of Australia. Yet it is possible to produce outstanding wine from dry grown vines.
A much-needed soaking winter and early spring rains led to a great start to the 2014 vintage. This didn’t last as late spring and early summer rain was nearly non-existent, adding to the flow on from the previous season’s drought. Yields were still below average, exacerbated by strong wind events during flowering and very hot conditions in January with 14 consecutive days over 40C.
Vintage was looking like a hot, hard and fast one until mid-February, when the heavens opened up and dumped 90ml in the Barossa Valley and 150ml in Eden Valley. Concerns for crop loss were fortunately alleviated as there was minimal grape splitting in the whites and all the reds just said thank you very much. After a three-week delay for grapes to return to previous ripeness levels, the rest of vintage was mild - extending hang time for great flavour development and resulting in a calm and steady intake of great quality fruit. The nice weather broke midway through April and hindered our patience with late ripening Eden Valley Cabernet, so our last crush for the year was the 28th of April. Overall, a very good vintage with a few anxious moments thrown in.
