The Douro Valley & Vintage Port... oh crap, wrong tasting... Australian Cabernet Sauvignon from Wakefield Wines

You catch me at 10.52 in the evening, having been to a tasting of vintage port, which you may or may not know is my uber wine passion, and now I have to write an article about Australian Cabernet Sauvignon.  And it is hard as all my mind can do is go back to the tasting today.

The predicament I am in is like trying to rub your stomach with one hand and pat your head with the other, you know it is possible, but at any minute you are going to find yourself getting confused and doing the wrong thing.  So should I start waffling on about port in this article, please forgive me.

After trying a selection of Rieslings from the Wakefield range, it was time to move on to the Cabernets.  I am, unashamedly, a Cabernet Sauvignon fan, and I am getting very enthusiastic about them from Australia.  Wakefield’s wines are perfect examples of this grape and how well it grows in Oz.

The 2006 Wakefield Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is FAR too good for it’s price point.  That should be made clear right off the bat, as it is a wine that has the potential to age, yet is very good in it’s youth.  There were a lot of green pepper aromas mixed in with some menthol, cherry and damson jam, and it led on to a gutsy, pepper and cassis palate that was just so well balanced.  At £8.99, this has to be one of the steals of the wine world.  8.5/10

The 2005 Wakefield Jaraman Cabernet Sauvignon is a better wine, no doubt about that, but like the Jaraman Riesling, I have issues with it.  With the Jaraman Riesling, it’s competition comes from it’s big brother, the St Andrews Riesling, as for a few pounds more, the latter wine offers better value for money.  With the Cabernets, I think that the competition for the Jaraman Cab Sauv comes from it’s baby brother.  Despite liking the Jaraman, with it’s perfumy, yet vegetal, aromas of mint, cherry compote and olives followed by a palate of blackcurrant, chocolate and a little cracked black pepper, I think that the Estate wine is so close, it is not worth paying the extra £6 to buy the Jaraman (8/10).

Finally, priced at £28, was the 2004 Wakefield St Andrews Cabernet Sauvignon.  This is a serious wine, and, I think, being drunk too young.  It was very balanced on the nose, with soft, juicy fruit and hints of cigars.  There was not a lot of veggie elements coming from the wine, though mint did creep in.  The palate had a little spike of alcohol, followed by grippy tannin, lots of leather, chocolate, bramble and tar.  It needs time, but when those tannins sort themselves out, this is going to be lovely.  8.5/10.

I beg of you, if you hate Australian wines, give some Cabernet Sauvignon a go.  These wines from Wakefield are very attractive, and show the grape variety very well, for quite a reasonable price.  I assure you, you will be pleasantly surprised at the grape, and be able to say that you were one of the first to get onboard the Aussie Cab Sauv train.

Talking of trains, there is an excellent train that goes up the Douro….

Part One - The Rieslings

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