2016 Clarendon Hills Domaine Clarendon BDX
Winemaker Roman Bratasiuk
This 60/40 cabernet/merlot blend is from exceptional old vines in McLaren Vale’s sandy Blewitt Springs. Earthy forest-floor notes entwine with dark chocolate, dates and gobs of fine blackberry fruit. Time will only further integtrate savoury notes, and those forest-floor notes will evolve towards mushroom and truffle at full maturity in 25 years’ time.
How do you best describe this style? It is stylistically earthy and savoury. That said, the harmony of expression currently lies somewhere between blackcurrant and cassis liqueur, mixed with earthy olive tapenade and creamy chocolate.
What does merlot bring to this blend?
In my opinion, merlot is the great cabernet blending variety. Its ability to soften the edges of cabernet’s muscular structure and invoke layers of earthiness and mineral complexity is second to none, all the while ushering in a creamy mid-palate to achieve approachability. The resulting combination is simply magic.
$50, clarendonhills.com.au/product/ domaine-clarendon-2016-bdx/