Critic Score

• 86 – Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front

This small-scale boutique release reflects the dry-grown, artisanal winemaking philosophy of the Pyrenees region in Western Victoria. The 2000 growing season across Victoria was highly erratic, presenting severe maturity and structural challenges to winemakers attempting to coax harmony out of thick-skinned Cabernet Sauvignon vines.

Pouring a mature garnet with an advanced brick edge, the wine opens with an unusual aromatic interplay, leading with highly pronounced briar and herbal notes alongside blocks of swish, intense, and remarkably ripe fruit.

On the palate, however, this density abruptly thins; the mouthfeel reveals a super-tight, heavily tannic, and surprisingly lightweight structure.