2017 Sandalford Prendiville Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz
This wine is intense and complex. Like the nose, it will keep evolving in the glass as you’re enjoying it. Blackberries and sweet blueberries are in abundance with the same savoury flavours combining with spice notes, especially cinnamon and nutmeg. The French oak adds a lovely layer of cedar, mocha and vanilla. The tannins are powerful, yet very fine grain and soft. Underneath there is a refreshing acid balance, which combine with the tannins to give this wine a beautifully textured line through the palate and gives length on the finish so the wonderful flavours linger on. With 70% new French oak, this wine is just a baby and whilst drinking beautifully now, with careful cellar maturation for 15 year or more, this limited release of the Prendiville Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon will certainly reward the patient. (A harmless deposit may form in the bottle during cellar maturation and decanting is recommended prior to serving).
Winemaker comments
Winemaker Notes
After destemming and crushing, the select parcels of hand-picked Cabernet and
Shiraz grapes were inoculated with a selected yeast strain and fermented in small five
tonne open fermenters. The traditional method of pumping over was done by hand,
twice daily during fermentation to optimise colour, flavour and tannin extraction from
the fermenting must. At the end of ferment, the wine was pressed off skins and
transferred to French oak barrels. After twelve months of barrel maturation, only the
best twenty barriques were put aside for this release of the Prendiville Reserve
Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz. Each bottle is individually numbered.
Meet the maker
By the time I turned 18, I had become fascinated with wine. I was keen to learn as much about wine as I could and I received some great advice: to work in the industry before committing to any tertiary study....
Continue Reading > I was lucky enough to get my start at the cellars at Houghton Wines, here in the Swan Valley. I loved it, and it was the beginning of a career which was to eventually see me spend 20 years with Houghton’s. But first, I wanted to discover what traditional winemaking was like in the northern hemisphere. I took myself off to Burgundy, France, where I worked several vintages learning as much as I could about the craft of winemaking from some the best in the business. Returning to Australia I continued my career, picking up a few awards in the process of learning more and more about winemaking and achieving Bachelor of Applied Science and Oenology at Charles Sturt University, NSW. I was awarded the inaugural Gourmet Traveler Young Winemaker of the Year 2001, James Halliday’s Winemaker of the year in 2009, Winemaker of the Year in Ray Jordan's 2017 Annual West Australian Wine Guide, and I’ve judged extensively at capital city and regional wine shows. Australia makes some amazing world class wines! I’ve been fortunate to be Senior Winemaker at Sandalford Wines since March 2021 and I’m delighted every day by our estates’ old vines, the passion of the viticulture team here, and the outcomes we are able to achieve each vintage.
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Continue Reading > I was lucky enough to get my start at the cellars at Houghton Wines, here in the Swan Valley. I loved it, and it was the beginning of a career which was to eventually see me spend 20 years with Houghton’s. But first, I wanted to discover what traditional winemaking was like in the northern hemisphere. I took myself off to Burgundy, France, where I worked several vintages learning as much as I could about the craft of winemaking from some the best in the business. Returning to Australia I continued my career, picking up a few awards in the process of learning more and more about winemaking and achieving Bachelor of Applied Science and Oenology at Charles Sturt University, NSW. I was awarded the inaugural Gourmet Traveler Young Winemaker of the Year 2001, James Halliday’s Winemaker of the year in 2009, Winemaker of the Year in Ray Jordan's 2017 Annual West Australian Wine Guide, and I’ve judged extensively at capital city and regional wine shows. Australia makes some amazing world class wines! I’ve been fortunate to be Senior Winemaker at Sandalford Wines since March 2021 and I’m delighted every day by our estates’ old vines, the passion of the viticulture team here, and the outcomes we are able to achieve each vintage.
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Tasting notes
Varietals
Varietal
Shiraz
Colour
Other Notes
Dark ruby red
Nose
Production
A complex meld of flavours that really benefits when given time to open
up and evolve in the glass. This wine starts with savoury spices of bay
leaf, juniper and star anise. It further opens to reveal rich dark berries,
particularly blackberries and sweet blueberries, a hint of violets.
Palate
Tasting Note
Like the nose, this wine will keep evolving in the glass as you’re enjoying
it. Blackberries and sweet blueberries are in abundance with the same
savoury spices evolving to cinnamon and nutmeg flavours. The French
oak adds layers of cedar and mocha with the tannins smooth and silky
soft, yet full of power. They, in combination with the acid balance, build a
beautifully textured palate, meaning the wine and all of it’s complex
flavours will linger on long after you’ve enjoyed it. This wine whilst
drinking beautifully now, is just a baby and with careful cellar
maturation for 10 years or more, this limited release of the Prendiville
Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz will certainly reward the patient.
Vintage Conditions
Vineyard Notes
Overall, the whole of the 2017 growing season, from Spring through to Autumn was
much cooler than average. There were no heat extremes in 2017. This delayed the
ripening of all grape varieties by at least 3 -4 weeks. At the start of April, all of the red
grapes were still on the vine, several blocks still needing a good 4-5 weeks to fully
ripen. With April normally the change in season, there were many hours spent
nervously watching the weather forecast, waiting for the rain to start. Unbelievably
Mother Nature was on our side and April was one of the driest on record. Our latest
season ever, with the last of the Cabernet being harvested in early May. The wines
produced this season are elegant, showing more flavour complexity and
concentration.
2017 Sandalford Prendiville Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz
