International Cabernet Sauvignon Day is coming up on Friday August 30. If you haven't planned out what you'll be opening to celebrate yet, we suggest getting your hands on one (or three) of these wines from Kaesler, Yering Station and Zema Estate. If you've already got something lined up for the day, these wines will reward patience, too, so you can always set them aside for a future Cab Sauv Day!
So what's Australian cabernet sauvignon all about? Campbell Mattinson says "the Australian cabernet larder is full of flavoursome, elegant, impeccably structured wines." Known for its deep colour and notes of rich fruit and herbs, cabernet sauvignon is also perfect for pairing with a feast, and the wines below are no exception.
Try the 2021 Kaesler Cabernet Sauvignon, from the Barossa, with slow roasted lamb or roast duck. A roast would also pair well with the 2021 Yering Station Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, with chief winemaker Brendan Hawker suggesting beef rib and veggies. Meanwhile, Zema's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon from Coonawarra is best enjoyed with a home-cooked Italian meal.
So grab a glass, get cooking, and say cheers to cabernet sauvignon!
2021 Kaesler Cabernet Sauvignon
Deep crimson, bright purple hue. On the nose, plum, dark spice, blackberry, hints of mocha oak with hints of spicy sandalwood oak. Rich and Intense blackcurrant and dark chocolate with silky to slightly chalky tannins on the palate. Leafy characters provide freshness to the rich fruit, which follows through to hints of the mocha from the oak.Winemaker Tim Dolan says: Of all varieties in the world, cabernet sauvignon has one of the best potentials to improve with age. Watching the wine evolve over the span of 20 plus years is reason enough to keep making the variety!
H. How will this wine evolve over time?
TD. Kaesler cabernet often has a lovely choc-mint lift and cassis and blackcurrant fruit when young. Once it has seen some bottle age, those primary fruits give way to earthy, dark chocolate flavours and the tannins gently soften. It’s a fun exercise watching the wine evolve over time.
H. What was the winemaking process for this cabernet?
TD. Sourced from several estate-grown, low-yielding vineyards, some of which date back to 1970 plantings, we typically pick cabernet sauvignon quite early. This timing ensures the grapes are full of blueberry fruit and cassis flavours, while still retaining the leafy varietal characteristics synonymous with cabernet. The wine is aged in a mixture of new and older French oak barrels for 16 months prior to bottling.
Best enjoyed: Always try to decant the Kaesler Cabernet a few hours before serving; this wine really needs some “airtime” to show its true colours. Slow roasted lamb in the middle of winter with winter vegetables is a great pairing. However, as we head into the spring, I would also pair this with roast duck and fresh porcini mushrooms.
RRP $45 | Drink to 2036 | kaesler.com.au | Shop this wine
2021 Yering Station Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
A stunning example of how elegant Yarra Valley cabernet can be. Beginning quite fragrant with autumnal leaf, red currant fruits and stewed rhubarb, weight and generosity begin to build with a dense, but fine, linear tannin carrying the length as darker fruits and spices arrive with body and texture. The wine grows into a powerful frame yet displays levity and grace.Chief winemaker Brendan Hawker says: I love how this wine has this ability to have so much concentration, complexity and power, yet still offer grace and elegance.
H. Tell us about this vintage of the wine.
BH. We only release a Reserve Cabernet in the best years and 2021 was almost as good as it gets for Yarra Valley cabernet sauvignon. Entirely from our Springlane vineyard in Coldstream and from two different clones (SA125 and LC10), it captures everything we love about the variety when grown with love here in the Yarra.
H. What was the winemaking process for this cabernet?
BH. Small open ferments with regular but gentle pump overs. One or two of the parcels saw some extended skin contact time before pressing to bring further detail to the tannin profile. It spent 16–18 months in French oak barrels before the blending process began, where we only selected the absolute all-star barrels that worked in harmony together.
Best enjoyed: It’s a great wine to share with friends and would pair wonderfully with slow and low beef rib and roast vegetables. Decanting always helps, so open it up when you start cooking the veggies.
RRP $130 | Drink to 2034+ | yering.com | Shop this wine
2019 Zema Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
Our Estate Cabernet is an elegant expression of Coonawarra’s regionality. It has aromas of blackcurrant and plum, mint and menthol with subtle French oak in the background. Ripe black fruits on the palate, blackberry and mulberry highlights. Medium in body, nicely balanced acidity finishing with a classic Coonawarra chalky tannin structure. Subsequently aged in bottle for two years for smoothness and drinkability, this wine will repay cellaring for at least 10 years.Winemaker Joe Cory says: Cabernet has an elegant structure with smooth tannins, bright acidity, and a lingering finish – I think Coonawarra makes some of the world's best examples.
H. Tell us about the history of this wine.
JC. Our first vintage of Zema Estate Cabernet was made in 1984, two years after the Zema family bought their property on the Terra Rossa strip in Coonawarra. We use a variety of fermentation methods bringing together old and new techniques. The Estate Cabernet is an elegant expressions of Coonawarra's regionality.
H. What was the winemaking process for this cabernet?
JC. This wine was crafted from grapes harvested at peak ripeness and fermented for seven days in small static fermenters under carefully controlled temperatures. After fermentation, it was aged for 18 months in French oak hogshead barrels, resulting in a vibrant and rich wine with depth and complexity.
Best enjoyed: I would gather your family and enjoy a glass with any home-cooked Italian meal. Or, pair with a Sunday roast with all the trimmings.
RRP $29.99 | Drink to 2034 | zema.com.au | Shop this wine
Top image credit: Zema Estate.
