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David Finlayson Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Tasting Notes

With all the hype about the GS Cab, David wanted to make a more approachable and affordable Cab, that still offers up cellar worthiness and seriousness. Making great Cabernet is a passion of David’s and his experience, while working the 1995 harvest at Chateau Margaux taught him much. David learned the process of working better with tannin ripeness and softer, and more selective pressing regimens. He also learnt a lot about terroir
and the importance of finding the clones that work best for particular areas, like his. The problem of course there is that such decisions take a long time to produce results that can then be considered benchmarks. He believes that he is slowly getting to that point, after more than 17 years on his Stellenbosch property, as the vines have reached maturity. Of course, using the declassified barrels from his GS project as the baseline material for
this wine, is a great way to start out each vintage.

Winery: David Finlayson
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
SKU: DAVCAB2018 Categories: ,
Bottle Size: 750 ml
David Finlayson Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

$19.99

Out of stock

Awards/Reviews

94 pts Decanter

This wine consists of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc, grapes sourced from various vineyards around Stellenbosch. The nose shows red and black fruit, some floral perfume and dried herbs, while the palate is medium-bodied with nice drinkability. Drinking Window 2020 – 2026.

 

Winemaker Notes

Sourced from the GS vineyard as well as a couple of other vineyards near Stellenbosch Mountain and then one in Somerset West, closer to the ocean. Important to note these are (leaf roll) virus free vineyards that average 20 years of age and yield about 3 ton per acre. The quality of this Cab fruit is almost always exceptional, requiring minimal bunch sorting. Alcoholic fermentation is done in 3,000 to 5,000 liter tanks and cultured yeasts are used. Bag pressing is the norm, although basket presses are the future. Post ferment maceration is done in closed tanks for 15 -20 days, to get color and concentration. During this time pump overs are done twice a day – softer than punch downs. Roughly two months after harvest, the wine is ready to be racked to (mainly used French) barrels, where it sits for about 16 months. During this time it is only racked once, unlike Bordeaux, where more racking is generally required to polymerize the tannins. The assemblage is done – with a view to creating a balance between new world fruitiness/ripeness and classic old world Cabernet character. A mix of drinkability and longevity. Coarse filtration and Vegecol (vegan friendly) fining, is done pre bottling.

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