Region: Yarra Valley Grapes: 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, 6% Malbec, 2% Petit Verdot First Glance: Icon-wine, Red Fruits, Spices, Fine Grained, Age-worthy Acclaim: 98pts
The Wine: The 2021 is a Quintet to sit comfortably alongside our famed 1990, 2015 and 2019 renditions. The nose offers red cherry, violets, spice and some earthy undertones. The palate is driven by red fruits, intertwined with spicy French oak; however, it is really the quality of tannin that defines this wine on the palate. Not since the 2013 vintage have we seen this quality and quantity of fine grain tannin present, giving this wine such an appealing structure and persistence through the palate. It will age tremendously well for at least 3 decades.
The Review: Ned Goodwin MW, jamessuckling.com - 98pts "Among the ten vintage flight that I was privy to, this is arguably the finest of them all, sitting pretty alongside its rival, the stunning 2015. Medium-bodied, taut and understated, as the Quintet always is. Graphite, pencil lead, blood plum and a fleck of red and black currant. The wine's signature, a kit of gorgeous, sinuous tannins that reflect the later picking windows of more recent years. This could easily be nudged up a point. Best after 2028."
