Leeuwin Estate, Art Series Cabernet Sauvignon, 2018

Leeuwin Estate was born in the early to mid-70s when founders Denis and Tricia Horgan, decided to plant vines on their cattle ranch, a few miles in from the coast in Western Australia’s Margaret River, a few 100 miles south of Perth. It has proved to be an inspired decision and with Robert Mondavi on hand to give advice and guidance in the early days, they hit the ground running. Within a couple of years of their first vintage (1979) they were winning both plaudits and awards worldwide. Their Art Series Chardonnay became one of the most must-have wines of Australia almost overnight. Fast forward 40 years and their daughter, Simone Furlong, now runs the winery, maintaining the estate’s enviable position at the top table of Aussie wineries. It’s interesting listening to Simone talk about those early days when her parents were starting out, as she feels that perhaps it was their lack of experience in the wine industry that gave them their open-minded, fresh approach to the whole project, which allowed them to break new ground and set higher bars. They were amongst the first to plant Chardonnay, using various Burgundian clones, in an area more familiar with Bordeaux varietals and what a great decision that was. If you tasted this wine blind, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were in St Julien or Pauillac. There is such poise and well-crafted structure to the wine which lift and punctuate the stony, blueberry fruit just perfectly. The main difference is that if you were in St Julien and Pauillac, drinking a wine of this quality, you’d be paying much more! 2017 was a slightly cooler vintage and the expressive fragrance of the wine both on the nose and the palate is fantastic. The bunches are berry sorted and undergo a 5-day cold soak at 10 degrees. Lots of gravel in the soil and lots of small berries amongst the bunches, part in thanks to the vines being amongst the original plantings and partly thanks to the zero-irrigation practiced, bring a unique and effortless balance and concentration. It’s quite remarkable to see such power combined with such focus and definition. The 50% new oak is perfectly judged. Whilst the Chardonnay grabs all the headlines and glory, this seems to a wine that the shrewdies will latch on to, for its sheer class and quality. Drink from 2024.