The 2017 vintage had it's challenges, but this wine and this producer bucked the trend entirely. This is a masterfully crafted, elegant-yet-powerful (thanks to that slightly higher ABV), age worthy Cab. We can't get enough of it (literally, we bought everything we could get our hands on and it won't be enough). Varietal in all the right ways; long, herbed, a touch twiggy, a lot brambly. Where it steps outside the mould a little, though, is in the density of the fruit. It borrows somewhat from the powerful fruit profiles of Coonawarra, but it doesn't shed its Margaret River finesse in doing so.

The 2017 Barossa vintage was 'near perfect.' A wet Spring reduced frost pressure, and a cooler growing season allowed for lengthy hang time for grapes on the vine. Now, six years on, the proof is in the bottle - the resultant wines are magnificent.

Plush and plummy. Robust and bold. This wine marries zippy acidity with ripe fruit flavours and deftly integrated tannins to deliver a delightful, lasting flavour profile. A good whack of oak frames the fruit without taking over. The takeaway from drinking this is the balance - it's supremely harmonious, which means it will (for those with better self control than me) age well into the next decade.

Sunshine Creek never misses a beat for my mind; they make wines that are built to go the distance. I’ve been picking through a bit of their back vintage of late and I’ve been impressed at every turn. This is a 10 year old cabernet with a fair bit left in the tank, relatively speaking. The fruit is still grounded in bright, exuberant freshness - raspberries and blackcurrants. There’s an overture of woodiness and tomato leaf, which gives the wine depth and intrigue. This is ageing gracefully, and will continue to do so over the rest of this decade.