2018 Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon
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Tasting notes
The 2018 vintage is renowned for its excellence in Margaret River – a year when the season seemed perfect – the Marri trees offering a glorious blossom that avoided any bird damage. The resulting Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon is gloriously expressive – offering a lifted nose of florals and bright but intense cassis fruit, alongside a salty herbal edge – aromatically intoxicating. The palate is incredibly vibrant with juicy fruit – a ball of tightly packed berry fruit vibrating at its core. The tannins are effortlessly fine and supple, with just a hint of smoke alongside the saline finish as the tannins tighten up – hinting at the ageing potential here. Aged in 44% new French oak for 18 months, a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec.
Critic scores
Average Score
Erin Larkin, Halliday Wine Companion
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
Full screwcapped bottle 1,347 g. Grown in the home vineyard, with each plot fermented separately with ambient yeasts. Contains some Malbec and Petit Verdot. Glowing, shaded garnet. Really quite leafy on the nose and decidedly lean on the palate. Leaner and lighter than I expected. (JR)
90/8/2% cabernet sauvignon/petit verdot/malbec. Wild ferment, matured in French oak (44% new) for 18 months. Not enough can be said in favour of the 2018 vintage, producing wines just like this. Powerfully ripe and dense, with epic length of flavour. This is a structural and concentrated cabernet capable of decades of graceful evolution in the cellar. Wild raspberry, salted licorice, aniseed, pomegranate, ferrous and kelp. Saline acid. It comes in at under $50, and long may that continue, for it is one of the great-value premium wines of the region.
This impressive cabernet has aromas of dark berries, as well as plums and blue fruit, alongside terra cotta and also fresh purple flowers. The palate has a seamless and flavor-soaked feel with fine tannins carrying black-fruit flavors. Some chocolate to close. Impressive. A blend of 90% cabernet sauvignon, 8% petit verdot and 2% malbec. Drink or hold. Screw cap.
About the producer
Vasse Felix was the first winery in Margaret River, founded in 1967. Today, it is one of Western Australia’s – and the New World’s – most respected names, crafting outstanding, cool-climate Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from this remote region, south of Perth.