Crawford River Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

Crawford River is one of the benchmark producers of Victoria’s remote Henty region, with its estate vineyard established by John and Catherine Thomson in 1975. Cabernet Sauvignon has been central to the vineyard from the beginning, thriving in Henty’s long, cool growing season. The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon is now being released by the winery as a Museum Release, showing beautifully developed cassis, cacao, liquorice and bay leaf, with toasted plum and cedar flowing through a medium-bodied, finely structured palate.

After two years in French oak and more than a decade in bottle, it remains remarkably composed, with supple acidity and persistent, chalky tannins giving the wine freshness and length. Philip Rich awarded it 96 points in the Halliday Wine Companion, praising its red and blue fruits, lavender, fresh mint and cigar-box complexity, and noting the harmony between its fruit and tannins.