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2011 Heytesbury

Heytesbury is a barrel selection from the finest parcels of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Malbec. The Cabernet Sauvignon dominant blend includes portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot, which are distinctly perfumed, flavoured and structured. Both complement the restrained power of Cabernet Sauvignon.

 

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Tasting Notes
Colour Bright brick and maroon. Nose Subdued at first, opening slowly to exotic floral, fruit and spice perfumes. Emerging from beneath are blackcurrant and violets from the Petit Verdot, complemented with Autumnal leaves, bay leaf, orange peel, dry oak spice and red gravel dust. Palate Arrives fine and elegant on the palate but still with fruit power, breadth and weight in this fleshy ripe vintage. In classic style the fine, powdery tannins build to a dry finish leaving a breath of subdued fine fruit, florals and Summer forest characters.
Winemaker Notes
Winemaker's notes With Cabernet and its blends, harvest timing is critical so as to ensure optimum balance of flavour and tannin ripeness. Treated individually in small parcels, the fruit was nurtured while on skins to ensure the preservation of fruit characters and extraction of the finest tannins. After an ideal duration of skin contact, each batch was transferred to French oak. The barrel types used were carefully selected to accentuate and enhance the intricate characteristics of the wine. The wine was matured in barrel for 18 months before all batches were graded. The best barrels, from the best batches were selected for this Heytesbury. The combination of nature and nurture has created a sophisticated wine with a strong sense of place.
Varietals:
Production Notes
Varietals: 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Petit Verdot, 12% Malbec
Alcohol:
Alcohol %
14
Cellaring Potential:
Aging
Drinks beautifully now, will reward over next 10+ years
Harvested:
Harvest Date
March 2011
Oak:
Fermentation
100% French oak, 18 months (61%, 39% 1-3 year old)
TA:
Acid
7.2 g/L
pH:
pH
3.42
Residual Sugar:
Residual Sugar
0.5 g/L
Bottled:
Bottling Date
December 2012 2011 Heytesbury
Vintage Notes
2011

Vintage Description

An exceptionally dry Spring resulted in small balanced canopies and early development stages. A very warm Summer with timely rainfall around veraison was followed by rapid ripening to an early vintage. Whites were harvested in a very short time frame though retained good acid. Reds were early but slowed a little with milder conditions in March, resulting in excellent quality reds.

2011 Heytesbury
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$90.00
/ Bottle
Out of Stock
Reviews

  • 93+ Points

    The Wine Front

    Flagship Vasse Felix blend of cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot and malbec. Once upon a time the word flagship almost always = heavy-handed oak but nowadays Heytesbury Cabernet is a more balanced affair. This release is much like the 2011 "standard" Vasse Felix cabernet with a little extra fruit-and-tannin grunt. There's more than a passing resemblance between the two. Medium-weight boysenberry, mulberry and blackcurrant flavours with leather, bay leaf and tobacco notes making for a complex impression. Everything's lined up and in order; time is all that is now required. As a wine it doesn't come at you; you have to slow down and meet it in the middle somewhere.

  • Most Respected

    Drinksbiz NZ - Joelle Thompson

    "Vasse Felix is one of the most respected wineries in Western Australia and this blend is an intriguing modern Southern Hemisphere take on the very traditional historic Bordeaux theme. Unconventional, but successfully tasty, it is full bodied, has pronounced smooth grainy tannins and massive depth of mid palate weight - in other words, it drinks beautifully now (if decanted) but definitely needs another decade or two before it reaches its full potential."

  • 97 Points

    Australian Wine Companion - James Halliday

    "No one can doubt the quality or the longevity of this iconic wine."

  • 96 Points

    The Wine Companion

    A superb example of how Margaret River cabernet blends can rival Bordeaux reds for a fraction of the price. Blackcurrant, briar, dried florals, Asian herbs, tar and leathery aromas have a balanced background of cedary French oak. Intense, super-long, complex and tightly structured, it's a wine of fantastic presence which will live for many more years.