Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard 2012 Trueman Cabernet Sauvignon

A very special first release from high-level Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyards in McLaren Vale; a great Australian vineyard now under new ownership. This vineyard has produced grapes for wines such as Penfolds Grange and Eileen Hardy and was sold two years ago to Jackson Family Wines of the United States. This is one of four impressive red wines released from the first vintage after the sale and it is an US-Australian combination of winemakers Chris Carpenter and Charlie Seppelt that has produced this stunning cabernet sauvignon - which I put firmly in the top 20 Australian cabernets on this evidence. It's a wine that shows McLaren Vale can match Margaret River and Coonawarra when it comes to cabernets with both flavour and finesse. A blend of 95% cabernet and 5% merlot, this is silky, elegant, flavoursome, polished, refined, and downright delicious. A rare gem. $75. www.hickinbothamwines.com