2018 Nocturne Cabernets | Yallingup Sub Region
Yallingup is our stomping ground and where the world’s greatest Cabernet and Cabernet blends are being grown! It’s deliciously warm but never hot, with the amazing dual influence of the Indian Ocean and Geographe Bay. In our new ‘Cabernets’ we have used our own beloved Sheoak Cabernet and added some Merlot from the Simpson property belonging to our neighbours, with whom we’re lucky enough to share the amazing valley.
Sometimes shit just goes right. The 2018 vintage is to high-end Margaret River Cabernet what peas are to carrots. It was that good – not too hot nor too cold, with moderately high growing-season rainfall and, most importantly, a long, dry, benign finish. We started picking on 29th March and from the moment the fruit hit the fermenter it was destined to be a classic.
Instantly perfumed and richly coloured, the wine spent 12 days on skins with a peak fermentation temperature of around 28ºC. The wine was pressed to tank and settled briefly, before being transferred to a combination of new (25%), two- and three-year-old barrels to undergo malolactic conversion. The wine was racked only once in this time and, after 15 months in oak, was emptied from barrel. At this juncture we decided the final make-up of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon with 13 % Merlot. These wines were then settled together, clarified and bottled.
Cabernet is king, and long will it reign in our eyes. If this modern new blend doesn’t resonate hugely with you all then there’s something amiss in the realm. It’s expressive, medium-bodied and smells of hope wrapped in pure emotion. – Alana & Julian Langworthy
