Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard The Nest Cabernet Franc 2019

Since its establishment in 1971, the Hickinbotham vineyard has become a part of Australia’s wine heritage, supplying fruit to produce many of Australia’s greatest wines. The Clarendon Vineyard has sold select parcels to Penfolds for Grange and to Hardy’s for their equivalent white flagship, the Eileen Hardy Chardonnay. Now under the ownership of Kendall Jackson (of Yangarra fame) Peter Fraser is making some outstanding expressions of this iconic site. The first vintage of Cabernet Franc in the range is a stunner, and destined to be a classic.

Strong fruit, strong tannin and strong oak. It’s balanced within its own world but this is a heavy hitter. A big serve of resiny vanilla, mint, chocolate, steel and redcurrant, with plum notes drenching the palate. Dry, rusty herbs, the leftovers from a couple of summers ago combine with florals, old too, dried too. Less oak would have been good but this is a wine set up to age. Strong arms, this one. Ropes of tannin territory. - Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 24 August, 2021, 93 Points

The Finer Details
Style - Red Wine
Varietal - Cabernet Franc
Country - Australia
Region - McLaren Vale, South Australia
Vintage - 2019
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 14.5%