Dowie Doole Cab Sauv

Dowie Doole Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon 100%

Region: McLaren Vale, South Australia

Vineyard: Three low yielding blocks on Norm & Jane Doole’s, Norjan Vineyard, California Road, McLaren Vale.

Vintage conditions: The 2007 vintage was another high quality year but crops were reduced significantly around Australia because of drought, frosts and in some parts bush-fire smoke taint. Despite early winter rains in 2006, rainfall during winter and spring was the worst for years in the lead-up to flowering. There was a brief hot spell in January; otherwise it was quite mild and dry. At the end of January a tropical air mass connected with a cold front to bring good rains to the agricultural areas of South Australia, with flooding in the north. The rainfall over four days,
coincided with veraison and freshened up the vine canopy to assist with ripening the fruit for harvest. February has been recorded as the hottest for 100 years, bringing the reduced crop to an earlier ripening. The vintage began three to four weeks early, one of the earliest on record, remaining dry and mild allowing for good maturity

Technical information: The fruit was picked at 13.5º Bé, crushed and rotary fermented for six days. The juice was run off into a mix of oak for completion of fermentation, malolactic fermentation and extended maturation.

Oak maturation: 51% French oak (new and one year old) for 22 months, 10% American (new) for 9 months and 39% American (one and two year old) for 22 months.

Analysis: Alc: 13.4% TA: 7.43 g/L pH: 3.50 Res.Sugar 2.2 g/L VA: 0.64g/L SO2: Free 29mg/L Total: 105mg/L Spec Gravity: 0.9953

Tasting Notes: Mid purple in colour. A complex nose of ripe, sweet berries, dark chocolate and black currants with a little mintiness evident and a touch of coffee from the oak maturation. The palate is rich and full, featuring long, savoury and dark-berried flavours and cabernet choc-mint characters. The oak is very well integrated leaving the wine with a soft, rounded tannin finish. Our seventh release of Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2007 will drink exceptionally well over the next 6-8 years. Bottled 16th April 2009

Viticulturist: Norm Doole Winemaker: Brian Light

portfolio: O2