Geoff Merrill Parham Cabernet Sauvignon 2017

The wine is named after Geoff Merrill’s grandfather who made it past his 102^nd birthday, which he apparently attributed to “smoking, drinking and having fun”. We should all be so lucky! The team select their finest Cabernet barrels, re-blend and give the wine further maturation – 30 months in all. The split is 85% McLaren Vale and 15% Coonawarra with only a few barrels ever made. The nose has tobacco leaf notes, black olives, blackberries, cloves, a hint of soy and beef stock. There is a mere whiff of the Cabernet herbaceousness we have come to expect, and plenty of chocolate notes which persist on to the impressive palate. Fine tannins giving noticeable grip to the overall length, which is excellent. A wine for the long haul, drink over the next ten to fifteen years.