Lindeman's Cabernet Merlot (75cl, 13.5%)

A South Eastern Australian red wine blending 52% Cabernet Sauvignon and 48% Merlot. Grapes are destemmed and crushed, then yeast-inoculated and fermented at 20–24°C on skins in static fermenters with daily pump-overs and periodic aeration. Malolactic fermentation is completed on predominantly French oak with a portion of American oak. Lindeman's traces its roots to 1843, when Henry Lindeman planted vines in the Hunter Valley. The aroma opens with ripe blackcurrant, raspberry, plum and spicy oak, with cherry notes. The palate shows dark red berry fruit, ripe plum, vanilla from oak, blackcurrant depth and softer berry sweetness, with savoury oak tannins. The finish is medium with textural tannins and dark berry spice.