2009 Moss Wood Cabernet is a phenomenal creation, gaining a nose-bleedingly high score in my notes. With an opaque, inky colour and a deep brooding nose this wine is fashioned in a Pauillac-esque style but with, dare I say it, more alluring fruit! Strangely, Moss Wood Cabernet can be drunk fairly young. It needs a long time decanted to unravel its full array of flavours, but unlike top claret the tannins are relatively supple from the off. Having said this I tasted a 1996 vintage the other day and it was sublime and languid and effortlessly classy, so they age well, too. Moss Wood is my favourite producer of Cabernet in Australia. There are a handful of other Aussie producers existing in the same stratosphere as Moss Wood and obviously a few Italians and Californians, too who compete with the top Bordeaux, but of all of the elite performers this estate represents the finest value for money!

19+ points