Moss Wood 1995 Cabernet Sauvignon

Tasting Notes

The colour is medium to dark red with brick red hues; the nose is intensely fruity, showing a lifted fragrance of mulberries, raspberries, violets, redcurrants and some merlot, malbec earthiness. It has been aged in 51% new oak (225 litres Allier medium-toasted barrels) and this gives a spicy oakiness which remains a background feature because of the wine's generosity of the fruit. The palate has generous red and dark fruit flavours, good acidity, (quite lifted for a Moss Wood Cabernet) and soft spicy oak, with delightful, integrated tannins and a silky texture.

The 1995 Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon appears remarkably approachable at present with perfumed aromas of red berries while the palate shows lively spice, red cherry, mulberry and cedary oak flavours. The wine is rich and concentrated with a texture that is soft and silky. It has great depth and length, impressive intensity and powerful yet fine tannins on a long, lingering finish. It has all the hallmarks of a great Moss Wood Cabernet.

We have always been haunted by the similarity of the 1995 Cabernet to the 1975. We are worried because we don't much like the idea of a twenty year cycle. However, unquestionably there has not been a wine with the same intense fruit flavours and silky tannins since the 1975 and this is the reason that the 1995 wine has a rating of 10. We believe that it may, in the long term, supplant the 1991 at the head of the queue of Moss Wood Cabernets.

Vintage Notes

The 1995 vintage at Moss Wood was basically a simple one for the vigneron and the team: especially, on reflection, after the tumultuous season experienced in the lead up to the 1997 harvest. In 1995, there were no interruptions from rain or extreme heat and so it was a case of just sitting back and waiting for the grapes to ripen. Certainly, February had some hot days but this did not cause any problems. Rather, with the good warm, ripening conditions that prevailed, the mid-February heat merely hastened the ripening of the early varieties. The March conditions were almost blissful with autumnal, warm, sunny days and no pressure to pick from either birds or rain. As often happens, just as the vines ripen one gets the impression that the season might change at any moment. But there were no hiccups.

Production Notes

he fruit showed terrific, intense flavour in the grapes and in fermentation tanks. The fermentation of cabernet went absolutely according to Moss Wood tradition: the open tanks, which experienced warm temperatures up to 30C, were hand plunged four times a day with one pump over towards the end to ensure that no hydrogen sulphide remained. Skin contact time averaged eight days before the wine was drained and pressed. As usual at Moss Wood, all pressings were included, the malolactic fermentation took place in stainless steel and the wine was put into barrels in July 1995 where it stayed until January, 15th 1997. It was then racked, lightly egg white fined, (one egg white per 4000 litres), lightly filtered and bottled.

Cellaring Notes

There is no question about this red's ageing potential and we vigorously recommend a minimum of ten years cellaring in good conditions and would encourage fifteen to twenty years for those who wish to see the wine at its best.