James Halliday Wine Companion 2019

96 / 100

“The highly expressive bouquet of cassis, mulberry and herbs married with French oak feeds into a powerful palate where savoury tannins brook no argument about their purposes in life. They need petting and soothing for a minimum of 5 years before this comes back into the Balnaves family orbit. ProCork. 14% alc. Rating 96 To 2045”

Wine Details

• Region Coonawarra, South Australia
• Vintage 2015
• Type Red Wine
• Variety Cabernet Sauvignon
• Volume 750ml
• Alcohol Volume 14%
• PH

  3.47

• Acidity

  6.53 g/l

• Closure Cork
• Background

  Among his many pursuits, Doug Balnaves was a shearer of Merino sheep. A shearer in Australia is paid by the number of sheep he shears. Counted every two hour period, the Tally is recorded in the Tally book. The higher the Tally, the greater the recognition among his peers for skill and hard work. As an expression of this tradition, the Balnaves family see the wine “The Tally” as the ultimate achievement for their company.

• Winemaking

  Vintage 2015, after a warm Christmas, changed to lower temperatures with very cool nights. Picked in early April, Cabernet Sauvignon from our Dead Morris vineyard (94.8%) was fermented with Dunstan Petit Verdot (5.2%), all fruit was handpicked and received a long maceration on skins. Matureation was for 18 months in 66% new fine grained chateau barriques

• Tasting Notes

  Deep rich red in colour, the nose is perfumed with perfectly ripened dark blackberry, mulberry and cassis fruit, and fine vanillan/coffee bean French oak. The palate is rich with fleshy cassis and blackberry fruit. The finish is long and textured with fine grainy grape tannins. This wine is complex and tightly structured and made to cellar with confidence. We recommend decanting before drinking.

• Awards

  The Tally Awards 2020.pdf