No doubt many winelovers have been eagerly awaiting this wine, one of the last of Margaret River's big guns from the stunning 2023 vintage. This brilliant Cabernet saw all parcels harvested fermented separately in small open fermenters. Maturation was in French oak barriques, 15% new. The final blend included 4% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. Deep maroon with a magenta edge, there is such power and finesse in this wine. Balance, length and structure are all world class. A take-me-now-Lord wine if ever there was one. The great 2023 vintage strikes again. Is this the best wine Moss Wood has ever made? It certainly must come very close. The nose reveals aromas of cassis, mulberries, plums, charcuterie, cigar boxes and blackberries. The structure is seamless through to the silkiest of tannins. There is great length and persistence here and the balance is knife-edge. If you doubt me as to the brilliant quality of this wine, please see if you can find a wine from Bordeaux at this price which comes close to this quality. Then we'll talk. This is just a cracker. Thirty years standing on its head. 99 Points.

I’ve been waiting for this wine to be released for some time. I had great expectation that this wonderful vineyard from this exceptional vintage would produce something equally exceptional. Well, guess what? It has. This is such a beautiful example of what Moss Wood cabernet is all about. There’s nothing big and brutish here. This is elegance. This is precision. This is brilliance. High-end florals on the nose with traces of violet, red currant, and then on the palate, that beautiful, restrained suppleness that deceived so many people in the early years of Moss Wood reveals itself, and yet as always, there’s a deep and lingering intensity that persists through to an exceptionally long finish. This is simply stunning. I do not believe there has been a better Moss Wood.

Deep crimson. Intense blackcurrant, espresso, roasted chestnut aromas with hints of black olive/ spice. Inky deep and generously concentrated with ample cassis, black cherry, mocha flavours, superb roasted chestnut/ marzipan notes, and classical fine-grained tannins. Builds up claret/ cedar firm with a lovely pure black currant plume. The oak is still dominant but offset perfectly against the fruit. Give it a few years and this wine will show its exceptional class. 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot. Matured in French oak barriques (15% new). Drink 2029 – 2048+ 14% alc

The 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon is extraordinary. Tasted first from barrel, it was a picture of restrained power and nothing has changed with seamless and perfectly composed aromas of cassis and red currant with a gentle lining of dried herb. This is a wine of elegance, pinpoint balance and precision rather than brutish power with firm yet fine tannins beautifully integrated to support a velveteen finish of astounding length. The purity and energy remains unchanged on day 2 which marks this as an Australian classic in the making. Get your hands on it, any way you can.

I’ve not given it much thought to date, because Moss Wood has been a part of my wine life for many decades, but it just occurred to me that it’s quite an unusual and evocative name for a winery. Anyway, if I stretch my memory back, this maybe puts me in mind of the 2005 vintage. I guess that’s one of the good things about having old people review wines, though, admittedly, I still feel quite young. I’m prone to saying “That 2004 is a good wine eh?” to my partner, and she says “I think you mean 2024!”. Oh hell.

Blueberry, mulberry, hazelnut and nutmeg, assorted spice, some aniseed and cedar, a floral and tea-like perfume. It’s a quieter release of this wine, less thunder, more finesse, a juicy and nutty character, praline and even a suggestion of red fruits. There’s a fine ferrous grip to tannin, a supple feel to it, all in balance, and the finish is so long and fine. Lovely. It’ll be worth the wait.