A Bordeaux-style blend from the ‘Gimblett Gravels’ vineyard in an exceptional vintage. The blend leads with 62% Merlot, then 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. A very dark, black/red colour in the glass. Led by the merlot, with youthfully vibrant aromas of plum, blackberry, cherry and blackcurrant fruit, with a pretty lift of lavender and violet florals. Medium-bodied but richly concentrated, and still tight as a drum in the palate. The 12 years in bottle don’t seem to have put much of a dent in the firm structure, with crisp acidity and fine, chalky tannin still very tense and impenetrable. Hard to say when the peak window will come – could be another decade at least. Detailed and elegant, it has huge potential, when the savoury elements of tapenade, tar and peat that sit in the sidelines now will emerge and integrate. For now, 95pts
Craggy Range Sophia 2013
