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The vintages you will find in this limited Orlando Jacaranda Ridge six-pack are evocative time capsules of Coonawarra’s uppermost winemaking tier.
At a decade old, the 2010 shows impressive intensity of flavour, with dark berries, menthol, and earth abundant on the palate. Remarkably, it is still redolent with youthful vibrancy, its structure a testament to the long life left in it. Your cellar will thank you for many years to come. 4 bottles.
Consider the 1997 a window into the past, a preview of the great potential of its younger sibling. Now fully-realised, and teeming with ripe fruit, mocha, and mint, this 23-year-old Cabernet is testament to the great endurance of Orlando’s flagship wine. 2 bottles.
Has retained good depth and hue, still with no move away from crimson; the strong structure, with savoury tannins appearing early in the piece, continuing alongside the intense blackcurrant, mulberry, mint and earth of Coonawarra, suggests relatively early picking; certainly there are no dead fruit characters here, and, equally certainly, it has all of the indicia to encourage prolonged cellaring.
95 points, Wine Companion (March 2014)
Medium red-purple; a fragrant bouquet of cedar, spice and berry; ripe berry/chocolate/mocha flavours lead the way on the palate, finishing with moderately persistent tannins; controlled oak.
92 points, Wine Companion (March 2002)
Coonawarra
The first vines were planted in Coonawarra by John Riddoch in 1890, however it was not until the renewed interest in table wine production in the 1950's that Coonawarra was brought into the limelight. Located almost 380 km southeast of Adelaide, Coonawarra is today one of the most famous red wine regions in Australia. Its weathered limestone terra rossa soils, avaibility of water and relatively cool maritime climate make it a unique viticultural region. Extremely flat and unprotected, Coonawarra is exposed both to the swinging influences of the cool Great Southern Ocean and hot, dry northerly winds. Spring frosts also pose a major threat with the potential to wipe out entire crops. Mechanical harvesting is widely employed in the region although smaller producers prefer to tend their vines by hand. Coonawarra is best known for classically-styled Cabernet Sauvignon, although in good years, Shiraz from the region is also very compelling.
