This is a decent wine. Nowhere near awe-inspiring, and barely ticking the boxes of interesting. Nice color and density, heady dark perfume showing dull concentrated cherry, green wood, tar and earth. Expressive and pretty, but there’s a jammy, dripping forwardness to it, giving the whole package a cheap feel. Perhaps I am just jaded by Napa Sonoma and Bordeaux–Hell, even PASO–but no complexity ever materializes from the nose–it feels merely dull and thick. Not particularly chubby, although there are things dragging it that direction.

In the mouth, a fairly flavorful drop, smooth and even, fruit nicely balanced into the framework, welcome bitter rasp appearing late-middle, dousing the acerola grip. The palate is rather fruitless, and the overall feel is a mid-tier grabber for not-too-picky taste-buds, a quaffable dinner-party wine, and a massive crowd-pleaser. As a BTG offering, it would be un-paralleled. It hits a number of expectations the 99% have for Cabernet–and is head-and-shoulders better than most at this price-point. The tannin promised in the middle never quite materializes, pushing a fairly rotund finish on you–iced with more sharp acid.

Not a horrible wine, just really boring. I am delighted by its relatively low alcohol–and it shows in spots–but it is one of those wines which feel like there was some *help* making it appealing.

2016 LEEUWIN ESTATE Cab Prelude Vyd Margaret River West Australia 13.5

https://leeuwinestate.com.au/