Tasting Notes for Kalleske Merchant Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 from the Winery 

2022 Merchant Cabernet is rich red purple in colour. Aromatically it has lifted perfume with leading notes of violet, blackcurrant, and cherry together with cedar oak, hints of tomato leaf and choc-mint. The palate is medium-full bodied. It displays lovely ripe varietal Cabernet characters with typical Barossa richness. The fruit is fresh and vibrant, supported with a nutty oak background. Tannins are prominent giving a solid backbone but being natural they perfectly integrate. Overall well poised and finely balanced, this wine finishes with a strong, lengthy finish. Merchant is a classic Barossa Cabernet that can be equally enjoyed now or in a decade.

Growing Season

The 2022 vintage was excellent. Winter was significantly wetter than average getting the vines off to a brilliant start leading into Spring which was cool with median rainfall. Summer was mild and dry apart from rain on the last day. Autumn remained mild with generally perfect mid-20s weather combined with cool nights ensuring steady even ripening across all varieties. The 2022 yields were good and the quality is great, a classic Barossa vintage displaying rich flavours with fine balance.

Vineyard

Merchant Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced from a single vineyard that was planted on the Kalleske property at the end of last century. The hand-pruned vines are low-yielding and are grown in shallow, sandy loam soil over superb deep red clay, providing ideal conditions for Cabernet Sauvignon.

Winemaking

The grapes were picked over 2 weeks on April 11th and April 20th. Following destemming into an open-top fermenter, the musts were fermented for 11 days on skins with hand pump-overs twice a day. After pressing off skins the Cabernet was filled to a mix of one third new and the balance used French oak hogsheads, where the wine underwent natural malolactic fermentation. The Cabernet was matured in barrel for a year prior to bottling.

(SKU: KA_CAB_22)