Three Monks Cabernet Merlot - An assortment of uplifted black cherries, bramble fruit aromas with underlying hints of scorched almonds, mocha, vanillin, tobacco and sweet toasty cinnamon oak. Layers of plush plum, blackberry fruits and soft savoury spices. A persistent medium-bodied palate integrated with ripe duty tannins and subtle oak flavours.
The shadows of the three monks recount the story of Taltarni's three winemakers lurking in the darkness of our wineries crafting this wine. Three Monks Cabernet Merlot combines fruit sourced from cool climate regions of Victoria's Pyrenees and Strathbodie Ranges. Remembered as one of the El Niño and extreme drought years, the drier 2003 vintage produced smaller than normal berries, intensifying flavours and extraction of colour.
Inclusion of Cabernet Sauvignon adds rich cassis, mocha and soft dusty tannins whilst the blending of Merlot imparts a voluptuous breath of delicate plum and black-forest flavours across the mid-palate. A period of malo-lactic fermentation followed by 12 months ageing in a combination of 2-3 year old and 15% new American oak creates a wine with a subtle assortment of nutmeg, cinnamon and cedar spice aromas.
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