Very deep developing red. Dense and very attractive.

Integrating very well - strong lifted complex cabernet nose. The oak is prominent and complementary.

Like the nose, this shows rich, ripe cabernet characters, without a trace of "greenness". It has a strong middle palate and a lingering finish supported by grainy, obvious tannins.

All in French oak - 57% new and the balance 2001 barrels. 27% of the barrels were barriques, the remainder hogsheads.

It's settling down very well since bottling in March. As with our previous vintages, there is no doubt it will mature gracefully for some years. 10-12?

Spring was mild and dry, following a very dry winter in 2002. Fruit set was good. Summer was mild and dry too, except for one short period of rain in February which caused a small amount of splitting. The fruit soon dried out and ripened quickly to average 13.6° Bé. The cab was harvested on March 28 & 29.