About The Pack
Cabernet is one of the great grape varieties of the world.
It may not be the trendiest variety but there are plenty of producers in Australia making Cabernet cool again.
Here are six of our favourites, including 100% Cabs as well as delicious Cabernet-led blends, from all across the country at a great price.
2019 Cullen Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
95 points
"So dense and brooding, concentrated, and yet has a lightness and vigour that makes it so appealing... Wonderful." - Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
This may be one of the best value Cabernet Merlot blends in Margaret River at the moment.
Vanya Cullen produces some of the best examples of Cabernet blends in the country. Her meticulous attention to detail in the vineyard is producing very high quality of fruit for her across the board.
Here she blends fruit from across her Cullen and Mangan vineyards. It's a wine that has a bet each way - it's approachable now yet should reveal more layers to itself over the coming decade.
Pitch-perfect for a regional example of this blend. What's not to love?
Read more about 2019 Cullen Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot2019 Dominique Portet Single Vineyard Cabernet Malbec
97 points
"About as good as one could get from the Yarra Valley in a medium-bodied frame, its purity is wonderful."
James Halliday (Halliday Wine Companion)
With an extensive family history in Bordeaux, it’s no wonder Dominique Portet has such a deft touch with this style of wines.
Cabernet dominant, with a nice touch of Malbec, this wine is bright and definitively medium-bodied. Tart red berries on the nose, while on the palate more of the same, in a fresh frame.
There is a real elegant charm to this wine, from a single-vineyard on their Coldstream estate, this wine is supple and bright, not to mention simply exceptional value for money.
Read more about 2019 Dominique Portet Single Vineyard Cabernet Malbec2018 Brash Higgins CBSV Cabernet Sauvignon
The Brash Higgins CBSV is grown on the Omensetter vineyard, tended by Brad and Nicole, in their home of McLaren Vale.
This is McLaren Vale Cabernet with some spunk and personality. It spends 20 months in new and used oak, it's un-tinkered with by Brad on its way to bottle giving a fleshy yet vital rendition of the variety from this part of the world.
Whether you're a fan of Brash Higgins, Cab Sauv or just full-bodied McLaren Vale reds in general, you will find a lot of joy in this release.
Read more about 2018 Brash Higgins CBSV Cabernet Sauvignon2019 Coates Langhorne Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
"Across a four-month tsunami of tasting, not once did I come across a range of wines as unequivocally delicious as that from Duane Coates."
Ned Goodwin (Halliday Wine Companion)
Simply pleasurable Cabernet Sauvignon is rarer than it should be. We don't drink enough.
Perhaps because they are not all as immediately drinkable and enjoyable as Duane Coates' Langhorne Creek release that revels in such plush blackcurrant and plum fruit.
There's some cedary oak and spice notes, it's just medium in the weight category and it's damn delicious.
If you haven't bought Cab Sauv in a while, buy this one.
Read more about 2019 Coates Langhorne Creek Cabernet Sauvignon2018 Helm Cabernet Sauvignon
95 points
"...this sits comfortably in a medium-bodied frame, balanced by refreshing acidity and buoyancy, with precise if determined tannins and terrific length."
- Jane Faulkner (Halliday Wine Companion)
Helm is known for two things: Riesling and Cabernet.
Whle it may be the white wines that have gained Ken the most acclaim, his Cabernet in particular is absolutely worth a look.
It's a soft approachable wine, beautifully open and expressive. Given the easy drinkability of it on release, it's quite remarkable how well it develops in the cellar.
This is pitch perfect medium-bodied Cabernet. Ready to drink ASAP or in a decade plus.
Read more about 2018 Helm Cabernet Sauvignon2017 A. Rodda Cuvee de Chez
Since his days making wines at Oakridge in the Yarra Valley with the legend that is David Bicknell, Adrian Rodda has since built a cult following for his own label, producing some cracking wines from Beechworth and the surrounding areas.
Chardonnay and Tempranillo are represented in his range along with this excellent example of a Beechworth Cabernet-based blend. This is a single vineyard blend made up of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec predominantly from the Smith's vineyard, the oldest Cabernet et. al. vineyard in Beechworth.
This is a gorgeous medium-bodied a Cabernet with some finesse. Built around balance, not out and out power, there is some clear craftsmanship shown in this great release.
Read more about 2017 A. Rodda Cuvee de Chez