2012 Greenock Creek Cabernet Sauvignon (Museum Release)
Critic Reviews
"Here's the blueberries and that Clare Valley kalamata juice back again, serpentine and shiny. To sniff, it seems more like 14.5 or 15.5% - much riper than that real alcohol number would indicate - with jellied fruits like the Apricot Block. But typical of Greenock Cabernet, it then throws out a handful of juniper berries to tighten and pucker and add tannin and turn it back toward the real number. Not many vineyards can do that. With lots of air, you might begin to see blackberries. Mulberries. Ripe blackcurrants. After a day or two, it takes on a hearty suet-rich fruitcake/nutty panforte complexity. As the primary fruits subside with the passage of the days, the intense turnip greens and reduced spinach characters we find in other vintages begin to emerge - the fruits had covered them. The palate is lithe and sinuous at times; at others it's more fleshy and powdered with gentle tannins. And now, after seven days, it's a gentle, smooth, blessing of a drink, with the sort of calmly caressing unction you'll find only in wines with an extra zero on the end of the price. Away back at the beginning, I thought this was a 92+ sort of a Cabernet. Wrong again.."
94+++ points, Philip White
About Greenock Creek Vineyard & Cellars
About the Winery
The Barossa Valley is a special place. Ripened under the South Australian sun, the pure, powerful, succulent expression of our grapes – especially Shiraz – is renowned the world over. Established in 1984, the mission of Greenock Creek is to dig deeper into that place and unearth the alluring mysteries of diverse sites across the Barossa’s western edge.
We grow exclusively single-vineyard wines, priding ourselves on faithful expressions of the sub regions. Parish by parish, we see differences: Plush, rich, silky Marananga with its underlying power; the earthy, gamey leanings of Seppeltsfield and its rustic, gravelly tannins that wrap around the lush fruit; and the aromatic flowers, fruit and sweet spices that float above the flinty bass notes of Moppa.
Move in closer, and the nuances of slope, elevation and aspect creep in as the ground beneath thin, sandy-loam topsoils shifts from bluestone to siltstone, marble, limestone or ironstone to flint and quartz.
Everything has always been handled gently in tiny batches. Grapes are handpicked, loaded into small open-top, poly-coated concrete fermenters. All lots are basked-pressed before going to oak.
This pursuit famously won Greenock Creek an unmatched eight perfect 100–point scores from the prestigious Wine Advocate magazine. But our work is just beginning. With the 2018 arrival of Alex Peel as chief winemaker, we’ve sharpened our focus and responded to the land and seasons with a range of small but telling tweaks in the vineyard and cellar.
We’ve improved the health of our vines and soils. We’ve adopted drip irrigation to prevent water stress, and we’ve adapted pruning, training and trellising to promote natural freshness in the wines. We’re also realising the fruit’s potential – that is, texture, structure, purity, intensity, complexity and freshness – through a range of more precise practices in the winery.
Additional fermenters mean fruit is always picked when perfectly ready, and cooler ferments allow more nuanced flavours to develop in the wines. We’re pressing the grapes more softly, refining the feel and clarity of the wines. And we’ve become more deliberate about suiting oak to the vintage and vineyard.
The subtleties are now more varied and clearly delineated. The structures are more refined, and the overall impression is a touch more profound. At the same time, these wines are all distinctly Greenock Creek, with the signature strength, fullness and integrity that our loyal followers have loved for so long.
Critic Reviews
"Here's the blueberries and that Clare Valley kalamata juice back again, serpentine and shiny. To sniff, it seems more like 14.5 or 15.5% - much riper than that real alcohol number would indicate - with jellied fruits like the Apricot Block. But typical of Greenock Cabernet, it then throws out a handful of juniper berries to tighten and pucker and add tannin and turn it back toward the real number. Not many vineyards can do that. With lots of air, you might begin to see blackberries. Mulberries. Ripe blackcurrants. After a day or two, it takes on a hearty suet-rich fruitcake/nutty panforte complexity. As the primary fruits subside with the passage of the days, the intense turnip greens and reduced spinach characters we find in other vintages begin to emerge - the fruits had covered them. The palate is lithe and sinuous at times; at others it's more fleshy and powdered with gentle tannins. And now, after seven days, it's a gentle, smooth, blessing of a drink, with the sort of calmly caressing unction you'll find only in wines with an extra zero on the end of the price. Away back at the beginning, I thought this was a 92+ sort of a Cabernet. Wrong again.."
94+++ points, Philip White
About Greenock Creek Vineyard & Cellars
About the Winery
The Barossa Valley is a special place. Ripened under the South Australian sun, the pure, powerful, succulent expression of our grapes – especially Shiraz – is renowned the world over. Established in 1984, the mission of Greenock Creek is to dig deeper into that place and unearth the alluring mysteries of diverse sites across the Barossa’s western edge.
We grow exclusively single-vineyard wines, priding ourselves on faithful expressions of the sub regions. Parish by parish, we see differences: Plush, rich, silky Marananga with its underlying power; the earthy, gamey leanings of Seppeltsfield and its rustic, gravelly tannins that wrap around the lush fruit; and the aromatic flowers, fruit and sweet spices that float above the flinty bass notes of Moppa.
Move in closer, and the nuances of slope, elevation and aspect creep in as the ground beneath thin, sandy-loam topsoils shifts from bluestone to siltstone, marble, limestone or ironstone to flint and quartz.
Everything has always been handled gently in tiny batches. Grapes are handpicked, loaded into small open-top, poly-coated concrete fermenters. All lots are basked-pressed before going to oak.
This pursuit famously won Greenock Creek an unmatched eight perfect 100–point scores from the prestigious Wine Advocate magazine. But our work is just beginning. With the 2018 arrival of Alex Peel as chief winemaker, we’ve sharpened our focus and responded to the land and seasons with a range of small but telling tweaks in the vineyard and cellar.
We’ve improved the health of our vines and soils. We’ve adopted drip irrigation to prevent water stress, and we’ve adapted pruning, training and trellising to promote natural freshness in the wines. We’re also realising the fruit’s potential – that is, texture, structure, purity, intensity, complexity and freshness – through a range of more precise practices in the winery.
Additional fermenters mean fruit is always picked when perfectly ready, and cooler ferments allow more nuanced flavours to develop in the wines. We’re pressing the grapes more softly, refining the feel and clarity of the wines. And we’ve become more deliberate about suiting oak to the vintage and vineyard.
The subtleties are now more varied and clearly delineated. The structures are more refined, and the overall impression is a touch more profound. At the same time, these wines are all distinctly Greenock Creek, with the signature strength, fullness and integrity that our loyal followers have loved for so long.
Critic Reviews
"Here's the blueberries and that Clare Valley kalamata juice back again, serpentine and shiny. To sniff, it seems more like 14.5 or 15.5% - much riper than that real alcohol number would indicate - with jellied fruits like the Apricot Block. But typical of Greenock Cabernet, it then throws out a handful of juniper berries to tighten and pucker and add tannin and turn it back toward the real number. Not many vineyards can do that. With lots of air, you might begin to see blackberries. Mulberries. Ripe blackcurrants. After a day or two, it takes on a hearty suet-rich fruitcake/nutty panforte complexity. As the primary fruits subside with the passage of the days, the intense turnip greens and reduced spinach characters we find in other vintages begin to emerge - the fruits had covered them. The palate is lithe and sinuous at times; at others it's more fleshy and powdered with gentle tannins. And now, after seven days, it's a gentle, smooth, blessing of a drink, with the sort of calmly caressing unction you'll find only in wines with an extra zero on the end of the price. Away back at the beginning, I thought this was a 92+ sort of a Cabernet. Wrong again.."
94+++ points, Philip White
About Greenock Creek Vineyard & Cellars
About the Winery
The Barossa Valley is a special place. Ripened under the South Australian sun, the pure, powerful, succulent expression of our grapes – especially Shiraz – is renowned the world over. Established in 1984, the mission of Greenock Creek is to dig deeper into that place and unearth the alluring mysteries of diverse sites across the Barossa’s western edge.
We grow exclusively single-vineyard wines, priding ourselves on faithful expressions of the sub regions. Parish by parish, we see differences: Plush, rich, silky Marananga with its underlying power; the earthy, gamey leanings of Seppeltsfield and its rustic, gravelly tannins that wrap around the lush fruit; and the aromatic flowers, fruit and sweet spices that float above the flinty bass notes of Moppa.
Move in closer, and the nuances of slope, elevation and aspect creep in as the ground beneath thin, sandy-loam topsoils shifts from bluestone to siltstone, marble, limestone or ironstone to flint and quartz.
Everything has always been handled gently in tiny batches. Grapes are handpicked, loaded into small open-top, poly-coated concrete fermenters. All lots are basked-pressed before going to oak.
This pursuit famously won Greenock Creek an unmatched eight perfect 100–point scores from the prestigious Wine Advocate magazine. But our work is just beginning. With the 2018 arrival of Alex Peel as chief winemaker, we’ve sharpened our focus and responded to the land and seasons with a range of small but telling tweaks in the vineyard and cellar.
We’ve improved the health of our vines and soils. We’ve adopted drip irrigation to prevent water stress, and we’ve adapted pruning, training and trellising to promote natural freshness in the wines. We’re also realising the fruit’s potential – that is, texture, structure, purity, intensity, complexity and freshness – through a range of more precise practices in the winery.
Additional fermenters mean fruit is always picked when perfectly ready, and cooler ferments allow more nuanced flavours to develop in the wines. We’re pressing the grapes more softly, refining the feel and clarity of the wines. And we’ve become more deliberate about suiting oak to the vintage and vineyard.
The subtleties are now more varied and clearly delineated. The structures are more refined, and the overall impression is a touch more profound. At the same time, these wines are all distinctly Greenock Creek, with the signature strength, fullness and integrity that our loyal followers have loved for so long.
