2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Stellenbosch
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The Kanonkop 2019 Simonsberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Wine ages in oak for 24 months, with 50% new barrel. The devastating drought that hit South Africa was finally ending by this vintage, with 2016 being the worst year overall. It forced some supplementary irrigation in the vineyards. Fast forward to 2019 and you get a wine with a strong tannic signature that still needs time to resolve. I recommend another five to 10 years of aging for this bottle. Vines come from a trellised plot on a clay bank with high vigor. Lower elevation sites, on the other hand, see sandy soils with lower fertility.
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Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate, which comes from what Abrie Beeslaar described as a "difficult vintage," has quite a reductive bouquet of black plum, touches of orange rind and pine, all tightly wound at the moment. The palate is a little more open, with pliant tannins that frame the layered, toasty black fruit. Grippy tannins build toward a sinewy finish. This is a Cabernet Sauvignon that deserves four to five more years in bottle.
Full bottle 1,376 g. Lots of information on the back label! Vines are 27 years old on average, yielding 4 tons/ha. The grapes spent 55 days in open fermenters with punchdowns every two hours! Aged for 24 months in French barriques (50% new). Transparent garnet. Light nose. Salty-balsam-savoury notes but just a tad pinched. I'm sure in a South African context this looks good but it's a bit austere to shine internationally, I'm afraid. (JR)
Starting with tart red fruits and a dusty mineral essence, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon offers notes of black cherry and spiced plum. Medium-bodied and with a ripe, fresh fruit condition, the palate expresses fine-grained tannins with a dusty mineral tension. It ends with a long, spicy finish with persistent pencil lead essences. It's a well-made, sturdy wine that produced 72,000 bottles from wine that rested in 50% new French oak barrels for two years.