Jim Barry The Benbournie Cabernet Sauvignon 2010
The late Jim Barry was a pioneer of Australian table wine, graduating with the 17th diploma in winemaking in Australia. He went on to become the first qualified winemaker to work in the Clare Valley of South Australia and with his wife, Nancy, built a successful wine business, which has produced trophy-winning wines since its establishment in 1959. Today, the custodian of Jim Barry Wines is their second son Peter, who joined the family winery in 1977 and now works along side his own sons, Tom and Sam. The Barry family name is synonymous with the Clare wine region.
The Barry family believe that great wine is made in the vineyard and as such, are committed to owning their own vineyards. This control allows them to develop outstanding fruit quality and flavour which are then retained during winemaking. Over the last 60 years the family has worked to establish a mosaic of sites - 17 vineyards covering 320 hectares in the Clare Valley and two vineyards covering 35 hectares in the Coonawarra. Each unique in soil profile, climate, aspect and elevation.
Benbourie, in South Australia's Clare Valley, was settled in 1863 by local German Catholics. The tiny settlement comprised bout 15 mud huts surrounding a Roman Catholic chapel. Jim Barry's friend and gentleman neighbour, Duncan McRae Wood, solid him 70 acres on Benbournie Road in 1964 and, on this prime land, Jim planted his first vineyard to Cabernet Sauvignon.
This wine is a deep crimson red in the glass. Intensely aromatic with a mix of both red and black currant fruit with a hints of savoury spice and dark mint chocolate. Opens with a burst of dark vine fruits countered with notes of sage and clove spice. Layers of fresh currants, spice, earth and chocolate give the palate great intensity and depth of flavour. This vibrant core of fruit runs long with fine, graphite like tannin and cedary oak. A soft, layered, tireless finish closes out a wine of great balance and cellaring potential.
Only released in top vintages, this is Jim Barry's luxury cuvée of Cabenet Sauvignon. It does see plenty of oak, so it shows impressive notes of baking spices, vanilla and brown sugar, but it backs those with ample dark fruit. It's elegant despite its size, with a fine-grained tannins lingering on the finish. Drink now–2030, and possibly beyond. - Joe Czerwinski, Wine Enthusiast, 93 Points.
The Finer Details
Style - Red Wine
Varietal - Cabernet Sauvignon
Country - Australia
Region - Clare Valley, South Australia
Vintage - 2010
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 14%