Olmo’s Reward is named after Dr Harold Olmo the Californian viticulturalist who first identified the potential of the Frankland River region to produce premium wines.
Dubbed the "Bordeaux from the Bush” it is a blend of traditional Bordeaux varieties in which cabernet franc and merlot are the dominant components with malbec, cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot playing minor supporting roles.
Cabernet-franc-merlot dominant blends are popular with producers on the Right Bank in Bordeaux but Frankland Estate is one of the few Australian producers making this style of wine.
TASTING NOTES
COLOUR Deep and dense dark plum with purple highlights.
NOSE Complex, fragrant aromas of cassis, ripe berries and dark stone fruit with earthy undertones this savoury complexity is nicely intertwined with some fresh and complex oak integration.
PALATE Complex, richly concentrated, beautifully textured allowing fruit characters of dark berries, plum and lifted floral notes come to the fore. A tightly woven palate with fine grained tannins add to the savoury earthy notes. The palate is generous and persistent.
ASSESSMENT
A very refined, beautifully balanced and effortlessly elegant wine with the structure and fruit intensity to richly reward further cellaring.
ASSEMBLAGE
Cabernet Franc (62%), Merlot (17%), with smaller portions of Malbec (16%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (5%).
VINEYARD
All four varieties used in the blend were dry-grown on mature vines in the Isolation Ridge Vineyard at Frankland Estate. The vineyard sits on an undulating northern and eastern facing slope on ancient duplex soils of gravel and loam over a clay sub-soil. It is farmed using organic viticultural practices and this is reflected in the depth and concentration of fruit flavours. The vines are trained on a Scott Henry Trellis system and trimmed to allow maximum sunlight penetration of the canopy during the growing season. This encourages flavour development and promotes balance in the wine.
VINIFICATION
Each variety was fermented separately as slowly as possible at temperatures not exceeding 30ËšC. Open fermentation tanks facilitated working the cap with gentle plunging and pumping over. After fermentation, an extended maceration period allowed maximum colour, flavour and tannin extraction. The component wines were blended on completion of the malolactic fermentation and then aged in French Oak for 2 years. Racking from the barrel allowed minimal filtration before bottling.
No recommended products at the moment.
