Vintage report: Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 & Chardonnay 2022

Untypically for one of our vintage reports, in Western Australia we’ve put the spotlight on different vintages for red and white, with Cabernets coming from the tricky 2021 and Chardonnays from the contrastingly heat-driven 2022. Our author in residence selects 20 top wines from each.

 

For Decanter’s inaugural Margaret River vintage report, producers were asked to submit wines from the 2021 vintage for Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnays from 2022, which were all then tasted blind.

 

While the 2022 whites shone, the 2021 reds reflected the cooler and somewhat challenging vintage conditions many faced, including unusual February rainfall.

 

Should a wine score be indicative of what’s typically expected of the region and variety, or is it fairer and more useful to look at the wine with fresh eyes and no preconceived ideas?

 

There are champions for both approaches; mine here is not to reprimand wines that don’t speak of typicity, if the hallmarks of a great wine are nonetheless there to be found.

 

Ask any Cabernet Sauvignon winemaker from Margaret River how 2021 was and it’s unlikely you’ll receive the same answer twice. Conditions in the Western Australian region were challenging, so sub-regional variation is evident in the resulting wines.

 

While not being official GIs (geographical indications), six sub-regions – (north to south) Yallingup, Carbunup, Wilyabrup, Treeton, Wallcliffe and Karridale – were proposed in a 1999 paper by the late Dr John Gladstones, a major pioneering influence in the region from the mid-1960s.

 

In light of the soil and climate differences upon which these six areas were delineated, marginal years such as 2021 highlight that it is impossible to paint the Margaret River appellation with broad strokes.

 

The Margaret River Wine Association lists 181 wineries producing a Margaret River GI wine, yet just 38 Cabernet Sauvignons were submitted to the tasting for this report.

 

A classic Margaret River Cabernet is medium-bodied, with firm tannins, energetic acidity, elegant perfume and generous black fruits, cassis, a mint or eucalyptus note, perhaps an umami edge on the palate and a delicate graphite thread.

 

The majority of 2021s sat firmly in the mid-bodied category, but with more red fruit than black, and many were paler in colour intensity than usual.

 

2021 is certainly a year that required more work and attention in the vineyard than usual to ensure fruit ripeness, with southern sub-regions facing the most marginal conditions.

 

Some well-regarded wineries chose not to produce their top cuvée. From those that did, there is beauty to be found.

 

The greatest wines here shine brightly, showing complexity, elegance and finesse, and they will age for a good 20 years or longer.

 

Meanwhile, there’s no doubt that 2022 was a great year for Margaret River Chardonnay. The Chardonnay tasting for this report drew in almost double the entries of the Cabernet section: a chasm that demonstrates the respective vintage conditions.

 

Thanks to a Mediterranean climate with maritime influence and ancient, well-draining soils, Margaret River Chardonnay is consistently among the greatest white wines of Australia.

 

2022 saw a long and wet winter with bud burst [typically occurring about mid-September] late by a week or two compared with the previous year, but a warm summer with a few heat spikes that ensured a fast harvest.

 

There were no issues with ripening in 2022, so there was little need to utilise malolactic fermentation for adding flesh to the bones. There is a general trend towards larger-format oak and less use of new oak, however some outstanding producers still use a significant proportion of new oak, seamlessly integrating it with high-quality fruit to produce wines of immense longevity.

 

If there is one takeaway from this 2022 vintage report, it is that quality is consistent. With no appellation rules and much site diversity, Margaret River’s producers are constantly keen to learn more and create the best possible expression of Chardonnay in its Western Australian home.

The top wines exude harmony while expressing place and brimming with excitement, whether their personality charms or challenges.

 

 

A wine of great persistence and energy, kicking off with struck match, flint, flecks of slate and clean bacon fat, preserved lemon and olive brine. Intense fruit on the palate follows, with grapefruit pith, aniseed florals and minerality. Creamy texture, energetic acidity and an exciting, shapeshifting fluidity. The fruit holds the tune. 100% Karridale fruit, hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed.

 

Savoury, dense and brooding on the nose. Vanillin oak and dense baking spice, peppermint, choc mint, red fruits, graphite and a strawberry shortcake/biscuit note. Well structured and shapely with fine, chalky tannins integrated with fresh acidity and a lovely black-fruited sweetness. A little short, but there's plenty of beauty here. A fine wine with bright energy.

 

 

On the nose, freshly baked croissant, salted butter with folds of baking spice, tuberose florals and a shower of minerality around a lemon curd core. Builds with energy and volume in equilibrium, and at a steady pace rather than a rush. A glossy nougat softness on the palate that is billowy and plump, yet not overworked. Acid is vibrant and drives things along from the back seat; great structure and fruit integrity, this has it all: complexity, harmony and a simultaneous tension and comfort. Produced from 100% Gingin clone fruit from Wilyabrup, this is hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed into 60% new French oak for a wild ferment and 10% malolactic

 

The nose is brightly spiced, showing lemon skin and leaf, popcorn, flint and wet slate. The palate kick-starts the party: powerful fruit and electric acid. Oak is nicely handled, with full and fleshy fruit and pithy phenolics laced with jasmine, green peppercorn and coriander. A bit of a wild child, there’s plenty of energy and zest for life here. 100% Gingin-clone fruit, approximately 35% from Wilyabrup with the balance from Karridale. Whole-bunch pressed into 60% new French oak for a wild ferment and 10% malolactic.