De Bortoli Yarra Cabernet 1997 (review)

De Bortoli seems to be a bit of secret in spite of its top 10 status among Australia's wineries. Empirically I know that lots of people drink De Bortoli, but very few people I talk to ever mention them. This Cabernet walks a straightl ine between the cool climate style Cab and a warm and ripe one (as 1997 was in the Yarra). It burst into my mouth with slightly hot and overripe Cab flavours, but followed with a slightly gritty tannin that did add a bit of length. At the same time the substantial and I think natural acid balanced this slightly rough wine. I found the wine on my shelf and think someone must have brought it and then left it. There are 2 gold medals, one from the Southern VIctorian Wine Show and the other from the Cowra Wine Show. My guess is that 8 years ago this French oaked and macerated Cabernet burst into their mouths too. The label says ' classic aging prospect over 8-10 years'. I'm glad I didn't wait any longer.