Louis Latour Agencies

Love for Wakefield Wines

14 April 2014

Wakefield Wine's top estate wines are beginning to attract a lot of attention. The following is a round up of just some of the accolades they have received during the last 12 months.

ST ANDREWS RIESLING 2012

2013/14 100 Best Australian Wines, Matthew Jukes

 ‘There is nothing flamboyant or immediately inviting about this wine right now. It is a steely ball of determination, tightly wound and in need of age. By contrast to some of the lighter, approachable 2012s, and there are many, this is a vin de garde and it will repay the patience of its keeper. With decent phenolic friction and a superb lime juice theme this stunning single vineyard Riesling is designed to age for a decade or more and it will do so without breaking sweat. It is nice to know that a handful of top end wines are still as carefully assembled as this hand-crafted beauty.’

ST ANDREWS SHIRAZ 2010

Outstanding/18.5 pts
Decanter South Australian Shiraz Tasting, April 2014

‘Wakefield has been on a mission to lift its game for some years, employing top level Australian winemaking consultants to provide guidance. This family owned-company is privileged to have more than 500ha, making it by far the largest vineyard owner in the Clare Valley. Its flagship St Andrews range receives the best of its fruit from the 1892 vineyard of the same name, home to some of the oldest vines on the family estate. Fine-grained French and American oak provide support to the wine without distracting from the excellent fruit definition.’

Gold Medal
International Wine Challenge 2013

ST ANDREWS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2010

Warren Winiarski Trophy for Cabernet Sauvignon & Gold Medal
International Wine and Spirit Competition 2013

‘Lovely rich ripe blue and black fruits, thick with flavour and a confident structuring of oak and fruit tannins. Fine balance of something close to sweetness with this well-crafted structure, with a very satisfying natural tang. Ambassador level, said the judges.’

THE VISIONARY CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2009

2013/14 100 Best Australian Wines, Matthew Jukes

‘This cleanskin sample was entitled ‘a work in progress’. Well stop working Wakefield please because you have exceeded whatever the brief was for this remarkable wine. The resonance and lift of fruit on the palate in this glorious Cabernet are captivating. This is not a big wine but it is packed with blackcurrant fruit and lushness and the oak is heavenly, adding spice and savoury notes but no dryness or astringency. Adam Eggins made one of last year’s most commented upon wines, the 2006 St. Andrew’s Shiraz, and he has done it again this year with this miraculous creation. I just shake my head in disbelief at the acumen and élan shown by this pair of renegade wines.’

Jamie Goode, 94/100
 www.wineanorak.com, 1st April 2014

‘Taylors (known in export markets as Wakefield) have now released a super-cuvee Cabernet in honour of Bill (Taylor Snr – the company’s founder), titled ‘The Visionary’. It’s an exceptional wine, and I suspect we’ll only really know how good it is in a couple of decades. I’m a big fan of Clare Cabernet: it’s under-appreciated…Sweet, ripe, pure blackberry and blackcurrant fruit nose with some slightly savoury blackcurrant bud notes. The palate is sweet, concentrated, ripe and dense but also has freshness and good acidity. It’s essence of Cabernet Sauvignon, combining attractive sweet fruit with concentration and structure. I reckon it will age well.’