Vasarelli Pasquales Selection 1999.

Vasarelli is a small vineyard in the Mclaren Vale. The wines are not widely available and this bottle was amongst a mixed case from the NZ Wine Society phone list (remainder stock).
A well crafted wine,the vintage of the fruit was in October 1999, but the blending of the cabernet with the merlot was not done until Feb 2001 after maturation in both French and American oak

A slight minty-ness on the nose on first opening, the flavours were of blackcurrant and fruit cake. Smooth as velvet the bottle slipped down all too soon.

The 2006 vintage is the latest release and if you can find any, 5 years of cellaring will reward you with a flavour treat.