This almost dark wine is made of both Cabernets grown at the Domaine de l’Arjolle, C. franc and C. sauvignon. The aromas of the wine emphasizes why I love those grape varieties: leather, cassis and elder berries, together with something slightly herbaceous. You could call it green pepper, but to me the odor is somehow more ladylike, reminding more of slightly sweet and spicy chilies.

Sweetness, that’s also what dominates on the palate, together with fresh acidity. Light-hearted, smooth, youthful and a handful of fine tannins and smoke towards the end.

I like those dark and smoky wines in autumn, during winter, in the evening, in front of the chimney, when it gets cold and dark outside and misty humidity crawls out of the woods and the fields.

Five stars and the best ranking for our Cabernet 2008 at the international wine competition “Europa Klassiek” in the Netherlands.

Perswijn is one of the most prestigious, independent wine journals of the Netherlands, presenting articles written by well know journalists on wines and wine regions from all over the world,. The magazine is dedicated to the wine lover, who appreciates “a glass of good wine”. For every issue, a jury of wine professionals tastes some 100 wines, and the comments and recommendations are published.

Perswijn also organises a wine competition for varietal wines from European regions in the context of the annual wine event “Classic Europe”, a public fair, where some 300 wines are presented.

This year, the competition focused on white wines made from Chardonnay and red wines made from Cabernet sauvignon with a retail price up to 12,50 Euros.

Selected by our Dutch importer, our Cabernet 2008 was presented to the jury. A first tasting was organised, including all the wines submitted to the competition (mainly coming from France, Italy and Spain), and the five best-graded wines were compared to each other.

You may imagine, how proud we are to announce that our Cabernet was ranked as the best wine of the competition, with a maximum score of five stars. The jury described the wine as follows: Aromas of blackcurrant, cherry and vanilla. Full bodied and elegant, smooth and delicate. A savoury wine with comfortable acidity!

Our Cab-Merlot blend has won a gold medal at the international wine competition “Mondial du Merlot”. It’s the best result for a French Merlot of the competition.

The “Mondial du Merlot” wine competition took place at Lugano/Switzerland for the second year in a row in November 2009. It rewards Merlot wines from all over the world (participants were coming from 23 different countries in 2009).

The jury’s comment:
A dark, purple colour, a straight, fruity nose with well integrated oak aromas. Rich and smooth, very well balanced in the mouth. A wine with stunning capacities for ageing.