Masterclass Digest – Leeuwin Estate (12th May 2022)
On Thursday the 12th of May, Liberty Liquors hosted the renowned Leeuwin Estate at Moose Café – where guests had the good fortune of listening and learning from Andrew Stephens, Leeuwin Estate’s National Sales Development Manager. And you better believe it was a full house for this sensational tasting event! Especially when we threw in a Magnum of 2016 Art Series Cab Sauv as a raffle prize to one of our lucky guests who placed an order on the night!
The night was sure to be a wine connoisseur favourite as attendees were spoilt with the wineries Art Series range including side by side tastings of the 2019 Chardonnay and the back vintage 2015 Chardonnay as well as the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon and the back vintage 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon. This was a treat given to us by Leeuwin Estate and the Horgan Family, which allowed our guests to taste and see the development and long term potential for these premium WA wines. The tasting also included new release 2019 Art Series Shiraz, this gets better each vintage, and the prelude Cabernet 2019 and Chardonnay 2021.
To kick the night off, guests tasted Leeuwin’s whites, starting with the 2021 Art Series Sauvignon Blanc where grapefruit, burnt lime and lemon sherbet greet the palate. Diligent textures and coriander seed note surround the mid palate with a mineral thread.
Next up was the world class 2019 Art Series Chardonnay, a 99 point wine assigned by Ray Jordan who noted “In many ways the most Burgundian of any of the Leeuwin releases, this will rank up there with the best to date. There’s a waxy light mealy aroma which picks up nuances of limestone and spice with a trace of grapefruit. But it is the palate that really distinguishes it. There is an austerity with the minerally chalky feel that cuts through the fruit extending to a finish of extraordinary length. Precision and focus harness a wine of great power and poise before dry savoury edges lift the finish.” The 2019 Art Series Chardonnay is still available in store but stocks are very limited!
To conclude the evening, Andrew poured the reds, guests were started on the 2019 Art Series Shiraz, a beautiful full bodied, heartwarming wine which we can’t get enough of on cold miserable Perth winter days! And finally, the 2018 Art Series Cab Sauv, which as we know is one of the greatest years to date for the renowned red grape variety.
“Leeuwin Estate is for me one of the most Bordeaux like of Margaret River’s top line cabernets with its vineyard location at the southern end of the region helping to produce savoury wine styles. It can be a challenge in cooler vintages but when the vintage gods are kind, it is a recipe for something very special, as we have here. Deep crimson, it opens up with understated, but enthralling aromas of red currant, blackcurrant, woody asparagus stems, cedar and cassis with a solid backbone of new oak. There is then great density of fruit to the palate, again not bold but reserved and full of energy; a young, tight ball of vibrant, stylish and youthful flavours exceptionally well balanced with manicured tannins which support an incredibly long, elegant finish. Super impressive and a new benchmark for this label.” Angus Hughson from WinePilot.com, on the 2018 Art Series Cab Sauv – awarding it 97 points.
Liberty Liquors Director, Justin Stephenson:
Although Justin Horgan, who was scheduled to host, could not attend – the Masterclass took flight without a hitch. The standout wines were of course the Art Series wines, but the added special treat of a vertical tasting of back vintage wines really gave the attendees a true learning and unique experience. We’d like to thank Andrew Stephens for making the masterclass both informative and extremely enjoyable, his enthusiasm for the wines reflected in his knowledge and personal experiences when trying Leeuwin wines. We’d also like to thank all the guests for their generous orders. If you are looking for back vintage Leeuwin wines, please get in touch with us and we can assist you.