Ranked #8 of 46 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec Petit Verdot from Margaret River
92/100
4 Stars
Huon Hooke
Medium dark red purple, very good colour. Richer wine than '07, deep and lush, ripe and clean. Lovely dark-berry cabernet fruit, concentrated and lush, but with a firm, fine-tannin spine that lingers and cleans the finish. Faint hint of malbec stalkiness. Very structured wine, firm and authoritative. Long term.
Tasted: 21/07/2010
Drink: N/A
94.5 Points Robert Parker
Blended of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Malbec and 15% Petit Verdot and matured in 87% new French oak for 18 months, the 2008 Heytesbury has a deep garnet purple color and intense blackberry, dark cherry and mocha aromas with nuances of tree bark, cinnamon stick and cardamom. Medium to high acid and a medium to firm level of exquisitely fine tannins structure the concentrated, full bodied palate, leading to a very long and layered finish. It should begin to open-out from 2013 and cellar to 2020+.
Source: Robert Parker (Wine Advocate) by Lisa Perrotti-Brown. January, 2010
92 Points Robert Parker
The 2008 Heytesbury, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot, retains a dark garnet color, just beginning to brick at the rim. It also retains its firm tannins, giving it a drying finish even at nine years of age. It's medium to full in body with a fine degree of elegance to its notes of cassis, earth, mint and vanilla. Drink it over the next several years.
Source: Robert Parker (Robert Parker Wine Advocate) by Joe Czerwinski. December, 2017
96 Points James Halliday
Simply called Heytesbury because the percentages of the varieties used changes from year to year (this year 10% malbec, 13% petit verdot and 77% cabernet sauvignon). It is a complex, layered wine that nonetheless retains finesse, its predominantly blackcurrant and plum fruit given texture and structure by outstanding ripe tannins and cedary French oak; exemplary length and balance. Drink to 2028.
Source: James Halliday. January, 2011