1996 Houghton Jack Mann Magnum Winery: Houghton Vintage: 1996 Region: Great Southern Bottle Size: 1500ml Variety: Cabernet Malbec Price: $220.00

Growing Area: Frankland River, Western Australia pH: 3.37

Grape Varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz Total Acidity: 6.4 grams/litre

Alcohol: 13.9% alc/vol Bottled: April 1998

Winemaker: Larry Cherubino Released: August 1999

Vintage: The 1996 vintage for red wines in Western Australia will be remembered as very good. Good winter and spring rains allowed the crops to recover after the very dry 1995 year. The fruit developed well and was helped by the flowering of the local Marri trees which in turn meant bird damage was minimal. Weather during harvest was generally mild. The grapes were taken from old, low yielding vines at our Frankland River vineyard in the Great Southern wine region. The Houghton reds produced from the 1996 vintage have been highly awarded at major wine shows.

Winemaking: The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. Our winemaking philosophy is unashamedly based on old and new world techniques. Cold maceration, fermentation in small vats, minimal handling of the wine in every aspect of its development has helped to enhance and complex the fruit. Oak plays an important link in the evolution of this wine. Maturation for 18 months in new and one year old French oak barriques from the regions of Nevers and Allier were used to impact spice and a vanillin overlay to the wine’s flavours , texture and structure.

Colour: Deep opaque, bold red colour.

Bouquet: Concentrated cabernet lift of red currant and earthy complexity, with underlying blue berry and mulberry provided by the Shiraz. Spicy hints of clove, cinnamon and black pepper with sweet leather and earthy dusty oak.

Palate: Full-bodied, powerful wine tightly knit with mount-filling textures of fruit and oak which cling to the firm tannin and acid backbone. Showing excellent balance between ripe fruit and sweet tannin, finishing with savory and earthlike characters.

Cellaring: Extended, careful bottle maturation for 12 years + from vintage, will see this wine drinking at its optimum, further harmonising the fruit, oak, and tannin.