The fourth release of Chapel Hill's flagship red, The Vicar, combines the succulence and drinkability of Shiraz with the finesse and length of Cabernet. Ten parcels of wine showing flavour intensity and complexity were reserved from the excellent 1998 vintage. The fruit included Shiraz (60%), and Cabernet Sauvignon (39%) from three subregions of McLaren Vale – Chapel Hill (30%), Kangarilla (49%) and Blewitt Springs (19.5%) with a small addition of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon (1.5%). These vineyards, differentiated by soil type and ripening time, gave flavours that ranged from mint and violets to black cherry and blackberry jam and structures that varied from elegant and fine to fleshy, full bodied and tannic.

Maturation in oak hogsheads sourced from different forests, with a dominance of french (64%) over american (36%), added suppleness and cedar tones while allowing the fruit to express itself. Barrels of different age were used and wines were racked twice during their oak ageing to incorporate the oak and fruit tannin and ensure complexity and smoothness. At racking, each barrel was tasted and re-selected for its suitability for The Vicar, excluding wines without the requisite elegance and strength. Extended barrel maturation fully integrated the oak component prior to bottling.

At bottling, the wine colour was a vibrant, deep crimson, the nose was floral (violets) and the front palate showed rich, soft fruit without oak dominance.

The denser middle palate was relatively high in acid which maintained fruit flavour through to the finish and carried the high tannin levels needed to mature this wine for 15 to 20 years.