2014 Xanadu Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Margaret River Australia 750 ml

In 2014, Margaret River Puts Napa On Notice

We warned you: “Another sell-out offer seems all but guaranteed.” Wine Access clients proved it this weekend. 150 cases gone in a flash. On Sunday, we called the importer over and over, and finally got through. Another 100 cases for those who missed out or wanted more of this 96-point “special value” Cabernet—the greatest $20.99 Australian red of the vintage.

We knew we had a hit on our hands when the previous vintage of this wine completely sold out, garnering a bevy of 4- and 5-star customer reviews. Amazingly, the 2014 Xanadu Cabernet Sauvignon may surpass even that monumental 2013 release. “Great colour is no surprise, nor is the majesty of the cassis-filled bouquet and palate,” raved Halliday. Margaret River in Western Australia is warmer than Bordeaux and cooler than Napa Valley—in other words, custom-made for cultivating world-class Cabernet. This quality-to-price ratio is a rarity, in Napa or anywhere else. Act accordingly for the Australian red gem of 2014.

In a Wine Enthusiast article published last year entitled “Why You Should Pay Attention to Australian Cabernet,” the author argued that the best Aussie Cabs offer “compelling competition for Napa and Bordeaux.” To anyone paying attention to the soaring plaudits and scores lately being poured on the country’s broad-shouldered, powerful reds, that assessment should have come as no surprise. The critical praise has coalesced in particular on one region: the idyllic Western Australia outpost of Margaret River.

Margaret River boasts striking similarities to Napa Valley. Both regions seduce visitors with their sun-dappled, slow-paced lifestyles. Both are youthful but make for stiff competition with the long-established châteaux of Bordeaux. And both captured the imagination of one of the New World’s most legendary winemakers: Robert Mondavi, who was so convinced of Margaret River’s world-class potential in the early 1970s that he flirted with buying property. Although he resisted in the end, Mondavi did mentor a pair of legendary Margaret River estates, whose prestige today proved that his hunch about the region was dead-on.

Xanadu has been a fixture of Margaret River since the early days. Dr. John Lagan and his wife Eithne planted their first Cabernet Sauvignon and Semillon near the coast in 1997; the Xanadu property now has over 200 acres of vines planted in Margaret River’s well-drained gravelly soils. Acquired by the Rathbone family in 2005, Xanadu has remained family-owned and obsessively quality-focused, as evidenced by the estate’s expansive roster of trophies and gold medals, including top honors at the Margaret River Wine Show for this 2014 Cabernet. The vintage was outstanding, thanks to excellent rainfall, perfect diurnal conditions, and steady, refreshing breezes. If this wine were made in Napa, it would easily be four times the price.