‘Draco’ Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Dense, dark and foreboding on opening, the wine has a rich colour with dark fruits and toasted oak aroma’s lifting from the glass. There is an intensity and finesse which is instantly noticeable, the dark blackberry fruits, with mint chocolate and cigar box provide a very compelling invitation to delve further into this wine.

A concentrated symphony of black fruits, ripe plum and charred oak are all complimented with an impeccable balance of tannins, sweet fruit and acid which seem to coat the mouth and hold on well past the horizon. An impeccable balance of elements, set to improve over the next 20+ years.

The Draco was handpicked from our most prestigious Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard, ensuring only the highest quality bunches were selected. After destemming, the parcel was fermented in a small stainless steel open fermenter, with daily plunging and pump-overs allowing maximum extraction of colour and flavour.

Before reaching dryness, the wine was transferred to a selection of our finest French oak Barrique (225L) and Hogshead (300L) barrels. Maturing for 24 months, only a small selection of barrels were chosen for the final blend.

The final wine featured approximately 50% new oak.

Trophy – Best of Region Coonawarra
James Halliday Australian Chardonnay & Cabernet Challenge

96 Points
Qwine Reviews
“The best of the best from Nightfall Wines, this Draco is a single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon and is the flagship for the brand. A sheer delight to embrace, over a few days of tasting it loosened the belt buckle and sat back in a more relaxed manner. Rest assured, it will live long and will reward your patience.

More savoury than the black fruit driven 2019, that Coonawarra earthiness really shines through here. Sure there are the Cabernet dark berries and blackberries varietal traits that you’d expect, but the puffs of earth, church pew, dried thyme, tomato paste, cocoa powder, licorice and carob all combine seamlessly. Seeing French oak for 24 months (50% new), a little cedar and vanilla are imparted into the wine showcasing impressive handling. The mouthfeel and presence are supreme drying out ever so slowly, it’s almost as though it teases. Superfine powdery tannins are effortless leaving a little chew to consider. Oh yeah, what a sheer delight!”

96 Points
Shanteh Wale
“100% cabernet sauvignon from vines aged on average 30-plus years. Matured in 100% new French and American oak. This is a selection of the top eight barrels from the season and is Nightfall’s icon wine. With wax seal and velvet label, it’s undeniably luxury in a bottle. Crushed cloves, blackcurrant jam and dark plum skin. The toasty American oak draws you into this robust and compelling brew, where rye seed and caraway unfurl. It’s condensed and concentrated with powdery tannins and slight syrupy notes. It’s a sip that will last on your palate for long moments, and reward you with decades in the cellar as well. An opulent wine.”

95 Points
Vinous, Angus Hughson
“Deeply colored and flavored, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Nightfall Draco Coonawarra is built to last. A rich tapestry of broad, muscular aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant and topsoil is enriched by overt new oak from extended maturation. Luscious flavors are beautifully textured and underpinned by a firm core of acidity and tannins, which are currently keeping the fruit in check. Impeccable length and balance will support a long future.”

95 Points
James Halliday Australian Chardonnay & Cabernet Challenge 2024

95 Points
Campbell Mattinson
“This is cabernet sauvignon to its back teeth, in the best of ways. It presents a beautiful mix of sweet, bold fruit and complex, nuanced leaf characters, though it does this in a seamless way, with all of its stitches hidden. Its tastes of blackcurrant, licorice, redcurrant and tobacco, with smoky, coffeed oak nestled right in there with the fruit. The tannin of this wine is assertive as well but then, it’s harmonious and complementary. There’s an overt power to this wine. There’s thick, velvety flavour. It’s a wine of stuffing and then some.”

95 Points
Limestone Coast Wine Show
“Judge 1 Lovely crunchy Cabernet, bright and pure. Lovely oak integration, long a pure. Classic.
Judge 2 Blue fruits dusty diesel chewy cedar full.
Judge 3 Well weighted. Medium to full. Oak drying out in the finish.
Associate Judge Garnet, dull edge. Vanilla, toasty, oaky. Soft, toasty, oak dominant.
Associate Judge fruit and oak there, could be a little more integrated.”

93 Points
James Suckling.com
“Robust, ripe dark-fruit aromas of blackberries, bitter chocolate, eucalyptus and licorice. The palate is high-octane with a weighty mouthfeel and firm yet integrated tannins. Full-throttle with a lot of densely packed fruit.”