Domaine A vigneron Peter Althaus marches to the beat of a different drum. Who else would seek to make quality cabernet in cool-climate Tasmania? Who else would hold back wines for up to eight years until they are at their peak. Who would continue to use corks when there is a swing towards screw caps? But Althaus is a man on a mission to make fine wine in the image of Bordeaux, and his little hot spot of a vineyard at Campania in the Coal River Valley performs miracles more often than not. Made with minimal intervention, matured in French oak barriques for 30 months, unfined, unfiltered and then given years in bottle, this blend of cabernet with smidgens of cabernet franc, merlot and petit verdot, has both balance and character. It is ripe, complex and elegant with fruit and oak in harmony. One for the aficionados. I'd give it 95 points. $120. www.domaine-a.com.au/
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