Har'el Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 (Clos de Gat)

Cellar for up to 9 years. Decant 1 hour before serving. Wine was first made on the Clos de Gat property at least 3000 years ago when the winepress or "gat" that gives the estate its name was constructed here. The modern day winery was founded here in 1998 by local winemaker Eyal Rotem and the Bordeaux wine merchant Maison Sichel. Today the property has 19 hectares of vineyards in the Ayalon Valley in Israel’s Judean Mountains where they specialise in producing delicious Mediterranean wines from international grape varieties. This robust Cabernet Sauvignon is crafted from selected grapes grown on top quality limestone soils. Eyal uses wild yeasts naturally found in the winery to carry out the fermentation to preserve the natural character of the grapes and ages his red wines in oak barrels he imports directly from France. His Cabernet Sauvignon is aged in oak for 12 months and is bottled without filtering. Rich cassis, black cherry and plum notes characterise the nose while the first sip reveals a generous full body, smooth texture and firm tannins which will respond well to additional cellaring. On the palate there are subtle hints of Mediterranean herbs as well as cigar box and woodsmoke from the maturation in oak.