Morlet : Coeur de Vallée Cabernet Sauvignon 2020

A beautiful, full-bodied, mineral-driven, energetic wine with curvy edges from a very challenging vintage. The mineral-rich nose is infused with blackcurrant and Chambord, while the rich, dark berry fruit intermingles with cassis and a plethora of earth and salty mineral notes. Very precise tannins plump up with air, and the finish is marked by fresh, loamy soils and crushed stone notes. When winemaker Luc Morlet came across this 10.11-ha property for sale in the Oakville AVA, he noticed an unnamed creek running through it. Later, in 2016, Constellation Brands received permission to name it To Kalon Creek. Morlet says the site is low-vigour and comprised of 40-60% well-draining gravel planted two two-thirds Cabernet Sauvignon and one-third Cabernet Franc. Harvest finished on 17 September 2023, well before the Glass Fire. In another vintage with far fewer challenges, this would almost undoubtedly be a 100-point wine, and I plan to review it again in a year and see how it is progressing.

The 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Cœur de Vallée is a very pretty, elegant wine. Silky, floral and medium in body, the Cœur de Vallée is another understated wine in this range from Luc Morlet. Dark cherry, plum, leather, spice and menthol are nicely pushed forward. This is very well done for the year.

Coming from Oakville, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Coeur De Vallee is a beautiful, full-bodied effort offering lots of blackcurrant and darker cherry-driven fruit as well as impressive aromatics of iron, spicy oak, and tobacco. It's full-bodied, deep, and concentrated, with velvety tannins and a gorgeous finish.

The 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Coeur de Vallee is 94% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Cabernet Franc, all grown on the family's estate vineyard in Oakville. Volumes were cut way back this vintage, to just 385 cases, but the wine is a beauty, marrying lovely black and red cherries with dusty loam scents on the nose. In the mouth, it's full-bodied, plush and expansive, finishing with a certain degree of elegance and finesse, accented by deep cassis flavors.