First Principles Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 Review
This First Principles Cabernet Sauvignon is from the “Fine Wines” collection of the Firstleaf wine club. Although I have tried a number of their Fine Wines , this is my first review (none of them has been particularly memorable). It will probably be my last.
First Principles appears to be a proprietary wine brand marketed through Firstleaf, rather than a well-established Australian estate winery with a recognizable vineyard and independent distribution. The available information about this wine does not establish many crucial details, including the winery that actually produced it, the individual winemaker, the precise oak-aging program, etc. For a wine marketed as a premium Clare Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, those omissions matter. They make it difficult to evaluate the wine’s pedigree against established Australian producers.
According to Firstleaf, the grapes were picked at full ripeness, fermented with gentle punch-downs, and given extended skin contact to develop color, tannin, and flavor. The wine was subsequently aged in oak.
First Principles Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
This is a competently made but ultimately unremarkable Cabernet Sauvignon. It pours a medium-transparent garnet in the glass. The nose offers up blackberry and vanilla. These continue on the palate, but the blackberry fruit is recessive and lean. There is also some baking spice, cocoa, and earth. The tannins are quite assertive.
The fruit lacks the concentration to balance the wine’s considerable tannic structure, which produces a drying astringency reminiscent of strong black tea. The fruit flavors fade quickly, leaving the astringency lingering well after the short finish. An unbalanced and ultimately disappointing Cabernet Sauvignon that offers little of the depth or complexity expected from its Australian origins and premium positioning. The ABV is 14.1%.
This is a wine I would open now, at approximately 62–65°F. Give it 30 to 45 minutes in a decanter. Pair it with a ribeye, lamb chops with rosemary, steak au poivre, or aged cheddar. A grilled steak with a mushroom pan sauce could be especially successful.
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