Cape Mentelle: 50 years of Margaret River Cabernet

The history of a wine brand reveals many intriguing twists and turns when its cellared assets get poured into a succession of glasses.

Changes of season, ideas, philosophy, even the influence of individual personalities all leave their mark on the wines and, with Cape Mentelle, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2020, it also captures the essence – and the reason for success – of the Margaret River wine region.

Scroll down to see David Sly’s Cape Mentelle tasting notes and scores

For those at the heart of this winery, it has always been a terroir story. ‘Cape Mentelle is not trendy. It has and still looks to Margaret River to get the best of Margaret River,’ says winery founder and first winemaker David Hohnen.

The essential element, Hohnen believes, is the coolness of evening breezes that define Margaret River’s maritime climate. This extends the ripening period and imparts an element of freshness to the Cabernet Sauvignon that has become a recognised signature of this winery and, subsequently, this famous Western Australian region.

50 years of Cape Mentelle

To celebrate the winery’s golden jubilee, a series of six Cabernet Sauvignon vintages spanning five decades were uncorked and tasted during an online discussion with the men who made these wines: Hohnen, John Durham, Robert Mann and current winemaker Ben Cane.

During the discussion, they revealed compelling truths about how these wines and the esteemed reputation of Cape Mentelle came into being.

Interestingly, the light-hearted banter revealed that much of the early winemaking was based on whatever-is-at-hand pragmatism rather than raw science. Varying small percentages of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Merlot introduced in early vintages – which added lovely fragrant notes that still persist – were, in fact, a topping wine added to barrels of maturing Cabernet Sauvignon.

‘Came out pretty good, though,’ was the modest summary of Durham, winemaker from 1984 to 2005.

Indeed, it is telling that while other varieties are planted at Cape Mentelle, it is Cabernet Sauvignon that has written the legend of this winery – largely built on the 1982 and 1983 vintages. They both won the esteemed Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy, Australia’s most prestigious gong awarded to the best one-year-old red wine at the annual Royal Melbourne Wine Show.

The intensity of the 1983 Cabernet at the time of the trophy win led Hohnen to quip: ‘It was so big, black, tannic and tarry that I didn’t believe it would be drinkable for the next 10 years.’

‘True expression’ of Margaret River

Time has tempered the beast, and at their best, the wines presented at the 50th anniversary tasting spoke profoundly of Margaret River – the coolness of the region bringing moderation and poise to the flavours, along with a distinctive savoury character.

‘Through the evolution of Cape Mentelle, we all have tried to make a wine of place – a true expression,’ says Hohnen, who established McHenry Hohnen with his brother-in-law.

This has been the philosophy in place since Hohnen and his three brothers prepared the vineyard for planting in 1970 by blasting boulders with gelignite. During those early years, while making the initial wines in tin sheds on the property, the Hohnens relied on local mothers to pick most of the grapes.

‘We were outsiders down here – the winemakers and surfers and hippies – among the established community of rather suspicious dairy farmers.

‘We found it hard to find workers, so we gave jobs to the local mums, and they proved much more reliable than the surfers,’ Hohnen recalls.

The evolution of Cape Mentelle has seen changes in ownership, with Hohnen and his brothers initially selling a 70% stake to LVMH-owned Veuve Clicquot in 1991, which then acquired 100% ownership in 2000 when Hohnen sold them his remaining shares.

Amid this change, Hohnen established Cloudy Bay in New Zealand – an entirely different and equally compelling success story – which left Durham to continue the style that had brought Cape Mentelle initial success.

The winery’s serious ambition for Cabernet was reflected in Cape Mentelle’s International Cabernet Tasting, first hosted in 1982, and identified by each of the Cape Mentelle winemakers as being especially influential for setting local wines against global benchmarks in a ‘celebration of Cabernet’.

‘Evolution of Australian Cabernet’

Further changes in winemakers brought different visions for Cape Mentelle Cabernet – evident throughout this historic vintage tasting – but the winery’s affection for nurturing the noble grape has never diminished.

The course of this struggle is not lost on Australia’s patriarch wine critic James Halliday, who also attended the virtual tasting.

It was Halliday’s glowing review of the 1978 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon that first brought national attention to the fledgling Margaret River winery, and paved its route towards greater glories.

‘This 50th anniversary tasting has been a micro-take on the evolution of Australian Cabernet,’ said Halliday, who recently auctioned off 250 bottles of DRC from his private cellar. ‘It shows a continual search for the hidden bits that makes Cabernet exceptional, not the obvious bits. It is this search for the elusive that is intriguing.’

Six vintages of Cape Mentelle 1983-2016: tasting notes and scores

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