Vanilla & caramel

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Campbells Rutherglen Muscat NV

Name: Campbells Rutherglen Muscat NV
SKU: 102224
Price: 28.99 NZD
Availability: InStock

Wine · Australia · 13%

$28.99each

What it tastes like

A rich, sweet fortified Rutherglen Muscat with raisin, caramel and toffee notes and a smooth, long finish.

Vanilla & caramel

Additional information

Wine
Style: Australia
Origin: 13% ABV
Alcohol: 0.8 per bottle
Standard drinks

The story of Campbells Rutherglen Muscat NV

Campbells has made fortified wine in Rutherglen, in the north-east of Victoria, for more than 150 years. The family marked 140 years of winemaking in 2010, which puts the start at 1870, and it is still family run. Rutherglen is hot and dry through summer and its long, warm autumns let Muscat ripen fully, so the area holds about a third of Australia's plantings of the variety.

The grape is Muscat à Petits Grains Rouge, known locally as Brown Muscat. The wine is fortified, then matured in barrels in a solera system, where younger wine is blended with older wine drawn from many past years. Campbells keeps a separate solera for each tier of its Muscats, and the top one holds wine from four generations of the family. Cask ageing slowly concentrates the wine as water evaporates, leaving it very sweet, around 220 grams of sugar per litre.

The flavours are raisins, fig, toffee and orange peel with some nutty depth. Because it is so rich, a small glass goes a long way. It matches vintage cheddar, blue cheese, Christmas pudding or a chocolate dessert, and it can be poured over vanilla ice cream.