Reviews Archives - Moss Wood

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2025 Elsa – Andrew Caillard, The Vintage Journal

Pale colour. Very attractive waxy, lemon curd, honey aromas with hints marzipan. Supple and minerally with ample waxy, lemon curd, tonic water, touch leafy flavours, looseknit chalky textures, lovely mid-palate volume and fresh long crisp acidity. Some aniseed notes at the finish. Ready to drink. 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 10% Semillon. Nine months maturation in new (11%) and seasoned oak. Drink now – 2032 14% alc

93 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2025 Chardonnay – Andrew Caillard, The Vintage Journal

Pale colour. Fresh tropical fruit, lemon curd, grapefruit aromas with underlying cashew nut, vanilla notes. Well concentrated lemon curd, grapefruit, hint pineapple fruits, fine lacy touch al dente textures and some underlying marzipan, vanilla notes. Finishes crisp and fruity. A very pleasing style. At the middle of fermentation, the wine was racked into 228-litre French oak barriques (32% new), to complete alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. Nine months in oak for around nine months. Drink now – 2032 14% alc

94 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon – Andrew Caillard, The Vintage Journal

Deep crimson. Intense blackcurrant, espresso, roasted chestnut aromas with hints of black olive/ spice. Inky deep and generously concentrated with ample cassis, black cherry, mocha flavours, superb roasted chestnut/ marzipan notes, and classical fine-grained tannins. Builds up claret/ cedar firm with a lovely pure black currant plume. The oak is still dominant but offset perfectly against the fruit. Give it a few years and this wine will show its exceptional class. 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot. Matured in French oak barriques (15% new). Drink 2029 – 2048+ 14% alc

98 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon – Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

Fresh blackberry and mulberry, a little smoked paprika, bay leaf, spice and cedar. It’s medium-bodied, blackberry, mint, black olive and dried herbs, a cranberry freshness to acidity, a hazelnut feel to tannin, with a crisp, nutty and spicy red-fruited finish of very good length. Quite restrained and tight as at now, though it will no doubt show its class with time in bottle. Drink: 2028 – 2038+

April, 2025

93 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2023 Merlot – Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

Cherry, plum, olive leaf and oregano, cedar and tobacco, a nutmeg and lemon zest top note. It’s medium-bodied, quite savoury, nutty and earthy, a mix of red and black fruit, plenty of tightly-knit tannin, balanced acidity, with a firm black olive laced finish of excellent length. Quite compact at present with more to come. Nice wine. Drink : 2027 – 2037+

April, 2025

94 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood 2025 Autrement Pinot Noir – Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

Pinot Noir from Karridale. 2025 was a very good vintage for Margaret River. I served this to my partner and asked what it might be. “Is it Grenache or maybe Nebbiolo? It’s not Pinot Noir is it?” And there you have an astute summary of the wine. Cherry, strawberry, orange peel, liquorice root and dusty spice, a little cedar oak. It’s medium-bodied, tannin has a light stony grip and there’s a freshness and vivacity too, a juiciness to red fruits tempered with some amaro character, a little brown spice, closes with good length and powdery tannin grip. It’s not particularly varietal, but gee, it has interest and drinking appeal. I really like it. Fascinating. Excellent. Drink : 2026 – 2035+

April, 2025

94 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon – Ray Jordan

Yet another example of how an intense and rigorous concentration on the vineyard is producing such wonderful results these days for Moss Wood. And this is such an elegant and stylish cabernet sauvignon that reflects both that vineyard and the wonderful ’23 vintage. Bright red, energetic fruits on the nose, and then a palate that is so exquisitely pretty and poised. So well-integrated with fine chalky tannins, fine-grained oak, and that thoroughly beautiful fruit intensity. Everything just comes together so perfectly.
Cellar: 20 years

96 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2023 Merlot -Ray Jordan

This vineyard has been producing some of Australia’s best merlots in recent years. This one is perhaps the most refined and elegantly poised of any I can recall. The vintage has clearly played an important part. The nose shows all of those black fruit, spicy, slightly mocha-like characters. While the seamlessly integrated medium to full-bodied palate delivers with such exquisite elegance. Restrained and poised it might be, but there is an intensity here that delivers with a sustained finish. A thoroughly exquisite merlot.
Cellar: 15 years

97 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood 2025 Autrement Pinot Noir – Ray Jordan

So this is a wine that’s been sourced from further south at Karridale, a region that is far cooler than the Wilyabrup sub-region of Moss Wood. Outremont is French for “another way”, and that explains Moss Wood’s sourcing of pinot from another region. There’s a beautiful perfumed red fruit aroma, cherry, and subtle red fruits. The palate is vibrant with high energy, driving those intense red berry characters. Tannins are quite fine and slightly chalky. The oak is neatly integrated, and the fruit intensity builds and then gathers momentum through to a very long finish. This is quite an exciting development for Moss Wood.
Cellar: 10 years

95 Points

Rating: Stars

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2025 Chardonnay – Ray Jordan

This vineyard has really been turning out some quite marvellous wines in recent years. It took a bit of work, but the results are in the bottle. This is a beautiful, vibrant, lively chardonnay with that subtle degree of complexity complementing the natural fruit characters. Nutty lemon curd and deeper stone fruit characters on the nose. And yet on the palate it presents with such poise and restraint, though with a deep palate intensity that extends effortlessly to a very long finish. That lovely refreshing acidity and its slightly savoury characters complete what is a very good wine.
Cellar: 10 years

96 Points

Rating: Stars