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Cullen Vanya Cabernet Sauvignon 2019

$750.00 inc. GST

Accolades:
5 stars – Fergal Gleeson
98/100 – Ray Jordan
96/100 – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
96/100 – Gary Walsh, The Wine Front
96/100 – James Suckling
95/100 – Huon Hooke, The Real Review

“Vanya Cabernet 2019 (Full Moon Fruit Day) is light on it’s feet and pretty in a way not many flagship Cabernets are. It all starts with the fruit. “Cullen Vineyard is my life’s work,” Vanya Cullen says. She has worked in the vineyard planted in 1971 for 5 decades. The purity of the juice and the deliciousness of the tannins are immediately apparent. I find myself writing that Cullens Wines are ‘distinctive’ every time! Never more so than here. You could say it has a Pinot like sensibility in that it leads with delicacy rather than power. It’s jazz music , it’s rarefied, it’s artisanal, it’s pretty cool actually! Vanya 2019 is a wine you’ll fall in love with.” – Fergal Gleeson

“This as pure an expression of cabernet as you could imagine. Spent six months in new French barriques and there was no fining, yeast additions, and acid additions. Compelling and engaging on the nose with a bright violet and red fruit aroma with a little of that vineyard ironstone character. The palate is plush with such powerful yet refined fruit expression support with fine chalky tannins and neatly layered oak. There’s a slink and silky feel that almost, but not quite, conceals the tremendous power here.” – Ray Jordan

“The subtitle is Full Moon, Fruit Day. These Vanya wines are quite different to the Diana Madeline. This Vanya wine is a bit more loose knit and effusive than the standard bottling. Big price tag now, though as I always say, I’d rather this than Grange or Hill of Grace. I tasted this at the winery last year, and gave it a big score. I liked it better than the 2018, which is kind of typical of me… Cocoa, red capsicum, perfume and baking spices, blackcurrant and boysenberries. Medium-bodied, fine silty tannin, the more time you spend with it the-better-it-gets sort of wine. A graphite feel, unforced, with raspberry and cocoa, crisp red berry acidity, and an earthy yet succulent finish of perfume and impeccable length. A ‘mineral’ feel, and kind of understated, yet powerful, with lavish stony tannin to close. Very fine, lacy wine of delicacy and finesse. It needs time in the cellar, I think, to show its best.” – Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

“Picked on a full moon fruit day (March 20), the 2019 Vanya Full Moon Fruit Day was handpicked and destemmed, fermented wild on the skins for 10 days, then pressed to new French barriques for six months’ maturation. This is an intriguing wine, and it is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. The tannins are the easiest thing to discuss, so we will start there: very fine yet strong, interwoven throughout all aspects of the palate. The fruit that rallies around them speaks of salted cassis, hung deli meat, oxtail, tobacco… It is slightly resinous, quite peppery and layered with olives and brine. Despite being picked on a fruit day, this is not as “fruity as you might expect—there are notes of fresh leather, saltbush, bay leaf, cigar box, blackcurrant and blood. It’s a wine that defies easy explanation and requires you to push your tongue around your mouth once it is gone. No additions of yeast, acid, malolactic culture or fining agents. 768 bottles made.” – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

“A pretty and savory nose of blackcurrant, red and black cherry, suede, baking spice and crushed stone. Medium- to full-bodied with velvety tannins. Structured and surprisingly open with a cinematic view of savory red and black fruit. Leafy herbs and bark coming through. Nuanced and long. 100% cabernet sauvignon. Full moon, flower day. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold.” – James Suckling

Tasting Note: 100% Cullen Vineyard, 100% cabernet sauvignon and hand harvested under the full Moon on a fruit day, and Holi Day – the Hindu festival of colour.
The fruit was sorted, destemmed, and fermented on skins for 10 days, then pressed into new barriques for 6 months. This wine is grown on certified biodynamic, carbon positive soils, and is a perfect expression of the purity of cabernet sauvignon. Brick red with purple huesCellar. Nose of chocolate, ironstone, violets, rose, mulberry, red capsicum. Velvet touch of soft tannins and lush fruit sliding like silk through the palate, dancing to a perfect Wilyabrup cabernet song. Brilliant balance and poise. Enjoy now or for up to 50 years with Tasmanian ocean trout.

Certification: Organic, Biodynamic

Alcohol: 13.0%

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon

Region: Margaret River, Western Australia

In stock