Product information

$131

$128ea in any 3+
$125ea in any 6+
Closure: Screw Cap
This wine never fails to impress. 2018 was a stunning year in Margaret River & shows both the quality of the vineyard and the deft hand that guides the wine to bottle!

Description

One of Australia’s consistently delicious Cabernet blends. The 2018 is poised and excellent. Vibrant cassis is met with a layer of dusty, in a good way oak that supports the palate well. If you want to look for chocolate in a wine this is a good place to start. Rich, full palate with a generous mid-palate, always a tip that you’re drinking something delicious. One of those wines that takes you on a little joy ride as it travels from front to back of your palate. Plenty going on with a little splash cinamon and spice.

 

Out of stock

Check out all of the wines by Cullen

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

“At the very top of the quality and ethical tree you might drink wine from the biodynamically certified vineyards of Cullen from Margaret River” – Tim White

From the Winery:

These old vine Cabernet Sauvignon Houghton clones (8 different clones) were planted in 1971 on their own roots and are destined for the flagship wine Diana Madeline. 2018 produced small yields, being 5.88 tonnes per hectare of Cabernet Sauvignon from certified biodynamic, carbon negative fruit. This has created a natural wine with elegance, balance and power.

 

Diana Madeline Cullen always liked the cooler seasons for Cabernet Sauvignon, especially the 1982. The cooler vintages make wines of great elegance and longevity.

The 1982 Cabernet Merlot for the 2018 Diana Madeline was harvested over the fruit and flower days of the biodynamic calendar, including one full Moon fruit day for the Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

Winemaking

The Cullen winemaking approach is that we will do whatever it takes to make outstanding wines.

Quality is paramount and every winemaking step incorporates this philosophy. The wines can only be as good as the grapes. The uniqueness of Cullen Wines comes in part from the vineyard. The role of the winemaker is to act as caretaker to the fruit – to understand and to realise the full potential of the vineyard and the fruit which comes into the winery.

As Diana and Kevin Cullen had such great foresight to plant on one of the great winegrowing sites in Margaret River, the winemakers job, working with such high quality fruit, has been made pleasurable.

There is, however, still a lot of experimentation and hard work which takes place in the winery at all times. At all steps of the process the wine (or wine to be) is treated gently and with great care.

The process of making the wine involves handling the fruit as little and as gently as possible. Practices such as hand harvesting, very little fruit transport, sorting of the fruit before crushing, minimal wine movement, minimal fining for the Whites, no fining for the Reds, and minimal filtration are used. This helps to ensure that the wine in the bottle is a true expression of the fruit that it is made from.

Cullen Wines are experimenting with natural winemaking.

The 2018

The 2018 Diana Madeline was harvested over the fruit and flower days of the biodynamic calendar, including one full Moon fruit day for the Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The grapes were taken to tank, barrel and some amphorae for fermentation. Here they were fermented naturally without yeast or malolactic additions, and with no adjustment to flavor outside a small sulphur dioxide addition. The wine spent 14-27 days on skins before being gently basket pressed to barrel. The varietal blend is 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 5% Malbec. The wine was aged in 80% biodynamic barrels of which 50% were new. The wine will age for up to 50 years.

Growing season conditions:
During the growing season, traditional wet weather conditions prevailed through the winter months. Rainfall was close to 20% above 15 year average. 565mm, average 474mm.

Spring/Summer conditions:
Great spring conditions for the dry grown estate, good soil moisture reserves, followed by warm and dry conditions in November contributed to excellent conditions for flowering and fruit-set. This also contributed to healthy canopy growth and good shoot extension, leading into the summer months. 20% below average rainfall. 148mm, average 187mm.

Summer/Harvest conditions:
The beginning of summer set the vines up well for the remainder of the season. Average temperatures through December and above average rainfall allowed for canopies to continue to function well, soil moisture reserves to be kept up and berry development to remain on track.
The remaining months of summer, January and February, leading into the 2018 vintage had temperatures which were below average, however this allowed for very effective photosynthesis within the canopies and consistent even ripening of the fruit. The vines were not impacted by any severe heat or moisture stress. Average daily maximums through January and February were 25 degrees, 1 to 2 degrees below average, and only 5 days above 30 degrees.

Yields:
Healthy, balanced yields (average to above average) were experienced across all varieties which was helped by the late spring conditions. The moderate temperatures through the summer provided for excellent fruit composure, with great intensity of flavor.

Biodynamics in the winery

To take this even further Cullen Wines are harvesting as much as possible using Maria Thun theory Basics. She suggests that the moon in a constellation has a favourable influence on the elemental relationship of fire which makes it better for harvest giving greater intensity and preservation of fruit flavour.

The wines are mostly making themselves with little or no intervention. This means indigenous yeast, no additions of any kind, minimal oak use and fining.

We would like to think that in both the vineyard and winery we are working with nature rather than trying to control it. This gives us the lands best and purest potential of expression being put into the bottle.

Where in the World is Cullen?

Margaret River south of Perth in Western Australia is a stunning part of the world. I had the great pleasure of working and playing there for a year back in the days when you could pick up a JL Chave Blanc for $60 at the Prevelly Park store!

Western Australian viticulturist John Gladstone identified the region as a promise place to grow Cabernet varieties, matching it’s climate to that of Bordeaux. Seems he was right!

Where in the world does the magic happen?

Cullen Wines, Caves Road, Wilyabrup WA, Australia

Margaret River
West Australia
Australia