These notes, which also appear in the Tastings section of the site, are grouped together here for easy reference.
Cullen 2010 Cullen Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (5** $35) 66% sauvignon blanc and 34% semillon combine to deliver a package that's almost seamlessly integrated and delivers plenty to savour and speculate about. A hint of this? A tad of that? among the herbal citrus on the nose and across the palate. Not, I think a wine for food since the food flavours will get in the way. Open it early, savour as an aperitif and then throw in the fresh seafood as you hit the end of the bottle. At 12% you're not going to be absolutely stonkered by that stage, but you'll be absolutely well disposed towards the world at large. A dozen oysters or a couple of fresh red spot prawns with the last glass would work pretty well for me. Outstanding as long as your palate can handle subtle and you're not throwing in distractions in the food line. Seriously, it's that good…
Cullen 2009 Mangan (5*$45) Malbec (63% for fruit and colour), Petit Verdot (27% for the length and texture) and Merlot (10% for the structure) blend that, according to Mr Halliday, approximates a pre-phylloxera Bordeaux. Deep red in the glass, berries and oak across the sinuses and a palate that runs on and on. There's a characteristic subtlety that runs through the Cullen wines that would have you (or at least me) scrabbling for superlatives if you weren't so busy drinking. A rich, savoury wine that demands far more restraint that Hughesy can deliver. Definite evaporation problem here…
Cullen 2010 Mangan Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (5* $35) 62% Sauvignon Blanc and 38% Semillon from the gravelly (c.f. the loamy Culled) Mangan vineyard with some French oak (13%) on the SB side. Clear pale straw, with a subtlety through the nose that needed a little time to open up, revealing understated grass and citrus notes and a blend of citrus and minerality on the palate that was poised, balanced and textured to run out to a rounded finish. Subtle and quite superb…
Cullen 2009 Margaret River Red (4* $20) Bright red in the glass, fresh aromas through the nose, balanced and medium bodied across the palate, but I felt there was something missing. It’s more than likely something to do with the 12% alc/vol, though the change from a Cabernet Sauvignon/Malbec/Merlot/Petit Verdot/Cabernet Franc blend to 80% Merlot 15% Malbec and a dash of Petit Verdot might account for the disparity between the 4.5* '08 and this one. Still, there are another three bottles left that might change my mind, and one of the little devils will definitely be going in the fridge for a short spell...
Cullen 2010 Margaret River White (4.5* $19) A variation on the traditional Bordeaux blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon with a splash of Chenin Blanc, a dash of Chardonnay and a touch of Riesling, it's still basically a Margaret River SBS with added complexity from the additional elements. Those extra dimensions come across on the nose, with enough elements in there to keep you sniffing for a while as you have a go at identifying them. They deliver across the palate as well, with a rounded elegance coiled around a core of soft-edged acid. An interesting blend for the short term with depth on the palate that's remarkable in a wine that registers 12.5% alc/vol. I may well be looking for more of this one.