Vasse Felix Tom Cullity Cabernet Sauvignon-Malbec 2019

Professional Ratings

• 98 Australian Wine Companion
  It’s often a shame to taste a flagship wine so young when it has decades ahead of it, but that feeling lasted a nanosecond before turning to respect, then 'oh my, this is awesome'. Sometimes I get very excited. In this seductive youthful stage, it’s fragrant with florals from violets to lavender, plenty of blueberries and bramble all wonderfully savoury with lots of warming spices. The palate offers charm, detail and excellent structure with velveteen tannins and a fine acid line teasing this to a long, long finish.
• 97 Wine Enthusiast
  This comparatively cool vintage of Vasse Felix's top red is beautifully perfumed and lucid, with pronounced savory, earthy aromas like beet root, tobacco and dried Mediterranean herbs and florals. They weave between bright, tangy currant fruit and soft mocha characters. The silky, slinky palate is expertly structured, the fine, talc-like tannins creeping in slowly, then taking over at the long finish. A gorgeous tightrope of power and elegance, and the epitome of class, this is a complete wine now but could age for several decades more.
• 97 James Suckling
  A dense and layered red with blackcurrants, mushroom, bark, and forest flowers with hints of fresh sage. Medium-bodied with a pretty core of currants and sweet berries with hints of dried and fresh herbs. So creamy and polished in texture. Extremely long and persistent. Drinks wonderfully now. Savory. A cabernet sauvignon and malbec blend. Own roots.
• 96 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

  The 2019 Tom Cullity Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec is the first Tom Cullity without Petit Verdot (composed solely of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Malbec), and it hits differently because of it—no surprise there. On the nose, this is decidedly blue and black fruited, layered with resin and licorice, blueberry and star anise, hints of arnica and nori, with inflections of peat and tobacco, alpine mint (?) and mulberry. Usually, I see an unfettered core of raspberry in this wine, but in this year, it leans heavily on the darker end of the spectrum. Rating: 96+

• 94 Wine & Spirits
  In 1968, when Tom Cullity planted cabernet sauvignon and malbec in Margaret River, he was one of the early pioneers. Virginia Willcock farms the descendants of those vines for this top selection from the estate. Her 2019, from a low-yielding vintage, has a beautiful wild-blueberry scent, a cabernet ready to fill the mouth with its concentration, with the taste of fruit grown in a temperately cool place. The wine’s floral spice lasts, edged by the grassy herbal cut of its tannins.
• 93 Wine Spectator

  Elegant but commands presence, with juicy black cherry, blackberry and blueberry flavors, plus savory Kalamata olive, dried rosemary and bay leaf notes. Reveals accents of cigar box and salted black licorice that linger on the velvety, harmonious finish.