Cullen `Amber` Wilyabrup Margaret River 2021

Description

Cullen Wines is a certified biodynamic, carbon neutral and naturally powered estate, with their philosophy summed up in three simple words; ‘Quality, Integrity and Sustainability’. It is one of the oldest and most awarded family wineries in Wilyabrup, in Western Australia’s famous Margaret River region. First established in 1971 by Dr Kevin and Diana Cullen and now run by their daughter Vanya, the winery has built an outstanding reputation for fine certified biodynamic wines that receive critical national and international acclaim. In 2019, celebrating 30 years at the helm, Vanya received double Winemaker of the Year honours at both the Australian Women in Wine Awards and the Halliday Wine Companion Awards.

The idea behind this orange wine is to make a white wine like a red, fermented on the skins. This is a complex wine, with lemon, kumquat, orange blossom and hints of honey. It is textured and concentrated on the palate, with great length and persistence. Flavours of figs, dried pears, cream and orange are supported by a gentle saltiness on the finish.

Bronze-hued orange. A wildly complex bouquet evokes dried peach, pear skin, botanical herbs, honey and pungent flowers. Chewy and focused on the palate, offering orchard and pit fruit nectar, beeswax, fennel pollen, chamomile and toasted nut flavors that show a hint of salinity and a core of juicy acidity. Fleshes out with air and finishes very long and subtly smoky, with the floral, herb and pit fruit notes lingering. As with most orange wines, this one will be divisive. Fermented on its skins for 10 days in a combination of standard and opentop fermenters and clay amphoras, and then aged for three months in neutral French oak casks. 93 Pts, Josh Raynolds, Vinous