98 POINTS
Sarah Ahmed - Decanter
Vanya Cullen is the tannin whisperer. Here, the finest of fine tannins are saturated deep within the fresh dark berry and currant fruit, conferring a dryness to the palate. This lends gravitas, without detracting from the fruit purity and sheer fluid grace of delivery. Finely honed, the fruit is perfumed with roses, violets, tobacco, bitter chocolate and cedar. A pronounced graphite and gravel undertow persists through the prolonged, elegant finish.
98 POINTS
Huon Hooke - The Real Review
Deep red colour with strong purple reflections. The bouquet is fresh and youthful but surprisingly complex in its youth, revealing violet, blueberry, raspberry and any number of other berry fruit aromas, cherry and dark plum, too, with oak influences evident but discreetly tucked into the wine. It's full-bodied and firm, the tannins perhaps a little more grippy and assertive than usual in this wine, the structure formidable and undoubtedly will endow it with long ageing prospects. Great intensity, power and drive through the palate, the finish long and super-satisfying. A very concentrated DM. It can be enjoyed now but should be cellared for best results. (87% cabernet sauvignon, 7% merlot, 3% cabernet franc, 2% malbec, 1% petit verdot. Matured in 45% new French oak for 15 months)
98 POINTS
Gary Walsh - The Wine Front
87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Malbec with 45% new oak. 2,350 dozen made.
Incredible power and concentration here, and yet, still lithe and so finely wrought. It’s ultra-mineral in feel with iron and dense graphite tannin, but perfumed and spice-laden too. The quality and feel of tannin here is something quite extraordinary. Plum and dark cherry, dark tobacco, whiff of empty chocolate box, superb length of flavour. Essence of Cabernet. Essential Cabernet. We’ve never had it so good.
98 POINTS
Erin Larkin - Halliday Wine Companion
87% Cabernet sauvignon, with 7/3/2/1% merlot/cabernet franc/malbec/petit verdot. Matured for 15 months in barrique, 45% new. Cassis and red licorice on the nose, bay and saltbush, too. The palate is salty and fine with layers upon layers of spice and texture. The tannins are like finely textured gills, stacked as delicately as the folds in a mushroom. The length of flavour unfurls and extends across the palate, taking so long to fade that this entire tasting note is possible off one sip. The rest are just for pleasure. Drink it now, or in 40+ years from now… both will be possible.
96 POINTS
Mike Bennie - The Wine Front
Blind tasted in a panel – 60-or-so cabernet-based wines from Western Australia.
Rich, sweet fruited scents with some creamy, vanilla character overlaid. Dark berries to taste, sweetish fruit there, soft, supple texture, slippery tannins finish in a light chew, currants, raisins in the mix too. Even, generous, but holds medium weight despite the additional sense of generosity. So much detail here. Serious wine.
96 POINTS
Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The 2019 Diana Madeline hails from a modest, cool, vintage, which produced wines across the board steeped in detail, perfume and nuance. Incidentally, 2019 was the first vintage of the Diana Madeline to include the amphora in the fermentation vessels (purchased in 2015), and one has to wonder whether or not this contributes to the poise of the wine. Aromas of licorice, blueberry, cassis and leather, raw cocoa, asphalt, aniseed and fennel seeds appear on the nose. In the mouth, the wine is shaped by ferruginous tannins, and chalk and grip abound. It's a long wine that presents a gracious view of this lovely vintage. The blend this vintage is 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Malbec and 1% Petit Verdot. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
96 POINTS
Christina Pickard - Wine Enthusiast
Cullen's biodynamic home-block red is a deep well of terroir-driven aromas and flavors. Concentrated yet lucid, it conjures wild West Aussie bush and coastal notes. There's eucalyptus, dusty red earth and the blossoms of local Marri trees amidst tart cherry and red currant. It's briny, savory and spicy. The tannins are muscular but ultrafine, sappy and textural. Drink 2024–2042.
Subtle nose with earthy notes of lentil, pencil lead, ripe berries and bitter chocolate. Very structured with fine-boned tannins.
Judges: Sarah Ahmed, Justin Knock MW, Julia Sewell
