Fine Wine: New World Wines
Live Virtual Auction, 18 September 2022
New World Wines
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
About this Item
Vasse Felix is a notable wine producer in the Margaret River region on Australia's west coast. Like most of the region's top estates. Vasse Felix's icon wines are the Tom Cullity and Heytesbury, which are a Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant red wine and a varietal Chardonnay respectively. The estate was established in 1967 by Dr Thomas Cullity, and the first vintage was in 1971. This was not a great success for Vasse Felix – the fruit had been attacked by birds in the weeks leading up to harvest. A falcon was employed to scare the birds away, but this also proved unsuccessful as upon release, it promptly flew away. Happily, changes in the vineyards have meant success for later vintages, and the falcon is now immortalized on Vasse Felix labels, and has become the symbol of the estate.
Provenance
Radford Dale Imports
Critics Ratings
‘A blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Malbec and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2015 Tom Cullity Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec boasts stunningly pure cassis aromas, with just enough hints of mint, sage, cedar and tobacco to impart welcome complexity. It's medium to full-bodied but linear and focused in style, with more length than breadth on the palate, layers of fine, mouth-coating tannins and a long, mouthwatering finish. While by no means unapproachable even now, expect it to be better in another five years and drink well for another decade or more after that.’ - Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate, 96/100 (Jun 2019)
‘A noble blend of 78% Cabernet, 20% Malbec and a dollop of Petit Verdot, conferring ample richness and an authoritative spine: saline maritime acidity and detailed grape tannins, moreish and ripe, attesting to an extraction regime of courage and confidence. Together with extended maturation in French barrique (18 months, 50% new), the structural attributes are impressive. While this full-bodied wine demands patience, one can already detect cassis, lead, cedar, graphite, a herbal potpourri, a swab of black olive and a bay leaf linger, across cedar oak beams.’ - James Halliday Wine Companion 2020