Country: Australia Region: Margaret River Varietal: 54% Sauvignon Blanc - 43% Semillon - 3% Verdelho Vintage: 2020 Colour: White Style: Dry Producer: Cullen Description: Founded in 1971 by Di and Kevin Cullen, the wine-making is now managed by their daughter Vanya. Passion and a strong sense of responsibility to the land define Vanya's biodynamic approach to viticulture, while pioneering environmental initiatives led to Cullen becoming Australia's first carbon neutral winery in 2007.The Mangan vineyard, which is owned and managed by Rick Cullen, is dry farmed and maintained using a biodynamic approach to viticulture. Soils are old, granite and gravely sandy loam, overlaying lateric subsoils. Although there was substantial rainfall during the growing season leading up to the 2012 vintage, the warm and dry weather that followed in January led to the production of fruit of exceptional quality.  As Sauvignon Blanc was one of the varieties that performed particularly well in 2012, it was decided to increase the contribution of this grape variety in the blend. The addition of a small amount of Verdelho has added an extra touch of complexity and attractive lifted fruit characters. All grapes were dry farmed, hand-harvested and sorted before crushing. The Sauvignon Blanc was part fermented in barriques with indigenous yeast, while the remainder was fermented in stainless steel tanks to retain the fresh aromatics. The Semillon was entirely fermented in tank to keep the varietal freshness. Six per cent of the blend was matured in two year old oak barrels for nine months to further enhance the complexity of the blend. Tasting Note: Brilliant, pale straw with green tinges. Pungent, piercing and linear on the nose, combining intense cut grass slate and citric aromas. The palate is mouthfilling, with an attractive blend of grassy, mineral, citrus and white peach flavours. The delicious middle palate flavours lead in to a long and particularly fine acid finish. Food Matches: Fish/ White meat/ aperatif