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STELLA BELLA WINES Cabernet Sauvignon, Margaret River

Grape variety - 100% Shiraz. Oak maturation - 40% new and 60% older French. notes. Colour - Deep red with purple hue. Aroma - Concentrated with bacon fat, pepper, lifted florals and incense. There’s an underlying meaty-gravy complexity with balanced oak, mulberry and plum. Palate - Full with a dense texture and fine grain tannins. The palate is loaded with pepper, beef gravy, potpourri, black raspberry, mulberry and plum. A complex, savoury and elegant wine that’s more Syrah than Shiraz Food matches - Seared prime beef and roasted root vegetables or Fillet of venison with wild mushrooms. Peak drinking - Drinking well now but will show further integration over the next 8 - 10 years. Viticulture - The Home Block Shiraz vineyard comprises 0.7 ha of open lyre, minimal irrigated vines planted on ironstone gravel over deep friable loam. Judicious shoot and bunch thinning is always used to maintain a very light crop which was hand picked in early March of 2021. Harvested at 12.5º Baume the fruit exhibited intensely concentrated flavour and colour. Winemaking - The hand picked fruit was harvested early in the morning and processed straight away. 5% whole bunches, including stalks were placed into the bottom of the fermenter before filling. The remaining fruit was de stemmed into the small open fermenter with heading down board, which keeps the cap fully submerged between drain and returns. After nine days of fermentation, the fruit was pressed into a blend of new and used French Burgundian barrels. Storage and Bottling - Maturation lasted 11 months before the wine was carefully blended and bottled. Bottled under screw cap to retain freshness in a premium Burgundy bottle. Held in bottle for approximately 1 year prior to release.

Fidium, the faithful. From Latin meaning ‘attuned’, this is exactly what producing these wines is all about. Being attuned with the vineyard – its cycles, its idiosyncrasies, its aspect and of course reaching its full potential. Margaret River is a very special place to grow wine and our winemaker needs to develop an intimate relationship with the vineyards from which we source these grapes. Their history, their microclimates, their constraints, their nuances all need to be respected and harnessed to deliver into the winery the very best expression of that vineyard. Grapes that can be transformed into wines of great depth and character – always honestly reflecting their sense of place. Only the finest parcels of fruit make the grade for these Fidium wines, with each wine carefully blended from the most premium barrel selections.

All Cullen Wines are grown on a certified Biodynamic, Carbon Neutral and naturally powered estate. Grapes are harvested by hand on fruit and flower days according to the astrological calendar. The wines have no additions of yeast, acid or malolactic culture, and are in this sense natural wines which express the place and land on which they are grown, the vintage and the people.

Nose Blue and red fruits. Satsuma plum and pink musk stick. Rose petal and dried herb, with a white pepper. Palate Raspberry and cherries, with hints of plum and spice. Generous full palate with bold yet elegant tannins. Growing Conditions Margaret River experienced warmth throughout the 2020 grape growing season. Early start of harvest and reds ripening two weeks ahead of the long-term average.

Umamu create exquisite handcrafted wines. Each bottle is deliberately and meticulously created: from the delicate balance tasted within each glass, to the small touches of family handwriting and messages on our labels. Our philosophy has always been to give our wines time to age in the bottle before release, a rarity in today’s market. Enjoying wines when they are ready to drink, rather than straight after bottling, is the reason Umamu wines have developed such a pleasant and sophisticated texture. 2008 is just glorious on its own or with food. It is all grown up and ready to go. This vintage is going down well with Umamu SBS fans, why not have a go?

The current release of the Fire Gully Sauvignon Blanc Semillon is a superb exampe of the blend. Complex and interesting with fascinating oyster shell aromatics, intense pure white tropical flavours with schisty minerally notes: powerful, vibrand and tangy, finishing fresh and zesty. Irresistible summer drinking.

Medium crimson red with a slight purple edge. A generous combination of lifted forest berry fruits, cassis, and dark cherry fragrances upfront with underlying black olive and blackcurrant nuances. Subtle sweet cinnamon oak spice, violets and savoury dried herbs adds a further depth of complexity. Medium to full bodied wine with elegant, well integrated red berry fruit flavours fill the palate followed by a succulent, fleshy but firm tannin structure. Juicy red berry fruit flavours persist endlessly with a hint of dark chocolate mocha on the finish.