Solely for the purpose of review, I have just opened a bottle of the Cullen Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot from 1998, my wine of the year in 2001. A finer and slightly leaner but beautifully fruited and balanced wine, it’s still a baby at eight years of age. Revelling in the brightness of its fresh dark cherry and mulberry-like fruit, it’s long and tightly focused, with a rather apparent expression of fragrant cedar/vanilla oak. It’s fine-grained and succulent, with lively small berry fruit supported by powdery tannins and shaped by youthful acidity. It finishes with a lingering core of vibrant flavour. Give it plenty of time, if you still have some left. I’m not sure how many I have remaining, so I might be calling on you in future!
