From every Margaret River vintage, there is a Cabernet Sauvignon by Vasse Felix, making the wine a living time capsule of place, season, technique and culture. The regional heritage and lineage are unrivalled. The first Cabernet was made in 1972. In 1973, Margaret River’s first medal for Cabernet was won by Vasse Felix – a ‘Gold’ at the Perth Wine Show. In 1979, then 1985, the Vasse Felix Cabernet took the global stage, awarded ‘2nd Prize’ at the New York Trade Fair, then ‘Best Red Wine’ at the London Trade Fair.

It is an heirloom of Margaret River wine, and a responsibility we take seriously. We nurture Margaret River’s original vines to form the TOM CULLITY. Specialised plantings in subsequent decades within the Home Vineyard, Wilyabrup, define the Premier Cabernet Sauvignon and overflow into the delectable fruit of Adams Road to make Filius. Grapes are wild fermented in small batches and macerated for up to 30 days with traditional oxidative handling, then basket-pressed, and matured in French oak barriques for 12 to 18 months. Experiments with large format oak, concrete and clay, challenge our paradigms of refinement, expression and great Cabernet.

Malbec has proved a key blending component since the first release in 1972, contributing mulberry depth and rich complexities to the final wine.

Margaret River’s original mass selection cuttings of Western Australia’s heritage clone, ‘Houghton,’ were procured and planted by Dr Tom Cullity at Vasse Felix. This old vine material arrived in Western Australia in the 1800s. Grown on its own rootstock, Houghton is a globally-distinct proposition, and the preferred Cabernet clone in Margaret River for its superb balance of blackcurrant, berry and cassis flavours, impeccable structure and resolved tannins.