Yarra Valley

The Yering Station Reserve Shiraz Viognier 2003 is a Red wine from Yarra Valley in Australia. Tom Carson admits that the Yering Station reserve shiraz-viognier is “our only wine that I really throw the oak at, and I do that because it’s made to look good as an aged wine”. Full of spicy, cedary aromatics but dominated by oak as it washes through the mouth, this release maintains its impression of dryness even as flavours of kirsch, chocolate, peppe...

Winemaker Notes The colour of the Coldstream Hills Merlot is bright and healthy, with purple hues predominant. The gently savoury bouquet is clean, showing ripe fruit and no green elements. There are hints of spice from the fruit and from the subtle oak. The palate has excellent texture and length, with the lively, lingering fine tannin finish one expects of Merlot. Once again, there are no leafy/stalky characteristics to be found.

The benchmark Australian dessert wine and 2015 is a standout vintage. Made with parcels of fruit from selected vineyards, each batch of grapes is harvested, fermented and matured separately to capture the individual characteristics each plot produces. The vineyards include the Chauncy block of Semillon, which was the last vineyard of Semillon for Botrytis that Deen De Bortoli planted. Also the Cercone block of Botrytis Semillon, which is one of the orig...

DML VIN is a collaboration between the D'Anna family, Sam Middleton and Jordan Lewis. The aim of DML VIN is to focus on single site regional Pinot Noir and it brings together the winemaking talents of Sam Middleton and Franco D'Anna. "The 2021 vintage across both these standout regions was truly remarkable for cool climate varieties such as Pinot noir... The wines from 2021 are characterised by their detail, exquisite fruit purity, fresh acid and l...

The single vinyard wine from Giant StepS have been produced in small quantities. On the Sexton vineyard, Giant Steps says, "the Sexton Vineyard is in one of the most revered pockets of the Valley..." and this release does not disappoint. Hand-picked, all fruit is chilled overnight to 12 degrees Celsius.. The MV6 was fermented as 100% whole bunches, while the G clone was destemmed, soaked cold for five days, then allowed to warm gently into a ...

Picked in one (very small) parcel, the fruit was chilled then 2% was destemmed in the base of an oak vat to commence a “Pied de Cuve” ferment. The vat was then filled to the brim with whole bunches and closed up to allow carbonic fermentation to occur. After fermentation had begun, daily delestage by gravity was performed for cap management. Occasional foot stomps were done to release a little more juice into the ferment and to extend the tim...

This single vinyard wine from Giant Steps is only been produced in small quantities. Primavera is an outlier in the Giant Steps Single Vineyard series. This vineyard sits on red clay in the Upper Yarra, oddly a site that excels in warmer vintages. Red soils, undulating hills, the dedicated Lou Primavera tending it daily.

100% hand picked. Whole bunch pressed. The juice was then transferred directly to barrel by gravity with no settling, taking full gross lees. Fermented in eight 500L French oak puncheons. Bâtonnage in Spring, 30% malolactic fermentation. Matured for 10 months in new and used French oak – 20% new, 80% older, Taransaud and D&J.

Opaque dark red black colour with a dark crimson red hue. Fragrant aromas of blackcurrant and mulberry intermixed with cedary tobacco characters are followed by a faint hint of bay leaf and spice. Elegant and refined yet with good underlying richness the palate possesses flavours of blackcurrants intermixed with mulberries over some vanillin cedar, tobacco characters and spice. Very fine grained perfectly integrated tannins are almost velvet like in app...

It is bottled as “Syrah” in recognition of its refined structure, savoury flavour and eloquently spiced nuance. It features a subtly brooding and slowly unfurling complex nose, featuring rumours of blackberry, liquorice, stalk, tar, spice, Christmas mince pies and charry oak.

Opaque burnt sienna-black color. Oaky aromas and flavors of autumn leaves, dark roasted nuts with chocolate, plum pudding, licorice, pine, and mesquite with a round, lively, fruity medium-to-full body and a smooth, thought-provoking, very long finish displaying overtones of red cassis tart and toffee with well-integrated, fine tannins and moderate oak flavor. A mature Bordeaux blend that has settled into its groove; excellent acidity and food affinity w...

A pleasant surprise when a group of us landed at Mac’s Graceburn Wine Room. They no longer make this wine because the vineyard is no longer available, what a shame! This wine looks like it is just coming out of its shell. Dark berries, prunes, cloves, pepper, a whiff of charred oak. The palate was bold and lively, it offers fruit sweetness up front and savoury and earthy notes as it travels along. It grew in the glass and my last sip was the best. Hence...

Premium Yarra Valley Chardonnay from a top producer.

One of Australia's most iconic wines and one of only 5 cabernets included in Langton's 'Exceptional' top tier. Founded in 1971 by John Middleton and located in the Yarra Valley, Mount Mary has consistently received praise. Just because the Mount Mary wines are famed for their purity, elegance and balance doesn't mean that they eschew power and layered complexity. Quintet (the five Bordeaux varieties) is the king of the portfolio, the wine that was c...

44% Cabernet Sauvignon; 30% Merlot; 16% Cabernet Franc; 5% Malbec; 5% Petit Verdot. The 2019 season could not have been more perfectly suited to ripening the five left-bank Bordeaux varieties which feature in this wine. The colour is strikingly deep and vibrant at this young age. On the nose this wine shows a ripe, dark-fruit spectrum courtesy of the warmer growing season conditions. The aromatics include scents of blackcurrant, cassis, violets, cherry,...

Produced from the oldest vinest on the Seville Estate in the Yarra Valley. A sleeper of a wine that can age incredibly gracefully (We tasted a 1985 in 2022 and it was fresh and vibrant)

This new release from Thousand Candles set me back on my heels. “The 2016 Gathering Field was made with hand picked selected parcels of fruit from our best blocks.” It was only matured in older oak – the ‘newest’ oak used was three years old, the oldest seven.

The Amelia cabernet sauvignon merlot is showing trademark Amelia elegance and finesse with a little bit extra in ripeness. The grapes matured beautifully with generous fruit flavour, showing off the uniqueness of this single vineyard blend. Small, actually tiny amounts made.

Witchmount Estate, with its restaurant and function centre, is only 30 minutes from Melbourne, in the Sunbury region. The vineyard is planted to shiraz (12ha), cabernet sauvignon (6ha) and chardonnay (2ha), with lesser amounts of sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, merlot, tempranillo and barbera. The quality of the wines has been consistent, the prices very modest.

Witchmount Estate, with its restaurant and function centre, is only 30 minutes from Melbourne, in the Sunbury region. The vineyard is planted to shiraz (12ha), cabernet sauvignon (6ha) and chardonnay (2ha), with lesser amounts of sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, merlot, tempranillo and barbera. The quality of the wines has been consistent, the prices very modest.

Yabby Lake is a wine producer located in Victoria, Australia, with vineyards in the Mornington Peninsula and Heathcote. It was founded in 1998 by Robert and Mem Kirby and is known for its Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and Shiraz.

Bastard Hill is a remarkable single vineyard site in the Yarra Valley

Bastard Hill is a remarkable single vineyard site in the Yarra Valley

A wine style that has always been blended for perfume, texture and spice. Fragrance enhanced by the Viognier balanced with a mixed berry fruit profile. Marsanne lends texture and volume to the palate, Mataro the floral notes and spice. Primary fruit leads on to savoury graphite andwhite pepper underpinned by background stalkiness and concentrated meatiness.