Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThis blend of Barossa Valley (67%) and Eden Valley fruit hails from five parcels averaging 80 years old, the oldest planted in 1854. Intensely concentrated in hue and muscular flavour. Spicy and mineral to the nose and palate, with glimpses of violets. Its iodine and liquorice-edged black cherry and blueberry flavour is succulent, but still in the grip of the sinewy, charry oak, making for an imposing, slightly austere finish. A powerhouse.
Saturated ruby. Heady aromas of ripe dark berries, cherry liqueur, vanilla and incense, with smoky mineral and exotic spice accents building in the glass. Seamless in texture and deeply concentrated, offering palate-staining black and blue fruit, floral pastille and mocha flavors that turn sweeter with air. At once plush and lively, finishing extremely long and smoky, with repeating dark berry and floral notes and velvety tannins.
There’s a stronger Barossa Valley expression in 2016 with ripe blackberry and dark-plum flavors delivering a very pure, focused fruit impression. Vibrant fruit purity here. The palate has gently grainy tannins and good weight. Fresh, succulent dark berries and an impressive, deep, driving finish. A blend of Barossa Valley 67% and Eden Valley 33 shiraz from very old vines. Drink or hold.
For a wine named for the 90-liter barrels it was originally matured in, Yalumba's 2016 The Octavius displays relatively restrained oak. This vintage, only 50% of the volume aged in those small octaves for 20 months, with the rest in a mix of barriques and hogsheads (a mix of French and American), all of which were coopered at the winery—but only 28% of which were new. Cedar and vanilla notes accent mixed berries on the nose of this full-bodied effort, which comes from the Barossa (two-thirds) and Eden Valleys (one-third). Rich and velvety on the palate, it adds hints of dried spices, juniper berries and bay leaves on the long finish. The youngest vines were planted in 1951, the oldest in 1854.
The vines for this premium Shiraz date on average to 1936, with some going back to 1854. From French and American staves coopered on site, Octavius offers an evocative and multifaceted nose with everything from currants, licorice and mocha to cedar, bay leaf and clove. The palate is powerful and lean at the moment, with elevated acidity and taut, slightly woody tannins. There’s a nice tang to the fruit. It’s hard to predict how this will age, but the hope is it’s got another decade left in it at least.
Established in 1849, Yalumba is Australia’s most historic family owned wine company. It remains fiercely independent and extremely progressive through the generational ownership by the Hill-Smith family. Yalumba’s longevity and success is a result of patience, collaboration and progressive thinking. There is foresight to embrace the natural terroir to craft wines with individual character and a sense of purpose, a spirit to reinvest in the land upon which it operates and knowledge to behave as a leader in the industry. It is committed to sharing stories of provenance gathered over more than 168 years of history of family winemaking. Barossa is arguably the single most famous wine region in Australia. Barossa includes both Barossa Valley and Eden Valley, making it one of the only areas in Australia to have neighbouring warm and cool climate growing conditions. Yalumba is privileged to have access to some of the oldest vineyards in the world in Barossa Valley, including 1889 bush vine Grenache and 1908 Shiraz. At the inner sanctum of Coonawarra, on the prized terra rossa soil, lies Yalumba’s Coonawarra estate, The Menzies Vineyard. Comprised predominantly of Cabernet Sauvignon vines, this single vineyard is committed to growing premium quality fruit reflecting distinctive varietal characters of the region. Wrattonbully’s cool climate, plentiful high quality artesian water and well drained terra rossa soils led wine companies to plant large areas of mainly red grape varieties.
At Yalumba we continually strive to reduce our impact on the environment, stay involved in our community, and make great wine with minimal intervention in the vineyard and in the winery. We are committed to sustainable practices, with the belief that the healthier and more biodiverse the vineyards are the better the wines will be. Yalumba has been developing its own sustainable viticulture program since the mid 1990s, promoting the economic production of quality grapes . For every hectare of vineyard we own, we have at least one hectare of native vegetation. Our winemaking philosophy and practice means that our wines are made with the least intervention possible but with as much knowledge, confidence and expertise as possible. We want our wines to show their provenance and natural appellation – whether it be a single site, a variety or blend, or a personal style. At Yalumba we have been making wine utilising ‘wild yeast’ for over 20 years. We believe that the success and consistency that we have with wild ferments is a direct result of healthy biodiverse vineyards. All Yalumba wines are 100% vegan since the 2012 vintage, elevating our wines to a safe and ethical choice. Becoming vegan came from the desire to make wines of conviction that taste of provenance and natural appellation; and that ultimately represent quality.
The Barossa Zone encompasses the Barossa Valley and Eden Valley. Some of the oldest vines in Australia can be found here.
Barossa Valley of course is the most important and famous wine growing region in all of Australia where 140+ year-old, dry-farmed Shiraz vines still produce inky, purple and dense juice for some of Australia's best wines.
In the cooler, wetter Eden Valley sub-region, the Hill of Grace vineyard is home to famous Shiraz vines from the 1800s but the region produces also some of Australia’s very best and age-worthy Rieslings.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”