Lavender, plum and cardamom spices, mocha and boot polish. Quite a busy nose! Ripe plums and licorice spice of Touriga Naçional, the Tinta Cão brings bright and fragrant blue fruit energy. Tinta Roriz brings a savoury depth to the palate to compliment the Tinta Amarela’s floral and bay leaf herbal lift. To tie everything together the finesse of Alvarelhão and the acidity of the Sousão tightens, brightens and drives the long palate. Wonderfully complex and yet medium bodied.
The last fruit to be harvested from the vineyard. Hand picked and destemmed together in a ‘field blend’ style retaining as many whole berries as possible. The first working of the must is with the feet as in a traditional lagar in Portugal to extract tannins from both skins and seeds. Gentle pressing and maturation in old oak barrels for 10 months.
Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia.
Varietals: 35% Touriga Naçional, 35% Tinta Cão, 12% Tinta Amarela, 7% Tinta Roriz, 6% Alvarelhão & 5% Sousão
Vines: Fruit was sourced from 1990 New Territories planting of classic Portuguese grape varieties on a rocky terraced hillside.
Cellaring: Drinking beautifully at present and will continue to evolve for up to 8 years under suitable cellaring conditions.
Analysis: ALC: 13.5%
Yarra Yering, one of the Yarra Valley's oldest and most beautiful vineyards, was established in 1969 by Dr Bailey Carrodus. The winery released its first vintage in 1973 (including the first of the iconic Dry Red Wine No. 1 and Dry Red Wine No. 2). The release was the first commercial vintage the region had seen in 50 years, putting Yarra Yering at the forefront of the modern day Yarra Valley wine region. Almost another 50 years on, the vines at the foot of the Warramate Hills are producing some of the finest wines in Australia.
Sarah Crowe joined Yarra Yering in 2013 after more than a decade in the Hunter Valley. She was lured to Victoria by the winery's impeccable reputation and the desire to produce cool-climate wines. In 2017 Sarah was named Halliday's Winemaker of the Year for the wines of 2014 – her very first vintage with Yarra Yering. Working harmoniously alongside her is Yarra Valley's homegrown vineyard manager Andrew George, who celebrates 10 years with the winery in 2022.
