The Australian wine industry has a lot to thank Yalumba for!
Our country's oldest family-owned winery, their roots run as far back as 1849 when ambitious Englishman Samuel Smith planted his first vines in the heart of the Barossa, beginning a journey of deep appreciation and connection to the land that Robert Hill-Smith, his fifth-generation descendant, still maintains today and imbues within their numerous beloved releases.
Together with Senior Winemaker Kevin Glastonbury (now entering his 27th year at the estate), and a whole host of other talented vignerons devoted to the cause, pioneering labels like the Signature (one of Australia's first great examples of a Cabernet Shiraz blend when first launched in the early 60's), and the Octavius (a powerful flagship Shiraz sourced across six parcels in Eden Valley and Barossa, from vines as old as 1854) have never been as flavourful and pronounced. They are a team who can truly boast a remarkable (and necessary) evolution in line with the ever-changing climate and industry trends, while remaining true to the family's adoration of full-bodied, sharply-structured red wine.
In celebration of this eternal Australian flame, passing their 175th birthday late last year, we look at eight expressions new and old this Saturday (24th May) at our usual 12 to 2pm! Come by and see the value shining from their Sanctum Cabernet (sourced from Coonawarra) and Paradox Shiraz, before going delving deeper with 2014 + 2022 comparisons of Signature, a 2015 + 2020 Menzies duo, their very singular Tri-Centenary Grenache, and a dark and brooding Octavius from 2018.
All wines available now on special, if you can't make it in for the tasting!
Yalumba - Releases New & Old
Tasting - Saturday 24th May (12 to 2pm)
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Sanctum Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 -
Available for $22
Yalumba have found such a wonderful sweet spot with this label, showing everything great about Coonawarra and the expressive Cabernet it can bring for a price that still doesn't seem real. Leading with ripe blackberries and black olives, it descends into some lovely waves of cassis, chocolate and that dry spicy bramble note that Coonawarra can carve out so beautifully. It strikes us as the perfect red to pair with a slow-cooked meat stews or dishes - Our Notes
"Rich and dark fruited with blackberry and roasted plums, there’s a black olive note just before the spice and smoke of wood layers in. Dry on the palate with the impact of tannins and acidity biting first, these are contrasted by the fleshy core fruits. The wine has a bold muscley frame and fleshy chewy core. It’s balanced and well made with a decent finish." - 92 Points, Cameron Douglas MS
Paradox Shiraz 2022 -
$47 on special this week; $53 RRP
"Deep red in colour. Opening aromas of dark plum, blackcurrant and dark chocolate followed by notes of dried sage, olive tapenade and vanilla cream. A very soft, plush and powerful palate with blueberry notes, dark cherries, espresso, baking spices, Black Forest cake and attractive tannins to finish." - Winemaker Notes
The Signature Cabernet Shiraz 2022 -
$58 on special this week; $65 RRP
"Yalumba's famous Signature cabernet sauvignon and shiraz blend has a strong pedigree when it comes to cellaring and the 2022 release will certainly carry on long into the future. The fruit density and purity here is impressive. Blackberry, Doris plum and black cherry tones, their flow elegant and graceful across the palate with hints of spice, cedar, tobacco, pencil shavings, roasting meats, dried herbs and olive tapenade. Fine-grained tannins are in abundance and there is an extended finish that rolls on and on. It's a super release." - 96 Points, Dave Brookes, Halliday's Wine Companion
The Menzies Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 -
$58 on special this week; $66 RRP
"Deep crimson with a plum hue. Aromas of fresh blackcurrants, mulberry, ozone, violets and exotic spices. Take a sip and you will feel the poise and tension for which great Cabernet is renowned. A wine of great complexity with flavours of blackcurrant jubes, bitter chocolate and mulberries, wrapped in divine tannins and a lovely sweet, dark fruit finish. With decanting in its youth it is enjoyable as an elegant full-bodied red wine." - Winemaker Notes
The Tri-Centenary Grenache 2023 -
$69 on special this week; $79 RRP
"The genius of winemaker Kevin Glastonbury’s bold experimentation with ancient bush-vine Grenache (planted in 1889) is paying maximum dividends in this superior vintage expression. The bravery to pursue 333-day maceration on skins after fermentation in open-top stainless steel tanks enables the most pure fruit expression, while maintaining an especially lean palate line. A pale crimson hue belies its lively aromas and flavours, so fragile they lean towards the ethereal. The extended skin contact draws out sublime nuances of wild raspberry, pulled taut by super-fine tannins. An extraordinary, distinctively original wine. Capturing this under screwcap will ensure its vitality and nervy energy is preserved for a decade in the cellar." - 98 Points, David Sly, Decanter
The Menzies Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 -
$69 on special this week; $79 RRP
"A classy Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon museum offering, made by Peter Gambetta, from the strong 2015 vintage. There's a solid pedigree of longevity with The Menzies and this release is beginning to show that potential. Brightly coloured with pure blackberry, blood plum and blackcurrant fruits, there's still some primary exuberance to the fruit profile; it seems youthful. There's hints of mixed spice, a light shading of tobacco and dark chocolatey things and a passing glance of mint. The tannins are compact and powdery and there is a long, elegant finish that shows excellent sustain and harmony." - 96 Points, James Halliday's Wine Companion (reviewed April 2025)
The Signature Cabernet Shiraz 2014 -
$83 on special this week; $95 RRP
"Pitch perfect on the nose, palate and finish. This is in superb form. Berried, chocolatey, laced with licorice, scattered with dry, fragrant herbs and topped with pure coffee-like flavour. It feels both alive and dense, it’s scaffolded by an assertive range of tannin, it’s lifted by mint-like tips, and it reaches far through the finish/aftertaste. Perfect red for the cellar." - 96 Points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
"This ticks all the boxes, a rock of ages in the storm of Yalumba reds coming onto the market, led by The Cayley, but numerous others seeking your company. The blackcurrant and blackberry fruit are in total harmony, and the overall texture is of a high order thanks to the oak management, as well as that of the tannins. A standout from a vintage that had its challenges." - 96 Points, James Halliday
The Octavius Shiraz 2018 -
$155 on special this week; $175 RRP
"Yalumba's flagship offering is made from shiraz split across vineyards in the Barossa and Eden Valleys with an average age of 80 years. A portion is matured for 23 months in 30% new French oak barriques and hogsheads and the balance in one-year-old (and older) American octaves, French barriques and hogsheads. Deep crimson with ripe blackberry, black cherry, satsuma plum and blueberry fruits cut with baking spices, vanillin oak, cedar, licorice, dark chocolate, clove and violets. The fruit glistens on the palate, beautifully weighted and graceful in its shape, with ripe tannins melting into the wine and a shimmering acidity that provides cadence and shines a light on the pristine fruit. This will cellar beautifully, but my goodness it is lovely to drink at the moment. Another epic Octavius release." - 97 Points, Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion
"Fragranced and aromatically complex on the nose - beguiling and totally captivating red berries, clove, vanilla, liquorice and wild herbs. This has an inky density to it, weighty and fully textured but with amazing purity of fruit. Bright and piercing acidity adds to the overall expression with tannins that are refined yet carry a sense of opulence and seduction. Clean and sleek, wide, full and mouthwatering with liquorice, cherry blossom and strawberry fruit all the way through. Delicious." - 97 Points, Georgina Hindle, Decanter
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Also Available In-Store (Not on tasting)
The Menzies Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 - $78 on special ($89 RRP)
The Signature Cabernet Shiraz 2012 - $83 on special ($95 RRP)
(Last available bottles of this vintage!)
If you wish to buy any of these wines, please use the links above
Alternatively, email us at sales@thewineemporium.com.au, or contact us on (07)32521117 if you have any questions.
// Special prices valid until Thursday the 29th of May