Yalumba Wines - A Taste of Australia

Not long after I acquired my Sommelier certification, I was invited to a professional winetasting of Yalumba Wines at the Australian High Commission. I had the opportunity to interview Jane Ferrari, Yalumba’s winemaker and storyteller. G’day, mate! was her friendly greeting. As we chatted, I asked her opinion about the concept of terroir and she emphatically answered that it’s entirely valid. To educate visitors at the Yalumba vineyards about #terroir, she takes small groups out to 5 different vineyards, then pulls down the back of her truck and does a comparative tasting on the spot.

Jane was named “Wine Communicator of the Year” in Australia. A trained winemaker, she also travels the world for #Yalumba Wines. Canada and the U.S. are the big markets for Yalumba, with demand in cities that have a thriving restaurant culture. In Canada, that’s Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Halifax.

The Acting Australian High Commissioner, graciously hosted the evening’s tasting, as we sipped Yalumba’s excellent wines and enjoyed the stories from Jane. We were served yummy appetizers, including tempura shrimp and delicious scallops, then mini Beef Wellingtons(a big hit) and desserted with miniature lemon meringue tarts.

It was a thoroughly delightful evening…a trip to Australia has been added to my bucket list!

My fav wines from the tasting were:

Yalumba The Virgilius Viognier: A lovely nose of ripe apricots and ginger, followed by a luscious palate with tree fruit(ripe peach and apricot) and gentle ginger. The finish has gentle apricot echoes. This was super with the tempura shrimp and scallops.

Yalumba’s The Signature was a big hit with me. Starting with its dark purple-black colour, this one opens on nose with aromas of cassis, blackberries and floral notes of violets. The palate reveals blackberry jam, cassis and pepper. A delicious long, peppered cassis finish made this one a perfect match with the mini Beef Wellington. Signature is made from hand-picked grapes from the best vintages of Cab Sauv and Shiraz.

The Scribbler is known as the “Little Brother” of Signature. This Cab Sauv & Shiraz blend opens with raspberries, sweet spice and licorice on the nose, followed by strong licorice, herbs, and crushed red plums. Medium to full-bodied, with spicy red currant finish, it also complimented the Beef Wellington.

Jane Staples, Accredited Sommelier & Wine/Food /Travel Writer

Jane Ferrari - Yalumba Winemaker & Storyteller

photo courtesy of Yalumba Wines