Category: friends

Wednesday 8th February, 7.45 pm
Door Price: Members $14 / Guests $18

There is much to admire and emulate in the wines of Australia. For many members such wines may well be amongst your favourites. Perhaps such wines are from South Australia, perhaps Western Australia, but for this tasting to kick the year off for the club we are highlighting Victoria.

For many wine enthusiasts the wines of this state fly under the radar. If so, you are missing a treat. On a much smaller scale than the neighbouring South Australian state, the wines of Victoria have their own charm, distinctiveness and award-winning status. And some plantings are indeed old vines.

As with NZ there are a number of different vineyard regions within the Victorian state and some well-known vineyards which we will explore under the guidance of Keith Tibble from EuroVintage, who is very well acquainted with these wines.

Across the state from the south (Mornington) to the central near Melbourne (Yarra Valley) to the interior (Grampians , Murray River) there is a diversity and quality that elicits awards and a dedicated following

Mount Langhi (Ghiran)

…is a highly famous cool climate-based winery in the Grampian range of Northern Victoria. Established in 1969 by the Fratin Family, the site had been planted (like Hawkes Bay’s Te Mata ) back in the late 1890s; after one poor and challenging year in 1980, the Fratins decided they needed a consultant and hired the noted winemaker Trevor Mast. Six years later, Trevor his wife and partner Ian Menzies purchased the varied blocks. They started to develop the concept of Cool Climate (Victorian) Shiraz, a personal vision of Trevor that has led Mount Langhi to be regarded as one of Australia’s greatest shiraz producers. We will taste two shiraz wines, the superb but great value Billi Billi and the superb ‘Mast’ awarded 96/100 in Decanter.

Yering Station

…is an acclaimed producer almost as famous for its cellar door and restaurant as their amazing Yarra Valley Wines. Originally the first grapes were planted in 1838 by the Ryrie brothers; this was Victoria’s first winery and was the largest Victorian vineyard right up to the 1980s. Purchased by the Rathbone Family in 1996, Yering Station is sister to Yarrabank, a sparkling producer jointly owned by a champagne House Devaux. However, Yering is famous for its Burgundy style wines – Chardonnay and Pinot Noir – and we will taste the legendary reserve chardonnay along with two superb Pinots, the superb Yering station 2021 and the unique value Village 2021.