Yarra Yering Dry Red No. 1 – Yarra Valley, VIC
Anointing just one Wine of the Year from the 9129 wines tasted for this edition was no trivial task. This year, the complexity of the challenge was compounded to an all new level by bringing the full tasting panel in on the final decision. Every standout wine of every style from every taster was on the table to be tasted, rigorously discussed and voted upon. From our Halliday Wine Companion Sparkling Wine of the Year, White Wine of the Year and Red Wine of the Year, the panel then cast its votes to determine our 2022 Wine of the Year.The winning wine comes from 2022 Winery of the Year, Yarra Yering – the first producer in Wine Companion history to ever take out two major titles in the one edition. The 50th vintage of this iconic, Bordeaux-style blend has been passed down from winery founder Bailey Carrodus to present-day winemaker and general manager Sarah Crowe, who has undeniably done it justice. Find out more about our 2022 Wine of the Year below.
2022 Halliday Wine Companion Wine of the Year, the 2019 Yarra Yering Dry Red No. 1.
This is mesmerising. Do take time to bask in its fragrance – all floral and spicy with some aniseed and fresh herbs. Enjoy the poised fruit flavours of blackberries, mulberries and a hint of blueberries coated in spicy oak and tethered to the body of the wine. Pulsing acidity and beautiful tannin structure shape this and offer a promise of more to come in time. Wow, what a wine. – Jane Faulkner
Yarra Yering's award-winning Dry Red No. 1 is a Bordeaux-style blend comprised primarily of cabernet sauvignon with elements of merlot, malbec and petit verdot, and was first produced by winery founder Bailey Carrodus in 1969.
"Our two most famous wines have always been blends of varieties," say winemaker Sarah Crowe. "It's a skill to get your blends right so the wine has a seamless transition on the palate between the varieties and the flavours."
“The 2019 vintage is a bit of a funny one because, on paper, it was a tough season and a dry year,” she says. “I would have predicted the wines would have more fruit weight and be bigger, but they still have that beautiful Yarra Valley energy and vibrancy. And I don’t know for sure, but I hope it’s got a lot to do with the work we’ve been doing in the vineyard.”
Sarah samples wines in the Yarra Yering barrel room.
“The 2019 vintage is a bit of a funny one because, on paper, it was a tough season and a dry year,” she says. “I would have predicted the wines would have more fruit weight and be bigger, but they still have that beautiful Yarra Valley energy and vibrancy. And I don’t know for sure, but I hope it’s got a lot to do with the work we’ve been doing in the vineyard.”
Tyson Stelzer on our 2022 Wine of the Year
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Previous Wine of the Year recipients were Bass Phillip Reserve Pinot Noir 2010 (2014), Xanadu Stevens Road Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 (2015), Serrat Shiraz Viognier 2014 (2016), Best’s Thomson Family Shiraz 2014 (2017), Henschke Hill of Grace 2012 (2018), Duke’s Vineyard Magpie Hill Reserve Riesling 2017 (2019), Yangarra Estate Vineyard High Sands McLaren Vale Grenache 2016 (2020) and Brokenwood Graveyard Vineyard Hunter Valley Shiraz 2018 (2021).
*This is an edited extract from the 2022 Halliday Wine Companion, with reviews by Jane Faulkner, James Halliday, Erin Larkin, Tony Love, Ned Goodwin MW, Jeni Port and chief editor Tyson Stelzer.
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