Our 2026 Rare and Fine Collection: Launching 1 May

This is not only the greatest wine to ever emerge from the hallowed halls of Yalumba, it is categorically the finest exemplar of the great AUstralian blend of the modern era, and the equal greatest in history. Kevin KG Glastonbury's relentless fanaticism has fused Coonawarra cabernet with Barossa shiraz (26%) to perfection, and I use this word very deliberately. While I was not alive at the time to have the privilege of tasting it in its youth, it has perhaps not been since Max Schubert's legendary 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A that this union has been mastered with such breathtaking harmony. Since its inaugural release a decade ago, The Caley has set the standard for refinement in cabernet shiraz, reincarnating the Coonawarra/Barossa blends of Yalumba of a half-century ago to become the first wine to win Matthew Jukes and my The Great Australian Red competition four times with three vintages, each of which I scored 98-99 points. 2021 embraces this profound legacy and takes it further to establish an all-new benchmark. It elevates this distinguished label by effortlessly contrasting greater depth of black fruits, higher lift of violet fragrance, more energetic, cool season acidity and more profound confidence of tannins that are at once finer and more velvety and yet somehow stronger, more rigid and more enduring - the pinnacle of KG's life work. I have bestowed a perfect score on an Australian table wine only once in the past decade, and The Caley 2021 is every bit deserving. Be sure to be first in line when it is unleashed on 1 May 2026. Drink 2041-2071.
Tyson Stelzer, 7 January 2026

I am infinitely grateful to have creator, creative and creation knowledge of this wine, from its inception to this moment in time. All vintages, all progressions, all inflections and all moments of ‘worry’ have been shared, and so when a wine, and there are few on the planet with this epic consistency of production, is released, the world must pay attention. There is so much class here, it is extraordinary. How would you place this wine if you were an alien landing at our intergalactic hub in search of a refreshing libation? It could only be a wine from the 5263 quadrant of SA, which I am sure an alien could compute faster than most humans. But there is a looming sense of disquiet about this 74% Coonawarra wine, because it has an x-factor that transports into an otherworldly plane that is simply jaw-dropping. My wine mind does all it can to personify every sip I taste and yet, as much as I admire all the James Bonds, Hans Solo, and even, and this might sound somewhat incongruous, the Jackson Lambs of this world, this wine has no earthly human form synonym. It soars, mythical, half-human, half-deity, and it holds back more than it gives, and then releases unfathomable mysteries when you momentarily switch off. It is, in short, epic. I wondered if any wine could eclipse the inaugural 2012 The Caley, and then a handful of them have done just this. 2021 is the most recent to do so, and I am thrilled to bring it to your attention.
Matthew Jukes, 28 January 2026

At this viewing (and we are a long way off from this wine's intended release), we are in for a very special wine – Yalumba's flagship, from the excellent 2021 vintage. It is a picture of elegance and fruit power in one package. There is a glass-staining deep crimson colour for starters. The fruit, seemingly reduced to an essence, is all blackberry, cassis, black cherry and dark plum. Hints of deep spice, blackforest cake, licorice, cedar, tobacco pouch, bouquet garni, black olive tapenade, pencil shavings, roast beef, earth, veal glace and dark chocolate. The tannins are powdery, layered and in perfect resolution, the oak sitting simpatico with the deep fruit, the finish stretching out for a considerable length of time. The best Caley release thus far for mine.
Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion, 19 May 2025

Deep and bright ruby red with a hint of purple shining in the light. Blackberry, mint, dark chocolate and graphite aromatics. The palate is a true delight, showing intensity with poise as it reveals a multitude of facets. Dark berry fruits sit at the centre, with cedar wood, cigar, graphite and bay leaf ebbing and flowing as it drives along. The contrast between effortless intensity and a sense of lightness is remarkable, carried mostly by tannins that show both power and grace. As it reaches an almost never-ending finish, the interplay of characters remains in perfect harmony. (74% Coonawarra cabernet, 26% Barossa shiraz)
Stuart Knox, The Real Review, 30 December 2025

Yalumba The Caley, at its best, is a magnificent wine. Of course it’s pretty much always, every release, at its best – here. There was no release of The Caley from either the 2017 or 2020 vintages. The power of the palate, the length of the finish, and the long curls of tannin are the hallmarks of greatness here. And yet what really excited me about this release was the hit of garrigue-like herb notes, combined with saltbush itself, combined with black olive tapandade. This wine is not just a tidal wave of sweet fruit; far from it. It’s a cabernet-shiraz blend but it comes across, really, as a great cabernet, all authority, all inky fruit, all tannin and all fragrance. The integration of fruit and oak is a masterclass, as is the deep creek of tannin. In the style of a great Australian red, this wine is as good as anything.
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 22 July 2025

The Classic Auto Barossa Trophy for Best Museum Red Wine (Class 22) - Barossa Wine Show 2025

The tannins here are still silky, but younger and more muscular at five years old, with the fruit clearly sweeter and more dense. Think raspberry and blackberry pastille, still with the through-line of balsamic and liquorice, and here a slab of black chocolate, rosemary and olive pit, with a tar and campfire smoke twist on the finish. Delicious now, but will reward ageing and then some. Harvest February 22 to March 15. Average age of the vines at this point is 104 years, with 55% Eden Valey and 45% Barossa (significantly higher Eden sourcing than was the case a decade earlier). 25% new French oak.
Jane Anson, 6 September 2024

Medium deep crimson. Intense inky, blackberry, black cherry, dark chocolate, chinotto aromas with marzipan vanilla hint oatmeal notes. Beautifully balanced and generously proportioned wine with ample inky, pure blackberry fruits, hint of sage, supple chocolaty firm tannins and underlying praline, mocha, marzipan, roasted chestnut notes. Finishes chocolaty firm and long. A classical Barossa Shiraz style with the volume and sinuous structure to last the distance. 19 months maturation in 25% new French oak barriques and hogshead. The balance in seasoned French oak hogsheads and octaves. Drink 2030 – 2048+ 14.5% alc
Andrew Caillard MW, 29 April 2024

Ink black core, deep ruby and purple tones into the rim. Heady nose of ripe mulberry, ironstone, anise and cedar shavings. The palate fills with plush blue and purple fruits, an instant realisation that many elements are in play, all melded with a seamless purity that impresses. Savoury notes of ferrous minerals, dark spices and mocha all build this wine up whilst fine, gravelly tannins ensure that intensity translates to a driven and incredibly long palate. This is just a pup but so approachable in its texture, will build even more as it ages.
Stuart Knox, The Real Review, 23 Aug 2024

How Octavius has evolved over the last decade! Once a massive hulking dinosaur, resplendent in its American oak armour, lumbering along through the ages, beloved of geriatric drinkers. Nowadays, this wine is made from virtually the same fruit, but its oak regime is forward-looking, engineered for agility and not just sheer weight. This suits Octavius exceptionally well because this 2019 is a thunderously successful wine with the most detailed and resonant fruit I have tasted under this label. It is such a relief for this once-outlier in the Yalumba portfolio to finally join the rest of the mind-blowing reds. In 2019, Octavius finally arrived, and it will thrill all-comers.
Matthew Jukes, 2 October 2024

A cool winter with lighter than average rainfalls. Frost, hail, and wind around flowering slashed yields in the Barossa. This and the mild, dry growing season produced intensely concentrated Shiraz, with structured tannins. The grapes were harvested February 22 to March 15. 55% Eden Valley Shiraz, principally The Bartholomaeus family vineyard (planted 1920) and The Scott Thorn Clifton Park Shiraz vineyard (planted 1854), with 45% Barossa Valley Shiraz, principally The Burgemeister Linke block (planted 1901), The Schiller family vineyard (planted 1950 and 1945), and The Simon Cowham old Shiraz block (planted 1955). 19 Months in 25% new French oak hogsheads and barriques, with the balance in one-year and older French octaves and barriques. ABV 14.5%. This spicy, brooding, densely structured release of The Octavius currently wears the Eden Valley component of the blend (55%) on its sleeve, with meaty, (black) peppery undertones, wattle seed, licorice, and a rub of sage. With air, subtle riffs of lavender and violet tick the floral box. Taken together with the firm tannins and charry (rather than sweet) oak, it makes for a relatively dry flavor profile, though there can be little doubt about the intensity of muscular black and blue fruit that lurks beneath. One day two, it starts to limber up, sheathing the tannins in velvet and sketching out the mid-palate with blood plum and blueberry. Embryonic, with great potential. 2025-45+.
Sarah Ahmed, World of Fine Wine, Issue 84, June 2024

The Octavius, named after the 100L French and American oak 'octave' barrels in which it is raised, has an enviable pedigree of cellaring, seemingly able to battle the ravages of time to morph into profundity if conditions of cellar and mind allow. This release, I think, will follow that route, though will be accessible throughout its journey. Deeply coloured and traditionally structured with ripe plum, fine spice, violets, cedar and wood spice at its core, it is a graceful, comforting wine. There is a familiar, elegant feel to its flow, with gentle powdery tannins swelling and providing form, a sweep of morello cherry and a finish that fades in slow motion, all finely poised fruit, spice and leather.
Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion 2025

Long and luscious, this superb Octavius Old Vine Barossa Shiraz possesses a delightful drive and presence.

Sourced from five Barossa vineyards, the oldest of which is an 1854 Eden Valley site, 55% of the fruit comes from the Eden Valley with the remainder from the Barossa.

What sets this wine apart is its oak treatment. It is matured for 19 months in 25% new French oak hogsheads and barriques, with the balance in 1 year and older French octaves and barriques. These octaves are small 100 litre barrels with eight sides - hence the name. The greater wine-to-oak contact ratio is evident in the final result after blending.

Blackberries and black cherries steal the limelight from the outset and get in deep. The concentration and depth cannot be denied. Cedar and sandalwood highlights make themselves known which is expected given the oak treatment. Cherry liqueur, dark chocolate, vanilla and an array of exotic and peppery spices evolve with time in the glass. The length is seemingly endless as silky ribbons of detail continue to pin themselves to a memorable finish.

Decant for now or cellar long term. Either way, you are winning.
Drink to fifteen years+ - Steve Leszczynski, Q Wine, 20 June 2024

Opaque core leading into a deep purple rim. Blackberry, tobacco leaf, graphite and violets leap from the glass. Wonderful density of black and blue fruits creates a base upon which layers of savoury complexity are built. Graphite and tobacco leaf sit at the fore, then notes of cedar and anise shine through. Wrapped in firm but well integrated tannins that provide ample tension and drive, ensuring a long finish that is focused and precise. Many years ahead of this wine.
Stuart Knox, The Real Review, 30 December 2025

This is a particularly good example of why cabernet and shiraz go so well together. Apart from structure and flesh, the combination of dark and red berry flavours, fruit sweetness and leafy herb notes, are just so complementary. This wine is the perfect exhibit: the fruit is fresh and flavoursome at once, not to mention of noteworthy purity. There’s cedarwood oak here too, but its integration is entire, and it has latched on to nuances of tobacco. Yalumba’s Signature pretty much never misses, and this release certainly hasn’t. Fruit, tannin, length and all-round harmony; all are in top nick.
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 18 December 2025

This is the darkest Lord in the Dynasty of The Signature. It glares at you from the glass, challenging you to approach, inch by inch and dare to take a sip. And it is not easy. It requires commitment and a fair slug of bravery. You must punch into this wine, like a cliff-diver, because that’s the level of fearlessness needed, and when you do, you will plunge into an extraordinarily indulgent abyss of flesh and fruit. Once you take the challenge by the horns, it is sheer hedonism: cavorting fruit, spectacular oak backing singers, swaying rhythmically, hand-clapping this band as it advances on the crowd and swallows up their desires in one fell swoop. This is not a regular Sig, per se, but a swelling riff on the eternal Yalumba love affair with Cabernet and Shiraz!
Matthew Jukes, 28 January 2026

The 2024 The Tri-Centenary Grenache is superb. Stylistically, it sits somewhere between the spicy, pressed incense notes of the 2023 and the silky suppleness of the 2022. This wine spent 373 days on the skins—the philosophy now is to press off prior to the next batch coming in to the winery, hence the almost one year between. 14.4% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate, 26 September 2025

This is really something. It’s so pale, so perfumed, so riddled with spice, so sinewy and so damn beautiful. Talk about nailing the brief. Red licorice, orange peel, saltbush, rust, crushed fennel, strawberry and brine characters run in beautiful, fluid fashion from start to finish, both refreshing and seducing as they do so. This was a clear case of love at first sip.
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 19 December 2025

Given that The Menzies has been at the summit of Australian Cabernet fame for the last decade, it is baffling how few genuine wine aficionados know of its legend. Admittedly, in the past, there has been little fanfare surrounding its release, and I hope this year marks a change in its fortunes, because everyone who opens a bottle of this wine, regardless of the vintage, is rewarded with a sublime experience. In terms of global Cabernet acumen, this is pound for pound one of the world’s finest, and longest lived! And so, when I say that this 2022 vintage is one of the greatest to date, I hope you pay heed because not only is the fruit pristine and drenched in toothsome Terra Rossa minerality, it is gleamingly attractive already with a seamless chassis, minutes-long finish and perfectly controlled oak (French and Hungarian) detail. And then something happens in the glass. The second and third sips change, as this wine opens, and the fruit, which was at first well-drilled and polite, shows faintly salty, spicy, and bloody highlights. Carnal hints come and go, and the layers of flora and fauna arrive and recede. It makes for a riveting experience, yet the exterior remains seamless, elegant and polished. There is so much fun to be had here, and I venture that one taste will convert you to a lifelong The Menzies acolyte.
Matthew Jukes, 28 January 2026

Yalumba’s The Menzies cabernet, out of Coonawarra, has become a bit of a treasure over the years. This is seriously good. It’s svelte, elegant, powerful and incredibly lengthy. It tastes of boysenberry, pink marshmallows, blackcurrant and bay leaves, with tobacco and mint notes both studded within and lifting away. The combination of grace and potency are really quite something here. Given the over-inflated nature of wine in general – the asking price of this particular wine, even though higher than in years previous, makes this something of a steal. In any case this is a ripping cabernet.
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 17 December 2025

Deepest ruby red with a hint of purple at the rim. Blackcurrant and cigar box aromatics. The palate fills with a full bodied core of black fruits, cigar box, iron shavings and dusty red earth notes, all melding along the flow while gravelly tannins bring focus and drive it very long. Still very youthful, the tannins will benefit from more time to integrate and this will mature wonderfully with patience.
Stuart Knox, The Real Review, 30 December 2025

Deep ruby red with a rich purple rim. A heady nose of ripe blueberries and blood plums, star anise and hints of ironstone. Powerful and intense on the palate without overloading the senses. Blue fruits build majestically with notes of charred beef, iron and violets, all melded together in harmony. Tannins are pitch perfect, finely grained but with ample tension to ensure great length to the finish. It will evolve even further with patient cellaring
Stuart Knox, The Real Review, 30 December 2025

Of all the wine types that it’s hardest to guess the price – before it’s been revealed – in Australian wine terms at least, I would say that it’s full-bodied shiraz. This is a soft, satiny wine with plum, bitumen, clove, cedar and burnt toast characters flooding the palate. There’s a saltiness to the fruit here as well. It’s relatively straightforward but the polish, weight of fruit, balance and finish are all up there in quality. The creaminess of the texture here – not overplayed – doesn’t hurt either.
Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 19 December 2025

Class 3 Aromatic Whites

Yalumba's Virgilius Viognier remains a benchmark for the variety in Australia. Expressive but so finely focused and precise, nothing blown out of proportion, no mean feat with this persnickety variety. Tautly stretched citrus fruits with a whiff of apricot kernel and hints of white flowers, crushed stone, almond meal, white flowers, some distant marzipan and clover blossom. Stony-pure on the palate with a lovely bright mineral cadence and a dry, enduring finish.
Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion, 7 May 2025

Unquestionably Australia’s flagship Viognier, and has been for many years, the Virgilius sits comfortably with the best made on the planet (and is usually significantly better buying). From the Eden Valley, this comes from the team’s oldest Viognier vines – they first planted this variety back in 1980 when there seemed every chance that it would slide into extinction. This vintage spent ten months in French oak. A pale lemon hue, this is beautifully aromatic. No escaping the grape though – Viognier is as distinctive as Gewürztraminer, when well made. There is ginger and lemongrass here, but most especially apricot, along with mandarins, nectarines and a touch of orange rind. We also have aromas of spices and a touch of limes. Such balance and length! A superb Viognier/Virgilius, which surely has at least six to ten years ahead of it.
Ken Gargett, Wine Pilot, 5 May 2025

Yalumba's wizardry with Viognier is declared most profoundly in the coolest seasons, of which 2023 is one of the finest since its vines were planted in 1980. I love its cool energy and elegant restraint, and yet its confidence in projecting inimitable varietal identity in apricot kernel, ginger and pink grapefruit. Texturally, this is a marvel, at once zesty and vibrant and at the same time mesmerisingly silky, slippery and succulent, concluding with the perfect clip of impeccably polished phenolic tension. Go long on this one.
Tyson Stelzer, The Barossa, Spring 2025