A Must Stop On Life’s Wine Journey

The enjoyment of wine is a lifelong journey. As a teenager you start off by sucking down a bladder of Chateau Cardboard from the supermarket bargain bins to get you into party mode. In your early twenties you start taking wine bottles to dinner parties, usually decided by price but sometimes by the number of award stickers on the label.

From your mid-twenties on, you get a little more sophisticated; you start experimenting with different reds, whites and interesting blends. Vintages become relevant, as do wine-producing regions and finally, the memorable winemakers themselves.

Yalumba is one such winemaker. Based in South Australia’s Barossa Valley, this family business has been running for over 170 years now, with Jessica Hill-Smith chalking up a sixth generation of family involvement. But it’s not just family members who put a lot of their time into making great wine, many of their staff have been there for decades too.

Yalumba’s The Signature range celebrates these long-serving individuals who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of winemaking. Most years since 1966, a special blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz is released with a different Signatory to mark the occasion. Despite this tradition, strict standards are maintained as several years have passed since 1966 when The Signature was not released. This was due to a general consensus within the company that the fruit of that vintage was of not a high enough standard for the brand to continue.

If you’re looking to make a memorable stop on your life’s wine journey, we definitely recommend The Signature by Yalumba. They do too, and they should know, they’re onto their sixth lifetime of making wine.