Yalumba’s 2021 Sanctum Cabernet Sauvignon Makes History
Every once in a while, a wine comes along that really grabs your attention—not with some fancy label or over-the-top marketing, but with pure, undeniable quality. Yalumba’s 2021 Sanctum Cabernet Sauvignon is exactly that. Quietly showing up at a big competition, sweeping the awards, and leaving everyone scratching their heads, like, “Wait, how is this bottle this affordable?”
Winning Best Wine of Show at the Limestone Coast Wine Show is no small feat. But doing it two years in a row with the same vintage? That’s unheard of in the 23-year history of the event. This Cabernet isn’t just racking up awards; it’s setting a new benchmark.
The Sanctum’s success is rooted, quite literally, in the vineyard. It’s made from grapes grown in Yalumba’s Menzies Estate Vineyard, located in the heart of Coonawarra. This region is known for its famous terra rossa soil—prime real estate for growing top-tier Cabernet Sauvignon. And credit for harnessing these conditions goes to James Freckleton, the vineyard’s viticulturist. Freckleton’s meticulous work on this wine earned him the Arthur Hoffmann Trophy for Viticulturist of the Year—for the second year in a row, no less.
From the first pour, the wine makes a strong impression. It pours a deep crimson with a flicker of magenta around the edges. The nose offers up an inviting mix of blueberries, violets, and maraschino cherry, alongside hints of dark berries and a whisper of French oak. On the palate, bold black fruits—cassis, blackberry, and plum—come forward, balanced by fine-grain tannins that provide structure without stealing the show.
Chief Judge Philip Rich summed it up perfectly: “It’s a wine with richness and structure, but it remains elegant—combining the best of traditional Coonawarra with modern winemaking.” It’s this harmony of heritage and innovation that makes the Sanctum shine—not just at Limestone Coast, but across numerous wine competitions.
On top of its back-to-back Best Wine of Show wins, it also took home the HR (Ron) Haselgrove Trophy for Best Cabernet Sauvignon (Current to 3 Years Old) and the David Wynn Trophy for Best Red Wine of Show. It didn’t stop there—this wine went on to pick up gold medals at the Sydney Royal Wine Show, the Royal Melbourne Wine Show, and the Perth Royal Wine Awards. Few wines can pull off such a clean sweep in a single year.
Wine critics have been equally enthusiastic. Sam Kim of Wine Orbit awarded it 94 points, praising its concentration and smooth texture, calling it “highly enjoyable” and suggesting it will drink beautifully through 2033. Cameron Douglas MS gave it 93 points, noting the “inky staining of the tears” in the glass, while highlighting its layers of blackberries, plums, and subtle barrel spices. Even Bob Campbell MW chimed in with 90 points, noting its depth of flavour and calling it “excellent value,” with notes of cassis, dark chocolate, and cedar.
But what really sets the Sanctum apart is how accessible it is. At under $30, it offers remarkable value in a market where wines like this usually carry a much heftier price tag. It’s the kind of wine that fits just as comfortably on a fancy dinner table as it does with a low-key weeknight meal.
While it’s drinking beautifully now, the Sanctum also has solid aging potential. Those silky tannins and vibrant fruit are only going to get better with time. With a little patience (and proper storage), this wine will continue to evolve, gaining complexity and depth well into the next decade. And that’s fitting, given that it’s a bottle that reflects the rich history of Coonawarra winemaking while pointing toward an exciting future.
