Winemaker Notes
Deep golden tawny in colour with pronounced green edges indicating exceptional wood age. The aroma exudes spicy aged characters from extensive maturation in small oak casks. Still vibrant and fresh, yet complex with vanillin and burnt toffee, dark chocolate and Christmas pudding. The flavours of rich fruit cake with dried fruits and nuts, caramel and honey merge with the intense aged complexity. The palate is silky and luscious with a beautiful aged concentration imparting a firm, piquant richness that lingers persistently.
Drink now, served alongside hard cheese, quince paste, roasted nuts and salted crackers.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
The oldest of Yalumba's three mature Tawnies is a thing of history and beauty, with a portion of the blend from the 1940s, and fortified with brandy from Yalumba's house still. This is warm brown and green-rimmed in hue, like a favorite leather armchair, and the depth of aroma and flavor is remarkable. Chocolate, walnut, molasses and a whisper of dried fruit billow out of the glass. The alcohol and the sweetness are prominent, but those rich, complex aromas morph into flavor, flowing through to a long finish. Concentrated but still vibrant, this is drinking perfectly now and should be one of those gems you open on a very special occasion.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The NV Rare Aged Tawny 50 Years Old is hugely concentrated in all respects. Dark, almost scorched-earth notes join dried dates and figs, yet there's also a searing level of bergamot-like acidity, which helps keep things balanced and (relatively) drinkable. Of course, there's black walnuts and molasses, plenty of rancio character and tremendous length. For pure pleasure, I prefer the 30-year-old bottling, but this is very impressive.
Port is a sweet, fortified wine with numerous styles: Ruby, Tawny, Vintage, Late Bottled Vintage (LBV), White, Colheita, and a few unusual others. It is blended from from the most important red grapes of the Douro Valley, based primarily on Touriga Nacional with over 80 other varieties approved for use. Most Ports are best served slightly chilled at around 55-65°F. To learn more, see our full Port Wine Guide
Historically and presently the most important wine-producing region of Australia, the Barossa Valley is set in the Barossa zone of South Australia, where more than half of the country’s wine is made. Because the climate is very hot and dry, vineyard managers work diligently to ensure grapes reach the perfect levels of phenolic ripeness.
The intense heat is ideal for plush, bold reds, particularly Shiraz on its own or Rhône Blends. Often Shiraz and Cabernet partner up for plump and powerful reds.
While much less prevalent, light-skinned varieties such as Riesling, Viognier or Semillon produce vibrant Barossa Valley whites.
Most of Australia’s largest wine producers are based here and Shiraz plantings date back as far as the 1850s or before. Many of them are dry farmed and bush trained, still offering less than one ton per acre of inky, intense, purple juice.