The Caskaway

Yalumba Galway Vintage 2021 Barossa Shiraz. Doing our last food shop for Christmas I bought a bottle of Yalumba Shiraz from their wine section, it was reduced to under ten pounds so it can definitely be included in my Supermarket Slurps selection. I tend to look around the ten-pound price mark in the supermarket when buying wine as anything less and the costs of the bottle, taxation, duty, shipping, and marketing tend to swallow up most of the cost price.

Paying around ten pounds gets you a bit more money spent on the quality of the wine. However, you can get bargains under ten pounds particularly if you look at less popular varieties of grape and wine growing regions. Ten pounds is just my rough guideline for the type of wines I like.  So why did I pick the Yalumba? Well it ticked a lot of boxes, it’s a brand I have seen and tried before, a grape I like from a region I like, a Shiraz from Australia’s Barossa Valley.

Barossa Valley Shiraz

Typically, Australian Shiraz wines are like the stereotypical view of Australians big, bold, and forward. The Barossa Valley is home to some of Australia’s oldest vineyards as well as some of the biggest and most famous wine producers. Penfolds and Henschke produce some of the most sought after and expensive wines in the world. Partly because of the higher temperatures during ripening Barossa Valley Shiraz’s are packed with fruit flavours like blackberry and plum. You will also find secondary flavours of pepper, chocolate, and liquorice. The wines are relatively high in alcohol and tannin which gives them the potential to age.

Yalumba Galway Vintage 2021 Barossa Shiraz

Named after Henry Galway, former governor of South Australia, Galway Vintage is sourced from vineyards across the Barossa wine region. Founded in 1849 Yalumba is a family -owned winery now run by the sixth generation of the Hill-Smith family. Committed to sustainability Yalumba has been awarded 33 prizes and accolades for their approach. Hill-Smith Family Estates has grown from the single vineyard at Yalumba and now owns a number of vineyards and brands including Oxford Landing and their eponymous Hill-Smith Estate. They run their own nursery cultivating vines for the whole Australian wine industry, a cooperage making oak barrels to store and age their wines and a negociant business selling wines from their own and other family-owned wine business around the world.

When I poured the Yalumba Galway Shiraz it was a ruby red in colour. A big hit of blackberries was the first aroma I picked up followed by plenty of vanilla and a touch of peppery spice from the nine months spent maturing in a selection of French, Hungarian and American oak barrels. There are touches of liquorice, chocolate, and lots more fruit during the drinking. Well balanced and very smooth this is a really pleasing wine and excellent value at the price. It will pair with grilled lamb, or a burger and the spice will perfectly match a steak with pepper sauce.

Grape variety                               Shiraz

Country of origin                      Australia

Region                                             Barossa Valley, South Australia

Vintage                                            2021

Alcohol                                            14.5%

Notes

Yalumba Galway Vintage 2021 Barossa Shiraz is suitable for vegans and vegetarians.