2017 Yering Station Shiraz-Viognier Yarra Valley Victoria Australia 750 ml

Yering Station claimed they were sold out of their powerhouse Shiraz-Viognier for the 2017 vintage. None was allocated to the US market. Domestic demand was too high, especially after its recent 95-point score from James Halliday’s Wine Companion, Australia’s answer to Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.

If we accepted that answer, this would be the end of the email. 

But we were persistent. We loved this wine from the second we stuck our nose in our glasses, and were enthralled by its muscular dark fruit, layered flavors, and cellar-worthiness. it was clear that it was a best-in-class bottle at an everyday price—a rare beast, indeed. More importantly, Wine Access members loved past vintages, too, and we could already read the emails in our heads if we didn’t deliver.

So we did what we do best: convince wineries to give up the goods, via many middle-of-the-night phone calls. Cajoling ensued. Eventually, we got what we (and you) needed—a US exclusive on Yering Station’s 95 point 2017 Shiraz-Viognier at a knockout price: just $22 per bottle.

We think this may be the best vintage we've ever offered, and that makes sense: James Halliday’s vintage chart pegs '17 as the best year in Victoria since the legendary 1992. Given the past demand for this wine, that’s really saying something, but it delivered in our glasses too, not just on paper.

The 2017 Yering Station Shiraz-Viognier has a muscular personality and rich dark fruit (think of perfect blackberries, slightly dusty, and warmed by the summer sun), but the climate and Côte-Rôtie-inspired co-fermentation provide an elegance and grace that's polished to a T. Add in aromatics of freshly cracked pepper, violets, dried roses, and just the right amount of new oak and the result is a wine that can hang with the best of Ampuis or California.

Yering Station's Shiraz-Viognier is a sensation, often sold out in Australia and rarely available on this side of the Pacific due to a rabid fanbase in its native land. The original winery in the cool-climate Victoria region, Yering Station’s wines remain something of a secret to non-Aussies. The winery is just an hour away from downtown Melbourne, so there’s intense demand from Australia’s enthusiastic collectors and some of the top restaurants in the country. What chance does your average American have to try them?

Nevertheless, we’ve been in their corner for years (we got to know former winemaker Willy Lund in his Oregon days) and our access and enthusiasm created its own devoted fanbase among Wine Access members, who've recognized their Shiraz-Viognier as a best-in-class bottle at an outrageously low price.

That longtime enthusiasm has paid off, and you owe it to yourself to reap the rewards.