Warramate Syrah 2017

Warramate, a small vineyard planted on the slopes of the Warramate ranges at Gruyere, is one of the Yarra Valley’s oldest wineries. It was established in 1970 by the Church family on a spectacular north-facing slope overlooking the central Yarra Valley. In 2011, Warramate was sold to a partnership that owns the adjoining Yarra Yering. The Warramate brand is kept as a separate operation, using fruit from the existing estate vineyards. Initially, the wine continued to be made at Warramate, however in more recent years, Sarah Crowe has been crafting the wines in the Yarra Yering winery. The Warramate wines are made with the same attention to detail that goes into the premium Yarra Yering wines, but are more upfront, fragrant and accessible when young. 

"There's a lot of action in this wine. The bouquet and palate run a wheel of fortune game, betting on black or red fruit flavours. It's only just medium-bodied, but is fresh and very long."  James Halliday

"Perfume and red berry notes entwine with a licorice spice element. An elegant style reflecting its’ cool climate origins, it features a succulent, lightly footed fruit layered palate replete with fine, gentle tannins.

The fruit was destemmed gently to retain whole berries to a series of 0.5 to 2.0-tonne capacity open-fermenters. The vats were fermented on skins and hand plunged to aid in the gentle extraction of colour, flavour and tactile palate components. Maturation time in barrel was 15 months prior to bottling. All 228L oak barriques, 100% French with 15% new barrels."  Warramate 

Expert reviews

"20-45yo vines, hand-picked and sorted, 10-14 days on skins, 12 months maturation in used French oak. There's a lot of action in this wine. The bouquet and palate run a wheel of fortune game, betting on black or red fruit flavours. It's only just medium-bodied, but is fresh and very long. Drink by 2032."  James Halliday, Halliday Wine Companion - 95 points and Special Value Wine  ★ 

"Nutty and rose petal, raspberry aromas, savoury and mellowing, with a hint of almond meal. The wine is lean and medium-bodied, taut and elegant with delicious fruit sweetness. A nicely balanced, savoury, medium-bodied shiraz with clean, dry but soft finish. Excellent drinkability. Drink 2019-2031."  Huon Hooke, The Real Review - 92 points

Awards

Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion  ★ 

About the winemaker

Sarah Crowe was appointed Winemaker at Yarra Yering in 2013 and has never looked back since. She was named James Halliday Winemaker of the Year in 2017, Gourmet Traveller Wine Winemaker of the Year in 2021 and the Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Winemaker of the Year in 2021.

Sarah was the first female to win the prestigious James Halliday Winemaker of the Year award. Halliday said, "She has done a fabulous job with what was her first full vintage. Just an amazing, amazing job. She has made red wines of the highest imaginable quality and to the delight of many, myself included, has offered all the wines with screwcaps."

Meanwhile, on Crowe's watch, Yarra Yering was named Winery of the Year in 2021 by Huon Hooke's The Real Review, and named Winery of the Year and awarded Wine of the Year in 2022 by James Halliday's Wine Companion.

Sarah had no ambitions to be a winemaker. However, on a trip to Europe in her early 20s, Sarah was struck by the beauty of a French vineyard and she remembers thinking to herself, "I'm going to work in a vineyard when I get back to Australia." Several years later, in 2001, she got a job in the vineyard at Brokenwood in the Hunter Valley pruning vines. Sarah stayed on for nine years, completed a viticulture degree and worked her way up to assistant winemaker. In 2009 she won the Hunter Valley Wine Industry Association's 'Rising Star of the Year' Award.

During her time at Brokenwood Sarah also gained valuable experience overseas. She worked international harvests in Oregon in 2004 and 2006 at Adelsheim Vineyard and Ponzi Family Vineyards (focusing on Pinot noir and Chardonnay), and the Rhone Valley in 2008 at Paul Jaboulet Aine (working with Viognier and Shiraz).

She moved to Bimbadgen in 2010 as senior winemaker and brought a new level of sophistication to the wines. She worked with many varieties from across Australia's premium grape growing regions in a range of wine styles. She also took part in the Future Leaders of the Wine Industry Program as well as being accepted as one of only twelve people into the prestigious Len Evans Tutorial Program.

After 12 years in the Hunter Valley, she was offered the coveted job as winemaker at Yarra Yering, established in 1969 by Dr Bailey Carrodus, and headed south to the Yarra Valley.

"Dr Carrodus was a botanist, so the vineyard has always been the central focus of Yarra Yering," says Sarah. "We've always had more staff in the vineyard than anywhere else." That focus aligns with Sarah's passion and origins in viticulture. Since joining the team, she's worked with viticulturist Andrew George to revitalise the picturesque vineyard and has evolved the wine styles, all while honouring Yarra Yering's past.

Sarah's approach is all about capturing the unique characteristics of the vineyard and climate, letting the winemaking take a backseat. "My motivation is to make the best wine each year that represents that season," says Sarah. "Each year is different. And so capturing that in a bottle is what I enjoy the most. Every year we're trying to understand and express the vineyard more, and that comes from a lot of thinking and attention to detail. The best wines do not come easily, but they should look effortless."

Sarah credits Dr Carrodus for providing her with all the riches a winemaker craves to produce really great wine. "I simply want to make wines which are true to the integrity of the fruit I have to work with. And the fruit is exceptional. With the advances in the scientific understanding of winemaking we have today, I can only improve on the original vision and legacy created by Dr Carrodus," said Sarah. 

About the winery

Warramate, a small vineyard planted on the slopes of the Warramate ranges at Gruyere, is one of the Yarra Valley’s oldest wineries. It was established in 1970 by the Church family on a spectacular north-facing slope overlooking the central Yarra Valley.

The Church family were the original owners of the entire section of land at the base of the Warramate Hills. In the 1960’s, they sold off a large section on the lower slopes to Dr Carrodus who established Yarra Yering, and another block on the higher slopes which would later become Coldstream Hills. They kept a smaller section in the middle for themselves.

Shortly after Dr Bailey Carrodus from Yarra Yering had planted vines on the property below the Warramate site, Jack and June Church planted Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on their site. They proceeded to make their own wines under the Warramate label with Jack at the helm. After Jack died his son David, having obtained a degree in Wine Science from Charles Sturt University, became chief executive and winemaker in 2000.

For 40 years the Church's produced small quantities of elegant and refined shiraz, cabernet sauvignon and riesling from dry grown, handpruned and handharvested vines. In March 2011, Warramate was sold to This Century Pty Ltd, a partnership that owned the adjoining Yarra Yering. 

The Warramate brand is kept as a separate operation, using fruit from the existing estate vineyards planted in 1970. Initially the wine continued to be made at Warramate, however in more recent years, Sarah Crowe has been crafting the wines in the Yarra Yering winery. The Warramate wines are made with the same attention to detail that goes into the premium Yarra Yering wines, but are are more upfront, fragrant and accessible when young. The wines are crafted to provide something to drink while the Yarra Yering’s come online.