Yarra Yarra Merlot 1992

It all started in 1974 when Ian Maclean attended a wine tasting led by Michael Broadbent Master of Wine (MW). Ian tasted some of the great Bordeaux first growths and his palate and wine passion were expanded exponentially. There was no going back and in 1977, after a two year search, he purchased a 17-hectare site at Steels Creek at the northern end of the Yarra Valley. The site contained three well-drained northerly slopes perfect for the planting of vines.

In 1979, the first hectare of vines was planted followed by a further hectare in 1980. The classic Bordeaux varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot, and Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon were planted. There were further plantings totalling five and a half hectares on the other two northerly slopes in 1996 and 1997, again with the classic Bordeaux red and white varieties, except for one hectare of Syrah. These three hills are named after Ian's daughters; Sarah, Phoebe and Charlotte. Finally two hectares, mostly Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, with a small area of Syrah were planted in 2002 on a gentle westerly slope, called 'the no-name hill'.

Production is tiny with around 1500 to 2000 cases produced annually. The first vintage produced under the Yarra Yarra label was in 1983. Ian wants to make wines which have a complex palate, intense flavour but at the same time finesse and be instantly recognisable as Yarra Yarra. His winemaking philosophy is to let the grapes talk and treat them gently and with respect. He interferes as little as possible in the winemaking process, barely crushing the berries, using natural yeasts, transferring the wines by gravity rather than pumping and adding minimal amounts of sulphur dioxide. Many have said Ian Maclean produces sophisticated wines, bringing an Old World reserve and elegance to New World fruit. Wines from Yarra Yarra are often mistaken as European wines and are pure, natural wines made to be enjoyed with food.

The vineyard philosophy is no irrigation, open canopies, cane pruning, minimal spraying with only organic sprays and no use of pesticides. Yields are purposely kept low, between three and five tonnes per hectare to ensure grapes are produced with intense flavours. The grapes are always picked on flavour and tannin ripeness, never by chemical numbers!

"Despite its small production, the wines of Yarra Yarra found their way into a veritable who's who of Melbourne's best restaurants, encouraging Ian Maclean to increase the estate plantings from 2ha to over 7ha in 1996 and '97. Demand for the beautifully crafted wines continued to exceed supply, so the Macleans planted yet more vines and increased winery capacity. All this seemed to go up in flames as the terrible 2009 Black Saturday bushfires consumed the winery, irreplaceable museum stock from '83 to 2000, the then yet-to-be-bottled '08 Syrah and '06 and '08 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (the '07 vintage had been destroyed by frost), and scorched or burnt 50% of the estate vineyards. Friends rallied to the cause, and Ian has embarked on the long job of repairing/replacing the vineyard trellis system, methodically replanting the half of the vineyard destroyed by fire and introducing the use of organic/biodynamic sprays. The new winery was finished at the end of April '10. When friends asked why he should do all this, having turned 65, his answer was simple: 'My greatest wines have yet to be made.'"  James Halliday

We want you to enjoy your wines as soon as possible and endeavour to dispatch orders as quickly as we can. It may take us a little longer during sales or peak trading periods, so kindly keep that in mind if you are purchasing for a special occasion.

Shipping Cost

Delivery is free on any order of 12 or more bottles to Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Gold Coast, Newcastle, Sunshine Coast, Wollongong and rural Victoria.

On orders of 12 or more bottles to all other areas, we cover a percentage of the shipping costs. Shipping is calculated at checkout.

For orders of less than 12 bottles Australia wide, shipping is calculated at checkout.

Insurance

All orders are fully insured.

Standard Delivery

We use Australia Post and a Specialist Wine Courier (Anonymous Wine Freight) for domestic deliveries. Your location will determine which of these delivery services will be available.

Couriers will not telephone ahead to notify you of time of delivery and delivery on specific days can not be guaranteed.

While a large number of destinations are serviced within 48 hours or less, please allow up to 14 days for delivery within Australia.

Specialist Wine Delivery Service

We offer a specialist temperature-controlled wine delivery service called Anonymous Wine Freight to deliver your wine if you live close to the CBD in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney or Perth, or live in Byron Bay, Gold Coast, Mornington Peninsula or Geelong. If Anonymous Wine Freight services your postcode, the option to use them will appear on checkout. Here is a link to the list of postcodes they service. 

They are highly recommended as they ship in refrigerated transport to climate-controlled warehouses in each metro area before they make their way to your delivery address in air-conditioned vehicles for the last kilometers. In addition, they will even call you by phone at the time of delivery if they encounter any problems.

Please find their delivery schedule below.

Pick-up

If you live in Melbourne, you can pick up your order from our office in Camberwell by prior arrangement. Please select the 'Pick Up' delivery option during checkout and we will contact you to arrange a suitable time for pick-up once the order has been packed.

What if I won’t be home?

If you may not be home at the time of delivery and would like the wine left in a safe place, please give Authority to Leave (ATL) and any delivery instructions in the 'DELIVERY INSTRUCTIONS & ATL' at the bottom of the shopping cart, located just above the CHECKOUT button. 

If you have requested delivery with Australia Post and have not given Authority to Leave, a signature will be required on delivery. If you miss the postman, the order will be taken to your local Post Office for collection.

If you have requested delivery with our specialist wine courier (Anonymous Wine Freight) and have not given Authority to Leave, the driver will phone you for instructions if you are not at home at the time of delivery. If he can't contact you, the order will be taken to their local depot and can be re-delivered subject to a $20.00 fee.

Summer Heat Policy

If during hot weather you would like us to delay dispatch of your order to avoid potential heat damage to your wine please let us know. We are more than happy to store your order in our climate controlled warehouse until the weather is cooler. Please add the request in the 'DELIVERY INSTRUCTIONS & ATL' at the bottom of the shopping cart, located just above the CHECKOUT button.

Alternatively, we may email you and request to delay dispatch of your order until the weather is cooler. If this happens, you can of course request immediate delivery if you wish.

International Shipping

We deliver wine to a number of destinations worldwide. If you require overseas delivery, please email us with the relevant information and we will advise you if we can deliver to your selected destination and the shipping costs involved.

International orders are supplied GST free. Please be aware that you will be responsible for the payment of all duties and taxes that are levied by your local authorities.

Minimum order requirements apply.