Wendouree

5 Star Winery - Halliday Wine Companion

"Exceptional" (Shiraz), "Outstanding" (Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Malbec, Shiraz Malbec, Shiraz Mataro) - Langton's Fine Wine Classification IV

"Wendouree vineyards date back to 1893 and its limited production, high quality, unique wines have a reputation for lasting indefinitely. They have achieved a kind of local (Australian) cult status amongst wine drinkers in the know. They are not available retail, the mailing list is the only way to buy them on release and the mailing list remains one of the hardest to get on in Australia." - Wickmans

"An iron fist in a velvet glove best describes these extraordinary wines. They are fashioned with commitment from the very old vineyard... with its unique terroir, by Tony and Lita Brady, who rightly see themselves as custodians of a priceless treasure. The 100+-year-old stone winery is virtually unchanged from the day it was built; this is in every sense a treasure beyond price. Wendouree has never made any comment about its wines, but the subtle shift from the lighter end of full- bodied to the fuller end of medium-bodied seems to be a permanent one (always subject to the dictates of the vintage)." - James Halliday

"For many lovers of big Australian red wines the discussion begins and ends with Wendouree. Truly exceptionally cellar-worthy, these full bodied and gripping red wines are the result of extremely low yields from the very old, unirrigated vines of Shiraz, Malbec, Mataro (Mourvèdre), and Cabernet Sauvignon, many of them growing on untrellised bush-vines... (Wendouree is) a place of honest, old fashioned, careful and artisan wine making where no short cuts are taken, ever."  - Franz Scheurer