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letuffeau.com
“Wantirna Estate is technically outside the Yarra Valley … nevertheless … for all kinds of reasons it is appropriate that it should be included in this section of the book. James Halliday, for one, has declared that Wantirna Estate is an honorary Yarra Valley winery on the grounds that it would be a decoration to any region which included it.”
Len Evan’s Complete Book of Australian Wine — Len Evans
“The family have decided that it is time to sell the property. What that means for future winemaking is undecided - we will keep you all informed.”
— Maryann Egan, Wantirna Estate
“The entire history of the Yarra Valley as a modern wine making region is encapsulated in Wantirna Estate. Its plantings predate every other estate and remains a family concern with vineyard and cellar work in the hands of one woman: Maryann Egan, daughter of the founder Reg Egan. I corresponded with Maryann once, requesting vintage notes on a wine from 1999, and received the response that such was lost in a roof leak more than decade ago. This is a personal winery that produces the finest wines in Australia.”
— David
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CHAMPAGNE DINNER
Andre Robert
with
Loic Avril
R E — S C H E D U L E D
now
THURSDAY 29/10
~ selling fast ~
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Ling Nan Cantonese Restaurant
$250.00 all inclusive
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NV Champagne Blanc de Noir Extra Brut 'Le Vignes de Montigny'
100% Pinot Noir
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NV Champagne Blanc de Blancs 1er Cru Extra Brut 'Les Horizons'
100% Chardonnay
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NV Champagne Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Brut Nature 'Les Jardins du Mesnil'
100% Chardonnay
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NV Champagne Rose Extra Brut 'Les Roses des Vignes'
50% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Meunier, 25% Pinot Noir
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W A N T I R N A E S T A T E
Bushy Park Lane, Wantirna
(Yarra Valley G. I.)
“All matters of wine writing remain regardless of my tending prolix strictly professional. This statement should not be taken to mean that I do not wax excited when writing about wines. I am still left, courtesy of the organoleptic and haptic qualities of wine, impressed by what is in many glasses and wish to communicate this to a readership, sometimes for the base reason of selling a product but always spurred by a sensorial motivation. Few wines, however, elicit an emotional response from me.
Wantirna Estate is the only Australian winery that moves me. I find writing this note difficult as no description can encapsulate quite how, or indeed why, I feel attached to these wines.”
— David
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I
The First Chardonnay Vines in the Modern Yarra Valley
Wantirna Estate 2025 Yarra Valley Chardonnay ‘Isabella’
3 bottles available
Offer: $115.00
“In the last three months I have had both the 1998 and the 1999 Chardonnay ‘Isabella’ from Wantirna Estate. Both wines were in excellent condition, the older of the two fine, the younger: exceptional. Indeed I believe the 1999, which was from a Magnum, is not just finest Australian Chardonnay, but the finest Australian white wine of any varietal that I have tasted.”
— David
&
“From 50 to 60—year—old vines. A complex bouquet of yellow plum, orange zest and fresh honeycomb. Beautifully balanced on the palate, which is vibrant and saline, with a fine bead of acidity that leaves you wanting another sip as soon as you've finished the first. A gorgeous wine that will reward cellaring for at least five to seven years. Only 85 dozen made.”
97pts — Philip Rich, James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion
Orders by reply email, please
II
The First Pinot Noir Vines in the Yarra Valley
Wantirna Estate 2024 Yarra Valley Pinot Noir ‘Lily’
9 bottles available
Offer: $115.00
“I have had a number of ‘Lily’ Pinot Noirs now from the last decade and find them consistently at the forefront of my mind when asked about quality Australian Pinot Noir, a category that is far too small. I would still drink these in preference over most extant Victorian producers.”
— David
&
“A light, bright crimson. This is quite different from the brooding, backward ‘23. A pretty, perfumed bouquet redolent of red summer berries, fresh florals and a little spice. The palate is lively and juicy before finishing with velvety, persistent old-vine tannins. By all means, open this now and enjoy it with Peking duck, but know that it will age very nicely over the next decade.”
97pts — Philip Rich, James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion
Orders by reply email, please
III
Yarra Valley First Growth
Wantirna Estate 2024 ‘Amelia’
6 bottles available
Offer: $115.00
“A wine that no Victorian or perhaps Australian wine drinker should live without sampling. Certainly, in my estimation, ahead of the other old and grand names in the Yarra Valley: Mount Mary ‘Quintet’, Yeringberg ‘Yeringberg’, Yarra Yering ‘No. 1’. I have been privileged to have had the excellent 2001 ‘Amelia’ twice this year and believe it while youthful to rank among the finest of Australian Clarets, close to the Yarra Yering ‘No 1’ from 1990. 2024 was a great vintage for old vine Claret. I see this wine as being discussed by the cognoscenti for decades.”
— David
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“47/44/9% Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot and Cabernet Franc field blend/Petit Verdot. A gorgeous, bright, crimson purple. This soars effortlessly from the glass with its aromas of pure blackcurrant, dark raspberry and gentle cedar and floral notes. The more you swirl this, the more perfumed it becomes! Medium bodied, this is just as fragrant on the palate, which is simultaneously concentrated, structured, elegant and very long. A simply superb wine.”
98pts — Philip Rich, James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion
Orders by reply email, please
IV
Australia’s Greatest Wine
Wantirna Estate 2024 ‘Hannah’
1 bottle available only with a purchase of the other wines
Offer: $200.00
“Just as Petrus or Chateau d’Yquem stand alone, so does the Wantirna Estate ‘Hannah’. A single new barrel, or approx. 250 bottles, produced annually since 1999. My only remark is that this is the finest wine in Australia.”
— David
Orders by reply email, please
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A Note on Wantirna Estate
Again, I found found writing this note difficult as it must begin and end with my thoughts bound by a simple fact: Wantirna Estate has been put up for sale by the Egan Family.
Speculation: it is most probably on course to follow the Diamond Valley/Punch (Lance family) and Goonawarra (Barnier) to quiet oblivion. This is not to mention the old vines at Ray-Monde (Lakey), Romsey Vineyards (Cope-Williams), Balgownie (Anderson), etc.
sic gloria mundi transit
Dwelling within the matter further, I believe I find these wines to be moving for reasons beyond scale and scarcity; they demonstrate a connection between the winemaking and the vines, and their. This may be a statement of the obvious yet I am of the opinion that this quality is rare captured by Australian winemaking, especially in the present. I think also of the years following the Black Saturday Bushfires, when James Lance and Phil Lobley worked to regenerate the old vines at Punch after the vineyard was burnt through. After a hiatus the wines they produced together in 2012 and 2014 remain some of the most remarkable ever produced in this country.
Maryann Egan has detailed attending to every facet of the vineyard herself, as well as the winemaking. She grew up in the vineyard as a toddler. Her wines display the some traits. There are probably only one or two other estates of this ilk in the country.
I really could not care less if the giants of the industry of winemaking tumble. We will unfortunately be the poorer as a winemaking country without Wantirna Estate, yet I think few will understand or mourn the passing.
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Please join us for a drink soon. Reservations preferred.
Bookings and after-6.00pm access: (03) 9419 3867
Tue. 11.00 am–6.00 pm
Wed.–Sat. 11.00 am–11.00 pm
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If you would like any of the above, would like to come by for a private appointment, or just have some questions — please let us know.