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![Twenty Years of Yarrh](http://www.yarrhwines.com.au/cdn/shop/articles/20Years1_{height}x{width}.jpg?v=1559808868)
Twenty Years of Yarrh
My goodness, our 20th anniversary! Starting out as “Yass River Vineyard”, we planted our first vines, Cabernet Sauvignon, on 22 November 1997, in an old sheep paddock off a dirt road. Three more plantings over the next three years saw the vineyard completed. Six hectares were duly trained, watered, weeded and fed, giving us our first small crop in 2001.
Our first vintage was a small batch of Cabernet Sauvignon made with borrowed equipment in the garage. Not bad for a first try, either. Not sure that we have any left, which is always a good sign.
Next was the winery. We wanted long term sustainability and a building that blended into the landscape, finally settling on a passive solar design featuring straw bale, rammed earth, and classic aussie corro. It works well, not only as a place to make wine and serve our guests, but also as a magnificent bush retreat for friends and family. How’s the serenity!
We opened our doors in December 2004. Friends, family, neighbours and colleagues gathered to witness our welcome to the land by Eric Bell (now deceased), one of our local aboriginal elders. It was a moving ceremony, reminding us that we are just temporary custodians of this land within a timespan of profound immensity.
Some highlights over the years:
- Grafting in two new clones of Sangiovese, now some Fiano
- Exporting to China, Norway and Vietnam (although we now concentrate exclusively on the domestic market)
- Introducing a new label
- Transitioned to a hybrid conventional/organic farming regime
- Discovering the world of “natural” wines (or “natchies”)
- Being rated a 4 ½ star winery by James Halliday
- Helping Hartley Lifecare and our local bush fire brigade with their fundraising
And here’s a few rough numbers from the last 20 years:
- 13,000 vines planted, trained and managed
- 400 tonnes of grapes crushed
- 200,000 litres of wine bottled
- 500 tonnes of compost made
- A couple of thousand Wine Club packs delivered
- 30-40 medals awarded
- 33 wine festivals celebrated
- 90 monthly food and wine matching lunches served
- 13 winter solstice bonfires lit
- Thousands of happy (well, mostly!) customers, many now long term (thank you, you know who you are)
“Why do you do it?” people sometimes ask. It’s not for fame and fortune, that’s for others. It’s certainly tremendously satisfying to make award winning wines from our own vineyard, and see these wines bring so much joy to our customers.
Maybe a better question is - does the world need Yarrh Wines? We think so. Delicious, food friendly, Canberra District wines, estate grown and bottled (paddock to plate, vineyard to bottle) made and presented without pretention, for a fair price – that’s a combination Australian wine lovers need.
Finally, a potted history of Yarrh wouldn’t be complete without an acknowledgement of our past partners – Peter McGregor (now deceased) as an early partner in our vineyard venture, and Peta and Chris MacKenzie Davey (now trying to retire!), who took the leap of faith from their cosy cottage in Leeds, UK, to set off on their own adventure in the wilds of Murrumbateman, Australia. Then of course there is our beautiful daughter Julia, who’s grown up at Yarrh, and in her gap year is now pruning vineyards across the district. Thanks to all!
NM and FW
![Gigo and the George](http://www.yarrhwines.com.au/cdn/shop/articles/Gigo_{height}x{width}.jpg?v=1559807793)
Gigo and the George
Gigo Moreno Torres, restaurant manager and sommelier at The George Bar and Dining in Bungendore, is a restless soul. After years of travelling, he has found a resting place in Bungendore where he has shared his enthusiasm and knowledge of wine and food for the last five years, including his passion for the regional wines, including Yarrh Wines. As part of the recent Canberra District Wine Week Gigo offered a Steak and Shiraz vertical wine flight with three of our Shirazes, one going back to 2008.
Born and raised in Columbia, Gigo studied Industrial Engineering before deciding to move to Australia to improve his English. Why Australia? It was warm with an easy going culture. After a year he went back to Columbia to teach English and then spent a few years traveling the world, and working in bars and restaurants, getting hooked on the food and wine bug. In Adelaide, while working at the very popular Universal Wine Bar (which has up to 300 wines on offer) he gained valuable wine knowledge while being mentored by the Hardy family. During this time Gigo was invited to join the Court of Master Sommeliers – premier examining body of Sommeliers worldwide.
I first met Gigo in 2013, at a wine tasting event at Hotel Realm. He had just started at the George after receiving a call from the owners, Isabel and Richard Harry (of Wallabies fame) looking for an experienced manager to kick start the restaurant. He was taken by our philosophy of doing everything on site from vineyard to bottle. He also liked the wines and was soon out to see the vineyard and winery, taking back some wine for the restaurant. Our wines have been there ever since - “Fiona, your wines are handcrafted and varietal. Whenever I drink your wine, they take me back to your vineyard and the stringy bark forest.”
When selecting a wine to have with food Gigo looks for generosity of fruit, structure and acidity. “It’s easy to go with classic food and wine matches as it will be appreciated by most people. The challenge is to find an unexpected match that will have the same result. For example, recently, rather than having a Late Harvest wine to complement a blueberry and strawberry jelly dessert I contrasted it with a floral dry Riesling. It was sensational.”
Let’s hope Gigo decides to remain here and continue to take The George from strength to strength. Why not give it a visit and enjoy some great food and a great selection of local wines, including, of course, Yarrh! Be warned – Sunday lunch is very popular!
FW