Yalumba ‘The Octavius’ Old Vine Shiraz 2018: A Wine of the Year over a century in the making

South Australia is home to some of the world’s oldest surviving vines. It’s here in the famous Barossa Valley that old Shiraz vines dating back to 1854 produce Yalumba’s ‘The Octavius’ Old Vine Shiraz, a wine with true pedigree and history.

This is a special wine indeed, and one which – with each vintage release – maintains the winery’s connection to the 19th century and the days of pre-Phylloxera grape-growing and winemaking.

‘With each vintage, we are not only crafting a wine but also telling a story that reflects our family’s dedication to the land, the vines and the art of winemaking,’ says Yalumba’s fifth-generation proprietor, Robert Hill-Smith.

Yalumba is Australia’s oldest family-owned winery, founded in 1849 by Samuel Smith, a brewer from Dorset in south-west England. In November 2024, the winery celebrated 175 years of continuous family ownership, innovation and excellence in the art of winemaking.

Yalumba’s oldest plantings date from 1854

Unique craftsmanship

Rightly considered one of Australia’s flagship wines, The Octavius takes its name from the unique oak barrels in which it ages: known as ‘octaves’, they hold 100 litres, or one eighth the capacity of a standard barrel. These vessels are crafted from French oak at Yalumba’s onsite cooperage – The Octavius is the only red wine in the world matured in 100L barrels.

Yalumba and the Hill-Smith family regard themselves as custodians of many of Barossa’s oldest surviving Shiraz plantings, and The Octavius is a tribute to their originality and individuality. The oldest vines that contribute to the wine date back to 1854, 1901, 1919 and 1920. Others were planted later in the 1940s and 1950s. Together, they create this opulent yet balanced Shiraz.

The term ‘old vines’ used to be used on Barossa wine labels with little consistency – until Yalumba created the Old Vine Charter in 2007, which is now recognised across the region.

‘Selected old vine sites from 1854 are the cornerstone of the ethos behind this revered wine,’ says Hill-Smith. ‘Sitting alongside that vineyard story is the Yalumba Cooperage,’ he adds – Yalumba is the only winery in the Southern Hemisphere to have its own onsite working cooperage.

Yalumba’s onsite cooperage creates its bespoke casks

A Decanter Wine of the Year

The current release of The Octavius, the 2018 vintage, has been selected as one of Decanter’s Wines of the Year 2024. The wine scored 97 points in a February 2024 tasting, where Decanter’s Bordeaux Editor Georgie Hindle described it as ‘clean and sleek, wide, full and mouth-watering with liquorice, cherry blossom and strawberry fruit all the way through. Delicious.’ This is wine that will continue to improve in the cellar for the next 15 years or more.

The wine is a blend of select parcels from Barossa’s oldest and most cherished vineyards, giving it elegance, structure and a true sense of place. ‘We believe that great wine is born in the vineyard,’ says Hill-Smith.

Yalumba’s fifth-generation proprietor, Robert Hill-Smith

‘The Octavius Old Vine Shiraz is a reflection of our commitment to sustainable practices and a deep respect for the environment. It is an expression of the land that has nurtured these vines for generations’, he continues. ‘Sustainability is at the core of our viticultural activities and as such we work instinctively to respect the sites and the plants. Biodiversity and plant health are paramount, and all this is monitored and managed for optimum long-term outcomes.’

If you want to experience the true essence and distinctive terroir of Barossa Shiraz – where the ancient soils and unique microclimate combine to create the perfect conditions for world-class Shiraz vines – The Octavius showcases this and more.

Hill-Smith sums it up perfectly: ‘The Octavius is testament to the craftsmanship passed down through generations at Yalumba. It links our philosophies of sustainability, heritage, innovation and aspiration.’