The Signature: Yalumba’s benchmark Cabernet-Shiraz blend

The 2018 vintage marks the 60th anniversary since Yalumba first produced The Signature. The wine is viewed with special fondness – not only by the Yalumba brethren whose moniker is immortalised on individual vintages, but because it upholds the distinctly Australian blending signature of Cabernet Sauvignon with Shiraz.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of eight vintages of Yalumba’s The Signature back to 1996

Yalumba’s senior red winemaker Kevin Glastonbury is called the ‘custodian’ of The Signature, having made the blend for the past 23 years. But his passion and deep understanding of the uniquely Australian style sees him also responsible for Yalumba’s other Cabernet-Shiraz blends, providing each with a distinct point of difference.

Glastonbury views The Signature as Yalumba’s flagship wine. Not its most expensive or elite wine (that distinction belongs to The Caley Cabernet-Shiraz blend) but the benchmark of high quality against which Yalumba is most commonly measured.

‘It’s an important statement because it represents value and satisfaction,’ Glastonbury explains. ‘The Signature bears an emotional connection to the people it honours, and the generosity of the flavour is all connected to that. It’s a wine that speaks of personality and charm.’

Through the past 60 years, 48 vintages of The Signature (see box below) have been issued to wide acclaim. And while there is vintage variation to consider, it is a wine style driven by a consistent philosophy. Cabernet Sauvignon is always the dominant variety, relaxing into an easy embrace with the Shiraz in a harmony of flavours and smooth, velvety tannins.

It takes a stylistic lead from Bordeaux’s old Claret styles, but has a distinctly Australian stamp, framed with richer, sunnier fruit flavours and a more languid mid-palate expression.

No compromise

With the Cabernet Sauvignon often sourced from other areas of South Australia until the mid 1990s, The Signature is now 100% Barossa fruit. However, this focus has led to gaps in the wine’s lineage, with Yalumba chief winemaker Louisa Rose saying that the disappointing quality of Cabernet from a cooler Barossa vintage in 2017 resulted in The Signature not being made.

‘We have a particular style and history to consider with this wine,’ explains Glastonbury. ‘It’s not something we are prepared to compromise if we don’t have fruit that’s suitable.’

Therefore, the release of the 2018 vintage – with outgoing Yalumba managing director Nick Waterman as its signatory – is being heralded by Yalumba as a special moment.

Glastonbury says The Signature is a wine he’s personally committed to – not only because he adores the style and flavour, but because the wines are intrinsically tied to personalities who have made Yalumba such a distinctive family-owned wine company. This strong attachment is why people working at Yalumba don’t refer to different Signature vintages by their year but by the name of the signatory.

This tradition of paying tribute to Yalumba people, which began with company founder Samuel Smith (the inaugural signatory in 1962), is a distinction Waterman says he will carry with him long after he retires in September. ‘Tasting this wine, it’s an honour I’ll happily raise a glass to,’ he says.

The Yalumba Signatories

1962 Samuel Smith

1963 Sidney Smith

1964 Oliver Jenkinson, Percy Smith

1965 not produced

1966 Alfred Wark, Harold Obst, Harold Yates

1967 Clair Chinner, Rudi Kronberger

1968 Eric McKenzie, Mick Hungerford

1969 not produced

1970 Les Falkenberg, Paddy Fitzgerald

1971 Alf Mader, Bruce Coulter

1973 Wyndham Hill Smith

1972 not produced

1974 Christobel Hill Smith

1975 Walter Smith

1976 Ron Skate, Sidney Hill Smith

1977 Harry Mahlo

1978 Colin Hayes

1979 not produced

1980 not produced

1981 Joe Stevens

1982 not produced

1983 Ross Bradbury

1984 John Gillespie

1985 Dennis Reimann

1986 Helen Hill Smith

1987 Dudley Ward

1988 Colin Gerhardy

1989 Graham McDonough

1990 Peter Wall

1991 Mark Hill Smith

1992 Eddy Waechter

1993 Bill Wilksch

1994 Peter Graue

1995 Yalumba’s People

1996 James Wark

1997 Vittorio di Biase

1998 Ross White

1999 John Heine

2000 Peter Lehmann

2001 Geoff Linton

2002 Rhonda Sexton

2003 Alan Hoey

2004 Brenton Fry, John Auld, Brian Walsh

2005 Jeff Smith, Greg Pullen

2006 Kevin Renshaw, Ralph Dunning

2008 Judy Argent

2007 not produced

2009 Clive Weston

2010 Jane Ferrari

2011 not produced

2012 Robert Hill Smith

2013 Andrew Murphy

2014 Chris Greening

2015 Darrell Kruger

2016 Louisa Rose

2017 not produced

2018 Nick Waterman

The Signature: eight vintages of Yalumba’s benchmark Cabernet-Shiraz blend

Related content

Yalumba: producer profile and latest releases tasted

Australian Riesling: panel tasting results

Henschke 2017 single-site Shiraz releases

Barossa and McLaren Vale Grenache: old vines, new passion