Established in 1969 by the visionary Dr Bailey Carrodus, Yarra Yering stands as one of the most important and influential estates in Australian wine history. At a time when the Yarra Valley had seen almost no commercial winemaking activity for decades, Carrodus recognised the immense potential of the Warramate foothills and planted what would become one of the region’s defining vineyards. The first commercial release in 1973 marked the return of fine wine production to the Yarra Valley after more than fifty years, helping ignite the modern renaissance of the region. 

A botanist and viticulturist by training, Carrodus approached winegrowing with remarkable precision and independence. He selected the original vineyard site for its grey silty clay loam soils, gravel seams for drainage and elevated north-facing slopes that protected the vines from spring frosts. The vineyards remain dry-grown and are planted to an unusually diverse mix of varieties, from Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Pinot Noir through to Portuguese and Rhône varieties that reflected Carrodus’ fascination with the great wine regions of Europe. His philosophy was uncompromising: low yields, meticulous farming and wines that expressed site and character above all else.

Today, under the leadership of acclaimed winemaker Sarah Crowe and viticulturist Andrew George, Yarra Yering has entered a remarkable modern era while remaining deeply respectful of its foundations. Since taking over winemaking in 2013, Crowe has refined the estate’s style with extraordinary consistency, purity and detail, earning widespread acclaim including Halliday Winemaker of the Year. The estate’s benchmark wines — including Dry Red Wine No. 1, Dry Red Wine No. 2, Underhill Shiraz and the Carrodus range — continue to set the standard not only for the Yarra Valley, but for Australian fine wine more broadly.

What defines Yarra Yering is not power or scale, but detail, structure and individuality. These are wines built on perfume, savoury complexity, balance and longevity — wines that evolve gracefully over decades while retaining a distinctive sense of place. Few Australian estates have shaped the direction of modern Australian wine as profoundly as Yarra Yering, and fewer still continue to perform at such an exceptional level more than half a century after their founding.