McWilliam’s-A Legacy of Excellence – A Journey Through Cool-Climate and Aged Fortified wines
Sydney,09 August,2025/Refreshed 14 october,2025
Written/ Photo Credits by A.Ritenis /Text formatted with Gemini AI
Last week, I had the pleasure of attending a special luncheon and wine tasting hosted by the esteemed McWilliam family at the Private Dining Room of Café Sydney. This exclusive event, a celebration of craft and heritage, offered a rare opportunity to delve into the brand’s distinguished style, spanning both their latest cool-climate vintages and a magnificent aged fortified collection.
It’s worth noting that this new chapter for McWilliam’s comes after a significant period of change for the historic brand. After entering voluntary administration in 2020, the company was successfully acquired by Calabria Family Wines in 2021. This sale saw the iconic Mount Pleasant winery sold to a separate party, allowing the McWilliam’s brand to consolidate its operations around the Griffith winery and recommit its focus to its core portfolio, particularly the cool-climate wines of New South Wales and the highly respected Aged Fortified Port wines. This new focus on regional expression and the New South Wales provenance,..was at the very heart of the tasting.
The wines on tasting (PICTURED ABOVE )were a testament to McWilliam’s focus on showcasing the best of New South Wales’ diverse wine regions. While the winery is based in Griffith, they expertly source cool-climate fruit from Tumbarumba, the Canberra District, and Hilltops. This strategy allows them to produce elegant and balanced wines that truly express their unique regional character.
Founded in 1877, McWilliam’s has built a legacy over six generations of winemakers, and their commitment to quality is evident. This was recently reaffirmed with the winery being crowned a 5-Red Star Winery in the 2025 Halliday Wine Companion. The tasting highlighted some of their most celebrated recent releases, including the 2022 McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Canberra District Shiraz and the 2022 McWilliam’s 1877 Tumbarumba Chardonnay, which earned 96 and 95 points respectively.
A Taste of the Cool-Climate Vintages
The luncheon began with a selection of McWilliam’s cool-climate table wines, each meticulously crafted to showcase the distinct personality of its vineyard, and perfectly matched with the first course.
The restaurant dishes from Café Sydney were paired with the wines in the following way:
- The starter: The Western Australian octopus (PICTURE ABOVE )with green romesco, fennel caper salsa, puffed rice, and Aleppo pepper was paired with the McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Chardonnay Tumbarumba 2024, the McWilliam’s 1877 Chardonnay Tumbarumba NSW 2022, and the McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Pinot Noir Tumbarumba 2021.
- The main course: The beef tenderloin (PICTURED ABOVE )with roasted oyster mushroom and peppercorn sauce was matched with the McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Shiraz Canberra District 2021.
- The dessert: The salted caramel hazelnut, dulce de leche slice with churros and chocolate ice cream was served with the fortified wines, including the McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate 20-Year-Old Rare Topaque, Rare Tawny, and the 30-Year-Old Very Rare Tawny.
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McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Chardonnay Tumbarumba 2024 This wine is a vibrant expression of the region, sourced from specially selected vineyards. It presents zesty flavors of lime and fig with hints of honeydew melon, finishing with a crisp, mineral palate that truly brings to life the quality of the block.
McWilliam’s 1877 Chardonnay Tumbarumba NSW 2022 In commemoration of the year Samuel McWilliam planted his first vines, the 1877 range is a flagship, crafted from the best fruit of the vintage. This particular wine shows a vibrant, youthful straw lemon color. The aroma is filled with tree fruits of apple and pear combined with fleshy stone fruits of peach and nectarine. Classic mineral wet stone and flint notes are backed up by spicy cedar oak nuances and nutty almond and marzipan.
McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Pinot Noir Tumbarumba 2021 This Pinot Noir offers a fresh and bright palate with flavors of supple red fruits, boysenberry, and crunchy cranberry, intermingled with hints of cigar box and Italian bitters. The wine has a velvety mid-palate and a tight line of varietal sappy tannins.
These three cool-climate wines paired beautifully with the starter of Western Australian octopus, served with a green romesco, fennel caper salsa, puffed rice, and Aleppo pepper.
McWilliam’s Single Vineyard Shiraz Canberra District 2021 Bright and direct, this Shiraz delivers crunchy fruit flavors of ripe cranberry, red cherry, and white pepper. It has a seamless, silken finish with slatey tannins that bring great length and a distinctly elegant and balanced character. This exceptional Shiraz was served as the perfect accompaniment to the main course of beef tenderloin with roasted oyster mushroom and peppercorn sauce.
The stunning fortifieds were the perfect partner for the dessert: a salted caramel hazelnut, dulce de leche slice served with churros and chocolate ice cream.
The Fortifieds: A Century-Long Love Affair
The true highlight of the event for many was the chance to taste from McWilliam’s prestigious aged fortified collection. With a long-standing reputation for fortified wines, McWilliam’s gives their wines time to mature to perfection. The forethought and patience required for wines of this calibre is truly remarkable.
McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate 20-Year-Old Rare Topaque The palate is very luscious and complex, with chocolate and malt being most apparent. There are also hints of golden syrup in the background. While intense and luscious, a balanced acidity and clean background spirit help to keep the wine fresh and vibrant.
McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate 20-Year-Old Rare Tawny This Tawny has lifted aromas with classic oak-aged characters. Fruitcake, dark chocolate, and hints of roasted walnuts are seamlessly integrated, with a freshness that contradicts its age. The palate is very complex, with raisins, fruitcake, dark chocolate, and vanilla prominent, and hints of liquorice also apparent.
McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate 30-Year-Old Very Rare Tawny The nose of this wine is extremely intense, with raisined fruit, toffee, malt, and hints of maple syrup. The palate explodes with flavors of Christmas cake, toffee, and malt, with hints of dark chocolate. It is deliciously luscious, yet also wonderfully elegant and refined.
These stunning fortifieds were the perfect partner for the dessert: a salted caramel hazelnut, dulce de leche slice served with churros and chocolate ice cream.
The luncheon was a powerful reminder that McWilliam’s is more than just a winery—it’s a family with a profound love affair with winemaking. Each bottle tells a story of heritage, regional diversity, and a century-long commitment to producing exceptional Australian wines.
