One of Australia’s few remaining family owned wine companies of any genuine size, Yaldara Wines is for sale. Established by Hermann Thumm in 1947, the company is sited on 130 ha of Barossa soil, of which 52 ha are presently under vine. Another 40 ha are suitable for vineyard development. Although it has an annual turnover around $20 million, Yaldara has yet to capitalise on the Barossa’s revival discussed in a major feature inside this issue. Its brands of Yaldara, Duck’s Flat, Julian’s, The Farms, Lakewood and River Run hardly rank amongst the region’s leading lights. But given the maturity of some of its vineyards, Yaldara’s genuine potential must be extraordinary. Being offered for sale by selective tender by joint selling agents Colin Gaetjens & Shaw and Baron Partners Ltd, the 7,000 tonne capacity winery and business are expected to attract considerable overseas interest. According to Colin Gaetjens: ‘There has rarely been a wine industry asset like this on the Australian market before. This is a truly ready-made business and would give a substantial private or public company an immediate presence in the Australian wine industry.’ While its architecture may not exactly sit well amongst the region’s many Silesian and English-inspired monuments, Yaldara has managed to attract an extraordinary 150,000 visitors each year to its cellar door, conference centre and restaurant.
