December 06, 2024 | Celebrating the 2022 A. Rodda Tempranillo, Beechworth
We’re thrilled to share that the 2022 A. Rodda Tempranillo, Beechworth has been highlighted by Young Gun of Wine (YGOW) in their annual deep dive into Australia’s most compelling expressions of Tempranillo. Among dozens of submissions from across the country, our wine was selected as one of the top six favourites by both panelists Imogen Imrie and Tash Reid — a rare dual endorsement that speaks to the wine’s complexity, freshness and sense of place.
Tempranillo is a variety that demands both restraint and intuition. In Beechworth—where granite soils, cool nights and long, even ripening seasons shape fruit with natural tension—the variety takes on a profile that is distinctly regional yet unmistakably A. Rodda. The 2022 vintage, with its balance of ripeness and vibrancy, has proved an exceptional canvas for crafting a restrained but deeply expressive wine.
What the reviewers saw in the glass…
Both judges noted the wine’s finely tuned interplay of detail, density and freshness.
Tash Reid was immediately struck by the wine’s aromatic clarity, admiring its “defined notes of plum, morello cherry, cola, and earthiness,” along with a subtle sarsaparilla bitterness that adds lift and intrigue to the finish. She described how the flavours “crescendo until the fine powdery tannins resolve beautifully,” capturing the wine’s confident structure and graceful taper.
Imogen Imrie praised the wine’s delicate pale ruby hue and its aromatic layers of “smouldering red fruits—strawberry, cherry, plum—balanced with herbs, blueberry, and cola float.” She found the palate “mellow yet energetic,” unfolding into notes of leaf litter, forest floor, tobacco pouch, red cherry, sweet spice, vanilla, and poached plum. What stood out most for Imrie was the wine’s lively acidity, which carried the flavours with brightness and shape, allowing the wine to “continue to impress on revisits throughout the day.”
Together, these reviews paint a picture of a Tempranillo that is not only expressive in the moment but also compellingly layered — a wine that reveals new dimensions with each return to the glass. While A. Rodda Wines is perhaps best known for its single-vineyard Chardonnays, our work with Tempranillo has become an increasingly exciting chapter in our winemaking story. The granitic slopes of Beechworth lend themselves beautifully to Iberian varieties, offering natural structure, savoury complexity and acidity that lifts rather than weighs down the wine.
The 2022 Tempranillo captures this synergy beautifully, bringing together aromatic brightness, savoury detail and gentle yet persistent tannins, all carried by an energetic, mineral-edged finish. Each element reflects the clarity and balance that Beechworth’s granitic landscape naturally imparts. In the glass, it mirrors the region itself — elegant, honest and quietly powerful — offering a style of Tempranillo that is both expressive and unmistakably shaped by place.
We’re grateful to Young Gun of Wine for including us in this year’s deep dive into Tempranillo, and to Imogen Imrie and Tash Reid for their generous and insightful reviews. Their tasting notes remind us why we continue to champion this variety in Beechworth: it offers a voice that is both distinctive and full of potential.
Thanks YGOW for the opportunity to be part of this year’s Tempranillo feature — and for shining a light on the diversity and depth of Australian winemaking.
