Yangarra’s Fraser named top Oz winemaker

Yangarra Estate Vineyard’s Peter Fraser has been named by eminent wine critic James Halliday as Australian Winemaker of the Year.

Yangarra winemaker Peter Fraser (Photo: Yangarra)

Fraser, who has worked at the Jackson Family Wines-owned estate since 2001, has been selected as the winner out of 1,300 entries at the annual Halliday Wine Companion Awards.

“I am so fortunate to work with this extraordinary vineyard estate in McLaren Vale,” said Fraser. “To win Winemaker of the Year in Australia is very exciting for Yangarra, but also very humbling considering the quality of wines some Australian producers are creating.

“We have had quiet and organic growth since we began making wines at Yangarra in 2001. We’ll continue our journey to understand our land better and create wines that showcase this special place,” he said.

Yangarra Estate Vineyard’s wines are grown from a a single 400-acre wine farm in northern McLaren Vale.

Prior to his position at Yangarra, Fraser worked at St Halletts in the Barossa and Normans Clarendon Winery, and has also made wines in Spain, France and California.

Since 2010, Fraser has worked to implement organic and biodynamic practices across Yangarra’s estate vineyard, and since the 2013 vintage all of Yangarra’s wines are certified organic and biodynamic in Australia.