Virgin Hills 1995 Rare Tawny (Twin Pack)

EXCLUSIVE to the Club is none other than the 29 YEAR OLD Tawny Port that came out of the cask that finished the Tower No.9 whiskey Malt of the Month that we’re about to send to you – Welcome to the TWIN Pack of the 1995 Virgin Hills Rare Tawny!

You read that right – $99 for a TWIN PACK of 29 year old Tawny Port that finished the Tower No. 9 whisky!

In case you’re wondering – the ‘Rare’ in the name ‘Rare Tawny’ designates a Tawny (Australian-made port) whose average age in the blend is 15 years. This one was in the wood for just shy of 29 years prior to being emptied for use as a finishing cask.

Virgin Hills Estate was the brainchild of eccentric Hungarian-born sculptor and restaurateur Tom Lazar. Arriving in Australia from Hungary via Paris in 1952, he encountered a wine industry vastly different from today’s. Determined to make his mark, Lazar first established the acclaimed Little Reata restaurant in Melbourne.

Then, in 1968, he embarked on his grand vision for Virgin Hills. Inspired, he purchased 300 acres of rugged bushland high in the Macedon Ranges, intending to introduce Australian palates to something unexpected—black cherries.

However, after painstaking land clearing, he discovered the soil was ill-suited for cherries. Undeterred, Lazar swiftly pivoted to another bold idea.
Decades before ‘cool-climate wine’ became a trend, he abandoned his cherry orchard plans and instead planted Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Malbec, Merlot, and Pinot Noir. His ambition? To create an Australian rival to the great Bordeaux wines he had come to love in Paris.

From its first vintage in 1973, Virgin Hills seemed like an audacious gamble. Yet, despite the setbacks, it soon achieved cult status, becoming one of Australia’s most sought-after wines.

Michael Hope bought the Virgin Hills winery and all its stock in 2000 and now distributes the Virgin Hills brand from his Hunter Valley based Hope Estate. One of the big bonuses of this purchase (unrealized at the time) was the stock of fantastic casks all full of aged, fortified wines that Michael and the Tower team are now putting to use in the whisk(e)y sphere. This month’s members Extra -the Virgin Hills 1995 Rare Tawny – being a perfect example!

This Tawny is a decadently sweet dessert wine and ticks all the boxes you could ask for. Big, round and immensely fruity, soft on the palate and pairs perfectly with any similarly ‘big’ cheese or rich desert you want to put next to it – brilliant with a pungent stilton, some dark chocolate or an espresso-based desert.

Better still, why not pair it with the Tower No.9 and sip each in turn to pick the notes that carried over! (As Paul – head distiller at Tower – said… “…well I’ve got TWO hands!”)