Yellow Tail is one of the most popular brands of wine in the United States right now. However, this wine isn’t actually from the United States at all! Yellow Tail is an Australian brand that makes high-quality wines for affordable prices. Come learn about this incredible brand and all the lovely wines they offer.
The Yellow Tail Story
Yellow Tail is a family-owned winery located in the small town of Yenda, Australia. It all began with Italian immigrants Filippo and Maria Casella, who migrated from Sicily to Australia in 1957. They began making wine with a mission to bring family and friends together for any occasion.
The Casella family winery was a relatively small company from its founding until 2001. At this time, John Casella had taken over the business from his parents, and he had a vision to create wines that everyone could enjoy around the world. He wanted to demonstrate that wine could be fun, easy to choose, easy to drink, and easy to understand.
Yellow Tail’s new ownership came at an important time in the history of Australian wines. In 1992, imports of wine from Australia to the United States accounted for only 3% of the market, with Italy and France making up 30% and 50%, respectively. Only ten years later, Australian wine captured nearly 20% of this market. Yellow Tail wines were basically the entire reason for this growth.
The fact that Yellow Tail has only been around since the early 2000s is probably surprising to people who came of age drinking during this time. Yellow Tail quickly became synonymous with affordability and quality. For many, Yellow Tail was probably the first wine that they consumed after their 21st birthday. Plus, the bottle’s bright colors and bold marketing stood out among a sea of bland brands.
Enter Deutsch Family Wine and Spirits
Yellow Tail’s accessibility, flavor profiles, and market dominance were all by design. These came about from a partnership between John Casella and Deutsch Family Wine and Spirits, a company that has annual revenues of over $600 million. Deutsch Family is the same company that made Beaujolais brand Georges Duboeuf a huge hit in the U.S. The company was looking to break into the affordable wine market and needed to find a brand that made delicious, high-quality wines for lower prices. They discovered the Australian brand Yellow Tail, and the rest was history.
In order to succeed in the U.S., Deutsch Family and Yellow Tail knew their wines needed to be simple and easy to understand. The labels aren’t overly complex, and the wines themselves are easy to drink and discuss. Yellow Tail wine engineers designed the wines to appeal specifically to American consumer’s tastes and desires. In addition to the flavor of the wines, the packaging was designed to stand out on the shelves, and the entire brand was focused on the Australian stereotype of laid-back, carefree attitudes.
Yellow Tail’s meticulously designed flavor and branding worked incredibly well! In 2001, when Yellow Tail debuted, they sold 200,000 cases. The following year, they sold 2.2 million. Today, they sell around 8.8 million cases per year in the United States alone. Yellow Tail has secured themselves a spot in American’s hearts and their bar carts.
Yellow Tail Wines
Yellow Tail produces a huge variety of incredibly delicious wines in all types of styles. We’ve compiled some of our favorites for you to try below!
Yellow Tail Pinot Grigio
This Pinot Grigio is everything a good white wine should be: zesty, fresh, and very easy to drink. It offers beautiful green apple and pear aromas, and on the palate, you’ll notice red apple, pear, passionfruit, and lime. The finish is refreshing, simple, and clean.
It’s an incredibly versatile wine that is light-bodied and dry and pairs well with Asian-inspired dishes.
Yellow Tail Chardonnay
Yellow Tail’s Chardonnay is vibrant, flavorful, and fresh. It’s made from a blend of selected parcels of fruit from some of Australia’s finest growing areas. It’s an unoaked Chardonnay, giving it more of a light, crisp flavor profile. However, it’s still a rich, vibrant, full-bodied Chard. You’ll notice flavors of citrus, vanilla, peach, and honeydew melon. The palate is soft yet fresh, with balanced acidity and a smooth, creamy finish.
This wine pairs perfectly with roasted chicken and is ideal for a summer picnic in the park.
Yellow Tail Pinot Noir
The Yellow Tail Pinot Noir is bright and juicy. It bursts with incredible aromas of ripe cherries, strawberries, and currants, accentuated by hints of dark chocolate. It’s a lighter-bodied Pinot Noir and fairly dry. The palate is soft and velvety, with flavor notes of soft spiced fruit like cherries and red berries, all framed by hints of sweet spice.
This wine pairs beautifully with picnic foods and is perfect for unwinding after a long day.
Yellow Tail Sauvignon Blanc
Yellow Tail’s Sauvignon Blanc is deliciously fresh and crisp. It’s light-bodied and dry and offers aromas of vibrant citrus, passionfruit, and fresh grass. The palate is tantalizing, with notes of lime, tropical fruit, and green apple. The lengthy finish shows a good depth of flavor with crisp, zingy, refreshing acidity.
This wine pairs beautifully with seafood and pasta.
Yellow Tail Riesling
Yellow Tail’s Riesling is incredibly luscious and lovely. It’s light-bodied, slightly sweet, and bursting with lemon, peach, lychee, and lime aromas. The palate is incredibly soft and full of fresh fruit flavors, with hints of cinnamon and orange blossom. You’ll also notice flavor notes of juicy green apple, citrus, and flowers.
This wine is both sweet and smooth and pairs beautifully with fish and chips, spicy Asian food, and barbequed shrimp.
Yellow Tail Cabernet Sauvignon
The Yellow Tail Cabernet Sauvignon is vibrant, velvety, and rich. It’s full-bodied and dry, yet still very easy to drink. The aromas of luscious vanilla, blackberry, and chocolate will enchant you, and the palate is classic and velvety, with notes of juicy black currants, sweet mocha, cassis, violets, bold fruit, and mild spice. The finish is long and soft, with enough concentration and texture to make the wine feel serious and distinguished.
This wine pairs incredibly well with rich meats, such as steak.
Yellow Tail Shiraz
Yellow Tail Shiraz is vibrant, smooth, and rich. Shiraz is one of the signature wine styles of Australia, and Yellow Tail does it incredibly well. It’s medium-bodied and dry, offering aromas of ripe cherries, strawberries, vanilla, red berry, licorice, and spice. The palate boasts silky tannins and ripe fruit flavors of juicy berries, along with subtle hints of vanilla and spice. This Shiraz is bold and well-balanced, with earthy tones and lingering fruit on the tongue.
Yellow Tail Rosé
If you’re a rosé lover, you’ll absolutely adore Yellow Tail Rosé. It’s vibrant and refreshing, with aromas of fresh strawberries and cinnamon. The palate is crisp and delicate, with juicy flavors of sweet strawberry and cherry.
This rosé pairs incredibly well with lighter meats, like chicken and fish. It’s perfect for a sunny summer day or a BBQ.
Yellow Tail Merlot
Yellow Tail Merlot is a gorgeous ruby red color and offers beautiful aromas of candied fruit, vanilla, and light spice. This wine is medium-bodied and just off-dry. The palate is soft, smooth, and velvety, with ripe plum flavors, juicy berries, and subtle spice. It has a sweet fruit center and a soft, lush finish.
Yellow Tail Moscato
Yellow Tail’s Moscato is incredibly delicious and easy-drinking. It’s light-bodied, zingy, refreshing, and semi-sweet. It’s just slightly fizzy, with flavors of tropical fruit, strawberry, sherbert, passionfruit, sweet melon, and a full floral ambrosia.
This wine is incredible paired with chicken, fish, or your favorite spicy foods. It’s also tremendous with desserts like strawberries and cream, or chocolate cake.
Yellow Tail Smooth Red Blend
Yellow Tail makes a variety of incredible blends, but their Smooth Red Blend is one of our favorites. It’s lush, vibrant, and easy to drink. The flavors are smooth and velvety, with notes of cherries, berries, and hints of vanilla and spice.
It pairs incredibly well with meats like lamb and pork chops and is the perfect, approachable red blend.
Takeaway
Yellow Tail wines are top-rated in the United States for a variety of reasons. They’re incredibly simple, approachable, delicious, and affordable. Yellow Tail’s branding is specifically designed to appear to American consumers, which is part of the reason they’re so popular. If you’ve never had a Yellow Tail wine, you’re missing out!
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