Kirrihill is a boutique winery cultivating fine wines that capture the terroir of South Australia’s Clare Valley. Founded in 1998 by long-time friends and locals, Sean Edwards and Rob Stanway. Their focus is on the pursuit of growing the best quality fruit possible, whilst managing the vineyards sustainably and respecting the individual sites. The micro-climates within the three small valleys that make up the Clare Valley region provide their winemakers with a diversity of fruit selections to produce expressive wines of purity and intrigue, particularly aromatic Rieslings, which speak profoundly of their place.
Sitting atop the ‘Golden Mile’, a stretch of rare terra rossa soil, their highly prized Schobers Vineyard is one of the most distinguished red wine producing vineyards in Australia. Contour planted on rolling hills at the southern tip of Clare Valley, Schobers Vineyard has consistently produced Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon wines of great complexity, which are rich in concentration with distinctive Clare Valley character.
The Murphy family arrived in Australia in 1909 from Ireland and so are numbered among the Irish ‘Winegeese’ who, from the 18th century onwards, engaged in the wine trade in the countries of their adoption and were instrumental in the viticultural development of some of the finest wine-growing areas of the world. Today the many and illustrious wines and labels of the Winegeese have become synonymous with quality on the international market.
The winemaking philosophy at Trentham Estate has always been to produce high-quality varietal wines with an emphasis on full fruit flavour while offering fantastic value for money right across the range. On trend with varietal plantings and never shy to try the untried, they recently achieved a 5* winery rating from James Halliday; the very first estate in the region to do so.
Two sisters running a winery? Absolutely … and doing a great job of it too, if the many awards and accolades are anything to go by!
Langhorne Creek has a history of viticulture dating back to 1860, producing some of the finest fruit in Australia, which persuaded Craig and Mignonne Willson to make the family home there in 1985. Little could they have known at the time whether a winemaking career would appeal to either of their young daughters.
In fact, the Bremerton winery is now run by Rebecca (winemaker) and Lucy (marketing and sales) – both passionate about working with Langhorne Creek fruit and promoting the area on a global scale. Their wine production has increased from 680 dozen in 1993 to fluctuating between 34-40,000 dozen in 2022/23. Listed in ‘South Australia’s top 21 female winemakers’ (The Advertiser, Feb 23), these sisters are clearly ‘doing it for themselves’ with great aplomb.
Situated in an area of the Adelaide Hills that was littered with goldmines in the 1800s, the Bird in Hand winery was purchased and planted in 1997 by Andrew Nugent, current Executive Director. Andrew has kept the close historical links alive both in the naming of the winery and their wine ranges; Two in the Bush and Nest Egg were the names of mineshafts in the Bird in Hand goldmine. Bird in Hand have 23 hectares under vine in Woodside and 5 ha in Clare, from which they produce classic examples of cool climate Chardonnay and Shiraz that have won world acclaim. Chief Winemaker, Kym Milne MW, joined Bird in Hand in 2003 after many years’ spent gaining international experience. In 2014 he was named Australian Winemaker of the Year by Winestate Magazine. The current Chief Winemaker, Dylan Lee joined the company as a cellar hand in 2011, before rising through the ranks to take over from Kym Milne in 2015.
The site was once a dairy farm, many of the original structures remain and have been transformed to house different areas of the winery. The old cheese and yoghurt factory now houses the offices and the two big silos which were once used as grain storage for the cattle are now a feature for the 5* Halliday award-winning winery.
Noon Winery is a small, family-owned winery in McLaren Vale producing earth-shattering red wines! Drew and his wife Raegan – gentle, considered people – took over the family winery in 1996. Their quiet respect for the land they nurture and the vines they tend is reflected in their winemaking style; gloriously powerful wines with minimal processing.
The property has 4.2ha of estate-grown bush vine Grenache vineyards planted in 1934 and 1999 (the Winery and Almond Blocks) and 1943 (BJ’s Block), with plantings in 1999 of a further 1.6ha, mostly Graciano. The Shiraz and Cabernet vineyards are grower owned by friends, the Borrett Family, in Langhorne Creek – tiny vineyards planted in 1962 and 1972 respectively. Production at Noon is only 3000 cases (in a good year) mostly sold to their loyal Australian customers. For most of the year, their cellar door sports a sign simply stating “Sorry, we have sold out of wine. Cellar door will reopen next November”!
In 1974 Capel Vale was the first winery in Western Australia to own and establish vineyards in the cool climate regions of Margaret River, Mount Barker and Geographe. Original winemaker and owners Dr Peter and Elizabeth Pratten produced the first vintage in 1980, handing responsibility to son Simon in the mid 2000s. They are still a family-owned and -managed winery.
Producing wines with regional distinction and showing respect for their pristine environment matters here; Sheldrake ducks accompanied the original vineyard planting teams, and their enduring presence is acknowledged on the Capel Vale wine labels.
Located in the Greenock sub region of the Barossa Valley and perfectly suited to producing quality, rich, full flavoured Shiraz. The estate was purchased by the Liu family in 2017 and is managed by a sixth generation Barossa grape-growing family along with world renowned winemaker Kym Milne MW heading up the production team.
This successful collaboration immediately produced it’s first Gold medal at the Mundus Vini International Wine Competition in Germany and thereafter followed by a steady stream of accolades including the highly prestigious IWC Trophy for Best Barossa Valley Shiraz in 2022 for the 2020 Golden Amrita Single Estate Shiraz . Seckford are privileged to be looking after this estate in the UK.
Lutherans, Johann Christian Hahn and his wife Maria arrived in South Australia in January 1839, sailing from Hamburg. In 1845, Christian purchased land in the Barossa Valley in the Siegersdorf-Dorrien area, north of Tanunda and the family settled there in 1846. Early settlers to the Barossa were able to stake out the best of the valley’s farmland and the Hahns seized the opportunity. The first vines were planted in 1914 by Hermann Hahn (3rd generation) and by the 1970s, the property was fully planted with vines. Grape growing became the Hahn family way of life and six generations later, James and Jackie Hahn continued that legacy, living and working on the land originally purchased by Christian Hahn.
In 1997, James and Jackie decided to produce their own range of red wines and teamed up with Barossa winemaker, Rolf Binder for the winemaking. The JJ Hahn label was born. Over the years the brand grew quickly, with wines such as the 1914 and 1918 Shiraz wines receiving noteworthy accolades. In 2010, the Hahns retired from the business with Rolf Binder retaining co-ownership of the brand, winemaking and vineyard management. In 2022 Rolf handed over to fellow vigneron Tom White of Curator Wine who continues to make the wines under the same label and export JJ Hahn wines into many countries. With Rolf on the side-lines as consultant winemaker, it remains a range of classic Barossa reds that represent exceptional drinkability and value.
The attention to detail and commitment to excellence at Mollydooker is reflected in everything the estate does. The accolades Sarah Marquis has achieved over the last two decades read like an entry in the Guinness Book of Records: Australian Boutique Winemakers of the Year, Australian White Winemaker of the Year, three times McClaren Vale Bushing Queen, Robert Parker’s Wine Personality of the Year, World Cooperage Celebrated Winemaker and more trophies, ‘Best Wine’ awards and +94 Parker and Spectator scores than even she could have dreamt of!
Mollydooker (Aussie for left hander, because she is left handed) was established in March 2006 in the McLaren Vale, with a state-of-the-art winery and 114 acres of vineyards on the magic Seaview Ridge – home to most of the iconic McLaren Vale wines. Sarah is the sole owner and winemaker, running Mollydooker with the help of her team who continue to make the handcrafted wines for which they are rightly famous.
The Murphy family have grown grapes in the Murray Darling region of Australia, part of the Big Rivers, since 1909. They build on this experience to create their fruit-driven wines.
The grape selection and winemaking practices at Murphy Vineyards aim to highlight the fruit flavours with these appealing wines that show ripe fruit aromas and soft, rich palates. Murphy Vineyards have selected, from their own plantings, Chardonnay and Shiraz grapes of good sound quality which have displayed true varietal expression in the final wine.
The wetlands of South Eastern Australia are integral in maintaining the health of the unique yet fragile ecosystems of inland Australia. Produced and bottled by Trentham Estate, the River Retreat range of wines is based on an initiative dedicated to raising awareness of these wetlands. Each purchase of the River Retreat label results in a donation to the Murray Darling Wetlands Working Group Ltd.
