VINEYARD

The Crawford River vineyard lies at the alluvial edge of a volcanic lava flow. The 11.5 Ha vineyard has its roots in an unusually complex, mineral-rich soil base. Gravelly, friable, basalt loam overlays  permeable clay which in turn lies above a limestone base created by an ancient, risen seabed.

Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon are the two main varieties in the vineyard, with smaller plantings of Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Semillon and  Sauvignon Blanc.

All major activities such as picking, pruning, leaf-plucking, shoot-thinning and green pruning are done by hand.

Our vineyard is maintained without the use of herbicides nor insecticides. We use organic practices and have a bio-dynamic test plot that Belinda has prepared and has planted with Riesling in the Spring of 2014.

Rainfall is generally reliable, with much of the 650mm average falling in Winter and Spring.  At Latitude 38° South and 110 metres above sea-level, temperatures are cool.  Situated approximately 50 kilometres inland from the Southern Ocean, the vineyard enjoys its moderating maritime influence whilst managing to escape most of the Autumn sea mists.

The combination of these factors produces a long and even growing season helping to produce grapes with intense fruit flavours and high natural acidity.  Whilst our dry grown vineyard enjoys low yields, some years require careful manipulation of bunch numbers, ensuring the highest possible fruit quality.  Budburst is usually mid-September with picking from mid April to mid May.