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Available by the dozen
The first Tintara vines were planted by Dr Alexander Kelly in 1862. Thomas Hardy recognised the potential that lay within the rich loamy soils of McLaren Vale and purchased the splendid property. Built against the rolling hills at the foot of Mount Lofty Ranges, the ancient Mortlock Flour Mill has been converted into the present day operating winery, its ingenious sloping design harnesses gravity in the winemaking, translating into a gentler handling of the juices. Tintara is a rarity in every sense, each sip remains a truly memorable experience. Established 1861, Tintara is a significant part of McLaren Vale history, the region's stateliest founding winery. Nowhere is the long and rich history of the Southern Vales more evident than at Tintara, a testament to quality viniculture. Crafted to old-world techniques and new-world innovation, the ancient basket presses and original slate open fermenting tanks are still used today. Dedicated to the region, Tintara's winemakers source all of the grapes for Tintara exclusively from good vineyards in McLaren Vale, exactly as the founders had intended. When, and only when, tannin ripeness is optimal, the Cabernet is harvested, producing a wine with abundant fruit intensity and soft fine tannin structure.
TASTING NOTESDeep garnet with bright red rim. Intensely perfumed, showing strong varietal fruit of blackcurrant and cassis, a stalk or two of mint, lithely seasoned by spice and cocoa notes. Ripe, red berry fruits of forest, mulberry flavours, cassis and briar notes, a middle palate of richness and good structure, supported by elegant tannins and culminating on a long, persistent finish. |
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Thomas Hardy left Devon in 1850 at the age of 20 and migrated to the new colony of South Australia
He established a winery on the banks of Adelaide's River Torrens in 1853. His Bankside winery was the start of an outstanding family wine business that grew to become one of the world's great wine companies. Thomas Hardy was a self-made man, a pioneer of immense character. With a mixture of energy, determination, shrewd judgment, innovation and a touch of daring, he pursued the highest standards in winemaking. At Bankside, and later at his McLaren Vale property Tintara, he focused on quality and craftsmanship. Tintara was to become the centre of Hardy's enterprise and by the late 1800s was one of the best-equipped and managed wineries in Australia. This success was substantially due to Hardy's initiatives in planting higher quality, lower yielding varieties rather than the coarser, heavier-yielding types more common at the time. His willingness to experiment with and to use novel equipment, much of which he designed and built himself, also contributed to this success. Hardys»
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