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South Australian Wines
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Shadowfax creates outstanding and pure regional wines, from excellent fruit grown to superior vineyards scattered around some of Victoria's most precious grapegrowing districts
Shadowfax grows Shiraz in five vineyards, each of which is bottled separately. These five vineyards are maintained by dedicated vignerons under the direction of the very talented Chief Winemaker. Of particular importance are the very close relationships that the winery maintains with a select group of growers who provide fruit for the Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir.
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The Jesuits Society of Jesus migrated to Australia from Austria in 1848 seeking a life free from religious and political persecution
They settled at a site called Open Ranges in the beautiful Clare Valley and established Sevenhill, the oldest existing winery in the Clare Valley. Initially the main purpose of the cellars was to provide sacramental wine for religious use and this has been ongoing. Sevenhill Cellars now produce white, red and fortified wines as well as sacramental wine.
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Serafino Maglieri arrived in McLaren Vale 1968, partnered with his father who was working at Pirramimma and founded one of the McLaren Vale's leading wineries
From picking, pruning and cellar hand work to planting his own vineyards and building his first winery, Steve has enjoyed great success. In 1965, the father and son team bought 40 hectares of McLaren Vale scrub and set about the task of clearing it and planting vines. In 1972 Steve started his own winery Gully Wines, which he renamed Maglieri Wines in 1977. Steve wanted to create distinctive and characterful McLaren Vale wines and established his own style. The quality of wines improved steadily and by the early 1990s Maglieri was well positioned at the top of the McLaren Vale ladder. One of Serafino’s greatest achievements has been sensational success at the International Wine Challenge in London. Twice the Maglieri Shiraz beat all comers and was voted Best Shiraz of the Competition.
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The Seppeltsfield vineyard is one of the largest and most historic in the Barossa Valley, having been initially planted in the 1850s
The heart of Seppeltsfield is the unique collection of fortified wines slowly maturing in oak barrels, and dating back in an unbroken line to 1878. Today's Seppeltsfield believe the range to be the most comprehensive of any fortified house in the world, encompassing traditional European fortified styles- principally “port” and “sherry” styles- but with an Australian twist- the grapes used for port style wines are traditionally the same as those which make the great Barossa dry reds- i.e. Shiraz, Grenache and Mataro (Mourvèdre), and a such are quite distinctively different from those made in Portugals’s wonderful Douro Valley.
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The Seabrook Family have been part of the Australian wine business since 1878, starting one of the country’s most respected wine companies W.J Seabrook & Son
Seabrook Wines is an artisan winemaker who works with growers to source exceptional fruit from the top regions around Australia and make premium wine to sell both domestically and into the international market. The business is family owned and operated out of the Barossa Valley where their estate vineyard and winery is located at the base of Menglers Hill in Tanunda. Since their first vintage in 2005 Seabrook wines have been awarded Haliday’s 5 star rating for the winery as well as several wine show medals.
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Scotchmans Hill is a family owned vineyard and winery based on the Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria, Australia
Established in 1982, Scotchmans Hill has become a producer of some of Australia's most complex, elegant and consistent wines. Scotchmans Hill is located on Mount Bellarine which was named by the Scottish immigrants who settled the Mount Bellarine area in the 1840s. Mount Bellarine was formed over 30 million years ago by tectonic movement which formed Port Phillip Bay and the surrounding volcanic region of Geelong and Mount Bellarine.
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In 1866 the Schild Family immigrated to Australia from Poland as part of the exodus from religious persecution
Johannes Hugo Bernhard (Ben) Schild, the father of Edgar (Ed) Schild heeded the work of his ancestors thus ensuring that the Schild family would have an impact in this new country. Ben Schild met his wife Freida Alma Schild nee Schutz in the early 1920s and began a family which consisted of eight children raised in the wilds of the Mallee country near the small pioneering town of Lameroo.
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Domenico Scarpantoni immigrated to Australia in 1952, travelling and working around the country before settling in with Thomas Hardy and Sons at Tintara in the McLaren Vale
McLaren Vale is a picturesque country town approximately 45 km south of Adelaide, South Australia. With its vineyards sprawling over hundreds of undulating kilometres, it is the toast of South Australia's world-renowned Fleurieu Peninsular.
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Stephen Pannell is one of the nation's most decorated winemakers, he makes wine that's designed to accompany the Australian way of life, wines that drink well alongside the opulent menu of ingredients and cuisines which are
on offer in the land downun
SC Pannell is a small, family owned and operated winery, established 2004 by Stephen Pannell and wife Fiona Lindquist. The winery was founded to focus on Stephen's passion for McLaren Vale and its ability to produce dry grown, environmentally sustainable Shiraz and Grenache. In his capacity as Chief Red Wine Maker at BRL Hardy, Pannell gained an intimate knowledge of the regions vineyards and sub-regional variations, he was able to secure exquisite parcels of old vine Grenache and Shiraz from low yielding, dry grown sites. He wanted to make wines from the region that express their sense of place and define the character and expression of McLaren Vale.
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Sarantos is where you’d rather be
Sarantos is that amazing place - or fantastic state of mind - where everything’s relaxed, and full of fun, good friends, good food and good wine. It’s that place – or feeling you have - when only Sarantos will do. When you want a soft pressed wine that’s so gorgeously slurpable, to be enjoyed al fresco, at friends or in your favourite café or restaurant. Sarantos do everything in the Sarantos-style. Refreshingly relaxed, down to earth and with a great passion for sharing good wine and good food with great friends.
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In 1844 a recently arrived immigrant from England named William Salter was one of the first people to purchase land in the newly opened land survey known as the Barossa Valley
He built a stone house for his family naming it Mamre Brook, after Abrahams spiritual home in the book of Genesis. Mamre Brook House still stands today as the spiritual home of Saltram. William Salter and Sons first planted grapes here in 1859, and in 1862 produced 8000 litres of a wine appropriately named No.1 Shiraz. In the history of Saltram there have only been eight senior winemakers, two families dominate the list, Salter and Dolan. Three generations of Salters made wine until 1937, and the Dolan's have played a part at Saltram from the 1950s through until today.
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The Rymill winery, steeped in history, is situated within The Riddoch Run Vineyards at the northern end of the famous Terra Rossa strip
Coonawarra patriarch John Riddoch struck gold at the Ovens Valley goldfields in 1852, before establishing himself as a wholesale wine and general merchant in Geelong. He eventually settled near Penola, at shearing time in 1861. The Riddoch Run eventually expanded to 50,000ha, carrying 110,000 sheep and 3,000 cattle, and extended from Comaum in the north to Mt Gambier Airport in the south. During his subsequent four decades of community service Riddoch was Chairman of the Penola District Council for 25 years, and also the local Member of Parliament from 1865 to 1873, obtaining roads and education for the region. The Riddoch Highway and Mt Gambier's Riddoch Art Gallery currently commemorate his name.
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Running With Bulls are leading the rush of Mediterranean varietals which can make exciting wine in South Australia’s soil and climate
In 1999, after several study visits to Spain by Yalumba luminaries Robert Hill-Smith and Louisa Rose, Tempranillo was grafted onto old Barossa rootstock. Known to thrive in a range of conditions around the world, Tempranillo has an affinity with the Barossa region, where an ideal climate helps to showcase the stylish fruit flavours of this emerging variety. The experimental fruit of Hill-Smith and Rose whet their appetites and led to further plantings.
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Peter Rumball is an Australian specialist Méthode Champenoise Sparkling Winemaker who led the 1980's renaissance of sparkling red wines
His style has made him famous in Australia. Peter Rumball loves this style so much, Sparkling Red wine is now the majority of sparkling wine that he produces. The wine is heavy in varietal character. Shiraz and Merlot are used. Big, full basewines are made from these grapes, they have great depth of colour and fruit character, exclusive of high alcohol.
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Right at the heart of Coonawarra are the Rouge Homme Vineyards, established in 1908 when the Redman family purchased part of John Riddoch's Penola Fruit Colony
For half a century, the Rouge Homme winemakers supplied wine to other companies and merchants. With the inaugural release of the 1954 Cabernet Sauvignon, Rouge Homme as a winery itself began to attract some of the fame. Rouge Homme, French for Red Man, signified the similarity of the wines to the red wines of Bordeaux. The Rouge Homme Richardson's label was introduced with the 1992 vintage and named in honour of Henry Richardson. In 1892 Henry Richardson, one of the earliest Coonawarra pioneers, purchased land from the region's founder John Riddoch, and established a vineyard winery on the property.
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In a little over 30 years, Rosemount Estate has established itself as one of Australia's most dedicated, innovative and leading wineries
Much has changed over the years at Rosemount Estate however, the commitment to quality that defined the original vision for Rosemount Estate's humble beginnings in the Hunter Valley has remained intact. This vision has remained pivotal to the progress and success of the now world famous winery that is Rosemount Estate.
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Rosedale Wines takes its name from a small settlement, originally called Rosenthal, in the southwest of Barossa Valley
Barossa is Australia’s most famous wine region, renowned for producing some of the best Shiraz (Syrah) wines in the world. Rosedale Wines specialises in producing wines from the western Barossa Valley, with emphasis on Shiraz and Rhone style blends. The estate vineyards begin near Rosedale just to the northwest of Lyndoch and stretch along the Barossa boundary to Greenock. Soils vary significantly, but in the Rosedale area they are generally shallow, with broken shale through red brown earths and Terra Rossa. The ancient soils and Mediterranean style climate typically produce low yields of small berries with thick skins. Vineyards at Lyndoch and Rosedale, south of Gomersal Road, produce modest yields and the sites demand harvesting within a small window of opportunity, which allow for lifted ripe vibrant black currant characters, verging on casis with solid just ripe tannins allowing a wine of inky colour and powerful structure to be made.
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Magpie Estate is a joint venture which began in 1993, between winemaker Rolf Binder and English wine merchant Noel Young
Rolf's story begins in 1950 when his parents arrived from Austria and Hungary, part of the large influx of post war immigration to Australia. They worked with the Victorian railways for three years. During that time they met Elmore Schulz a train driver and a grape grower in the Barossa Valley. In 1953 they picked grapes in the Barossa, met Chris Vohrer and Wilhem Abel and in 1954 worked a vintage in their winery. This is the old winery on Langmeil Road, which they purchased in 1955.
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Robert O’Callaghan was born into a family of grape growers. He grew up amongst vineyards and wineries, where he inherited a great respect for the pioneer Australian wine trade
All that O’Callaghan experienced is reflected in the Rockford fundamentals. Quality winemaking is a skilled craft that consumes a very large part of one’s life, so it must give you joy. O’Callaghan's parents and grandparents were grape growers, so his childhood was spent in their vineyards. His family moved to northeastern Victoria where his father managed a vineyard for Australia’s then largest family winemakers, Seppelts. In 1965 O’Callaghan followed a natural path and started as a trainee winemaker at Seppelt’s Rutherglen winery. It was a wonderful apprenticeship in the old, ordered, slow and gentle Australian wine trade. The wines he drank, the winemakers from previous generations with whom he associated and everything he absorbed in that period had a major influence on the way Rockford is today. Although O’Callaghan spent all his life in the industry, the pleasure he derive from walking through rows of vines or casks filled with wine has not diminished.
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RockBare was born out of Tim Burvill's desire to create his own wine from fruit grown to Australia's best viticultural regions
Growing up in Western Australia, Tim's interest in wine was sparked at a young age by frequent summer holidays to the Margaret River region. He fell in love with the world of wine, his passion eventually saw him move to South Australia, where he completed an honours degree at Adelaide University's Roseworthy Campus. His first job was with Southcorp, which as Tim puts it "was the best start to a winemaking career that anyone could ask for." For the next 5 years Tim worked with Southcorp, travelling the country plying his craft in the Coonawarra (Wynns) and the Barossa Valley (Penfolds), the Sunraysia and the Riverland, refining his style alongside some of the best winemakers in the country. A rapid rise through the ranks soon saw him vested with the responsibility at the age of 25, of making Southcorp's ultra-premium white wines, including Penfolds Yattarna. In 2001, Tim decided to follow his own path and began RockBare, focusing on Chardonnay and Shiraz from South Australia's McLaren Vale.
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After a decade of confusion about his distinguished history and name, which continues as a famous Clare Valley that he founded in the 1970s, Tim Knappstein made the decision to launch a new label in 2006
The name chosen was Riposte, for which the dictionary definition is comeback, a quick reply, retort, or in the context of the sport of fencing a quick counter stroke. The wines, sourced from selected premium vineyards in South Australia’s cool climate Adelaide Hills, carry sword names reflecting the fencing theme. They display the pure varietal characters of this exceptional cooler region. The aim of Riposte is to deliver top quality wines at affordable prices aided by meticulous winemaking, rigourous grape selection and Tim’s 40 years of winemaking and judging experience. Tim Knappstein stands tall among Australia’s elite winemakers, a third generation vigneron with 40 years experience producing wines of finesse and excellence.
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Richmond Grove Wines maxim proclaims special wines from special places, and Richmond Grove is nested in its own special place, in the Barossa Valley town of Tanunda
Richmond Grove believe that to make the best wine, the grapes must be selected from the region most suited to that particular grape variety. For this reason the estate sources grapes from across Australia's most renowned wine making districts to create a portfolio of wines that showcases the distinctive characters of geographical regions within Australia.
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Rex Watson commenced business in the Australian Wine Industry in 1991 and began growing wine grapes in Coonawarra in 1997
In 1999 he commenced the planting of the most significant modern vineyard development in Coonawarra. In less than 5 years this was built into a venture that owns controls and manages almost 1,000 acres over three vineyards, all close to the historic township of Coonawarra and well within the geographically defined Coonawarra region. Currently Rex is the largest independent grape grower in the world-famous Coonawarra region. At full capacity the vineyards have the potential to produce up to 400,000 cases of premium Coonawarra wine from their own fruit. This presents the opportunity to consistently produce high volume, high quality premium wines year after year.
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The Reschke history and its close relationship with Coonawarra began over a century ago with the establishment of a farming and grazing enterprise
It is cattle grazing heritage that is reflected in the Reschke logo of the bull. Four generations later in 1989 Burke Reschke embarked on a development of estate vineyards in what is still primarily a cattle property. The demand for the Reschke wine grapes throughout the nineties saw the fruit being used for some of Australia's Icon wines. In 1998 a selection of the most outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon parcels was released under the first Reschke label Empyrean.
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In 1856 an Irish cobler by the name of Hugh Reilly arrived at the tiny township of Mintaro in the Clare Valley
Over the next 10 years, Hugh converted the stone barn that had been his home into a cottage. Reilly's Cottage served as the local Cobbler's Shop in the centre of the bustling town, which had boomed with the discovery of slate in the area. Almost 140 years later, the cottage has been restored to its former glory by distant relatives of Hugh, the Ardill family, and once again it is a hive of activity, and home to Reilly's Wines.
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Since the first Coonawarra vine gnarled its way heavenward, the Redman name has been synonymous with the region
The Redman family, Redman winery, red soil and red wine are the four R's that comprise the Redman coat of arms. All interdependant upon each other, they work in harmony to produce the famous wines of Coonawarra. The association began in 1901 when Bill Redman, at the tender age of fourteen arrived in South Australia's South East to work in the vineyards. He quickly formed an affiliation with the area and six years later encouraged the rest of his family to join him.
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Centrally located in Australia's world class Coonawarra winegrowing district, Punters Corner is a boutique estate, and proudly, home to the 2000 Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy
Coonawarra, the aboriginal word for wild honeysuckle, is the name all associate with Australia's premier table-wine district, the dry red wines are amongst the best in the world. The Coonawarra viticultural area is based on the small area of terra rosa soil stretching north from Penola for fifteen kilometres and restricted to only two to three kilometres in width. Early assessments of Coonawarra area recognised the suitability of the natural elements of the district for vine growing.
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Primo Grilli planted his vineyard in 1973 a a spot 30 kilometres north of Adelaide within the rich fertile market gardening land of Virginia
Only 3 kilometres from the coast, Virginia enjoys the benefits of the cool sea breezes that sweep over the plains in the evenings. Primo built his vineyard with passion and understood completely the life of a vine. The grapes were grown to be turned into wine. His eldest son Joseph grew up with the vines tending them with the rest of the family. Joseph was to be a winemaker. It was not a conscious choice, not an expectation, just a progression, what he had to be. From his very first vintage, at age 20, Primo Estate's Joe Grilli wanted to create revolutionary wines. Ever since, Joe has been doing exactly that; creating some wonderfully dazzling and unconventional wines under the Joseph and Primo Estate labels.
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Poole’s Rock Vineyard was founded 1988 in the Broke Fordwich district of Hunter Valley by McQuarie banker David Clarke
Located thirty kilometres west of the main Hunter vineyard region, the original 32 hectare property is named after the monolith on its southern boundary, which in turn takes its name from a prominent local character who lived in the area over 100 years ago. Four prime hectares were planted solely to chardonnay vines, an endeavour described by legendary Australian winemaker, Murray Tyrrell, as the viticultural showpiece of Hunter Valley. David Clarke spent two years in search of this ideal site, one that would provide a suitable microclimate and alluvial soils conducive to the production of premium chardonnay. He engaged viticultural consultant Di Davidson to assist with the vineyard’s design. Development and planting commenced in spring 1988. They took meticulous care in establishing the vineyard, which is fully irrigated. The vines are now fully mature and producing remarkable quality fruit.
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Pirramimma was founded by Alexander Campbell Johnston in 1892 and has been owned and operated by the Johnston family ever since
The Johnston family arrived in South Australia in 1839 and in 1892 Alexander, the tenth of thirteen children, purchased 97 hectares of rich farmland southeast of the then fledgling village of McLaren Vale. He named his land Pirramimma, an Aboriginal phrase meaning 'the moon and the stars'
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