kingsvale ridge

In 1997 we decided we wanted to produce a truly great Australian red wine. We were fortunate in being able to start with a blank canvas, meaning we were without preconceptions as to what varieties it might constitute or where the grapes might be grown. It did however have to be a drinkable food wine with medium-body and regardless of the variety the preferred structure was "middle Rhone".

We needed soils of limited to moderate fertility and with cool night temperatures for a long cool ripening period. Access to good quality water was also essential. The logical place to start our odyssey was in the stone fruit growing areas of New South Wales, as stone fruit quality holds a strong affinity with that of grapes. The wines of the Hilltops region had long held appeal and some research amongst the large wineries, who take most of the grapes, revealed these had ended up in some of Australia's greatest red wine blends. The area produces wonderfully flavoured stone fruit, particularly cherries and enquiry amongst the local growers of these revealed those with the best flavours came from the higher hills south of the largest local town Young: In this tightly held area, one of the largest landholders agreed to sell us a 200-acre block on a high escarpment with access to a wonderful supply of cool, fresh water, trapped beneath the earth for perhaps hundreds or even thousands of years.

The vineyard is just south of the village of Kingsvale, five miles equidistant from Harden and Young. It occupies a spectacular site, astride an east-facing escarpment, falling away gently to the west. Soil is of free-draining decomposed granite, averaging twenty feet deep and red coloured from the ironstone sands that blew in eons ago from the Great Australian Desert. The average altitude is about 1,700 feet with average rainfall being 26 inches, falling mostly in the winter and spring. The winter is cold and snow flurries have been known to occur; summer is warm to hot, rather than the blazing heat that mars summer in the flatlands. Harvest is towards the end of April for red varieties and into early May for Cabernet.

In the spring of 1999, we planted 110 acres, 53 Shiraz, 37 Cabernet Sauvignon and 20 Merlot, all at a density of 900 per acre on a simple two-wire trellis. It took several years to identify which were the superior blocks and though we had fruit from as early as 2001 this was declassified to regional wine. Finally the 2004 vintage, seven years on and utilizing uncompromising farming practices during that time, we have achieved our objective.

Selected blocks of each of the varieties were spur- pruned to reduce crop to an average 2 tons per acre (the balance of the vineyard runs at around 4). Following harvest the grapes fermented at cool temperatures in static fermenters that were frequently pumped over. Following primary fermentation the Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon were stored for sixteen months in new barriques of 70% French and 30% Hungarian origin, with the Shiraz matured for a similar time in 100% new Hungarian oak barriques.

On the tasting bench the Merlot and Shiraz from the 2004 vintage were superior to the Cabernet, although we believe that this will change from vintage to vintage and as the plantings mature. The best and most complete wine proved to come from a 50/50 blend of the two top varieties. The wine was bottled in February 2006.

This is a wine not of the winemaker but of the vineyard. It is absolutely true to its origins with the surprise feature being how well the Merlot & Shiraz combine. The colour is dark, plush and concentrated and the nose has ripe blackberries, dark cherries, roasted herbs and peppery oak nuances. The palate delivers all this complexity with a pleasant softness and long finish. We believe the wine needs two years cellar time after bottling and that it will then provide exception drinking over the next 5-10 years.

return to top of page