116A QUEEN ST, WOOLLAHRA, NSW
SUN-MON: 10AM-9PM / TUES-THURS: 9AM-9PM / FRI-SAT: 9AM-10PM
To fully appreciate wine, we want to delve into the history and humble beginnings of the wine industry as we know it in Australia.
This January, we highlight some of the Oldest Wineries in the country.
These renowned vineyards have been around since the mid-1800s containing some of the oldest vines in the world. They have paved the way for the wine industry in the country to produce world-class wines.
Check out some of Australia’s most historic wineries.
BEST’S GREAT WESTERN
Since 1866, Best’s Great Western has made its mark in the industry through its historic collection of Australia’s oldest and most significant vineyards.
It has flourished under the stewardship of two families – the Bests and Thomsons. For more than 150 years, they have been producing world-class wines in the Victoria’s Great Western region and are best known for their famed nursery block that still has some of the original vines from when they first began. The nursery block contains 39 varieties, 8 of which remain unidentified.
Walking through the vineyard would take you back to the mid-1800s where you can also visit their hand-dug underground cellars that are still in working use today.
Best’s prides itself in extraordinary and iconic wines of elegance and longevity.
YALUMBA WINES
In 1849, Yalumba was established making it the oldest family-owned winery in Australia. Fiercely independent, extremely progressive and committed to looking after the land and its people, they acknowledge that the reputation of their wine is only as good as the next bottle a customer drinks. Regardless of variety, quantity, or price, they put the same attention to detail in their wine production.
Furthermore, Yalumba has made the art of barrel-making an important part of their story. With emphasis on crafting bespoke barrels from the ground up, they are the only winery in the Southern Hemisphere to have an operational, on-site wine cooperage. These barrels then add a unique flavour, complexity and aroma to their wines.
Experience the result of more than 170 years of winemaking with every bottle.
TYRRELL’S WINES
The Tyrrell’s family lineage can be traced back to the 11th century. It was established in 1858 and is one of Australia’s pre-eminent and oldest family-owned wineries. A visit to their vineyard would take you back to the olden days with their old oak vats and historic red cellar. The family’s beginnings can be further appreciated with a visit to the original iron bark hut that English immigrant Edward Tyrrell lived in and the Short Flat Vineyard, home of Australia’s most awarded white wine, Vat 1 Semillon, with its vines first planted in 1923.
Tyrrell’s owns 7 out of the Hunter Valley’s 11 blocks of own-rooted vineyards that are more than a hundred years old. Each one plays a great significance to Australia’s wine history.
TAHBILK
Established in 1860, Tahbilk has a long history of producing fine wines with the help of rich ferric-oxide/sandy loam soils and temperate climate.
Its name originates from its location, with the local aboriginal people first referred to as “tabilk-tabilk”, meaning “place of many waterholes” – a name which perfectly describes the landscape. The property itself comprises some 1,214 hectares of rich river flats with a frontage of 11 kms to the Goulburn River and 8 kms of permanent backwaters and creeks.
In 2013, Tahbilk became carbon neutral and they are dedicated to celebrating their history and committing to a creating a sustainable legacy for future generations.
SEVEN HILL
While the origins of Sevenhill Cellars date back to the mid-nineteenth century, its roots run much deeper and go all the way back to the 16th century when a young Spanish mercenary called Inigo, eventually swapped a life of violence for one dedicated to helping others and co-founded the religious order we know today as the Jesuits.
He mistakenly thought the Latin translation of his name was Ignatius and hundreds of years later, the more well-known St Ignatius has stuck fast. Religious orders fell out of favour at various times with European rulers of the day during the middle ages and into the 19th century, as was the case in the mid-1800s and why two young Jesuit priests found themselves on a four-month voyage to Australia.
After landing in Adelaide in 1848, one of the priests, Father Kranewitter, struck out North with a group of over 100 German and Silesian migrants.
Amid the beautiful rolling hills of the Clare Valley is where they decided to settle and, after purchasing 100 acres of land in 1849, the young priest named the property Sevenhill in honour of the seven hills of Rome.
The creation of gardens and orchards were prioritised along with the building of basic accommodation and the first grapevines were planted in 1851. Just 5 years later and the first wines of Sevenhill were produced and in 1858, went on to win first prize at the Auburn Agricultural Exhibition.
The first of many firsts, for Clare Valley’s first winery