This began in 1997 when Sonja and Paul Evans saw their land for the first time. Armed with a shovel, sheer dedication and limited resources, Sonja and Paul embarked on an ambitious plan to transform a 50 year old cattle property into a fully operational viticultural enterprise, which now encompasses a 2000 case annual wine production and listings in some of the most exclusive restaurants and wine stores Australia wide. With each new vintage Sedona Estate faces nature’s unpredictable challenges, requiring skills, flexibility and continuous improvement to create the best wine from each variety.
The realisation of a dream has invented a wine brand that aspires to achieve wines of distinction. After a long search for the perfect vineyard site, the foundation for Sedona Estate was laid with the purchase of our 52 acre property in Murrindindi with its undulating hills and dales. What Sonja and Paul lacked in monetary resources, they compensated with hard work and a vision to transform their 50 year old cattle farm into a thriving viticultural enterprise.
The aspect, climate and soils promised to deliver the viticultural basis for the growth of premium quality grapes – the first step in the creation of wines of distinction. The first wines released under the Sedona Estate label exceeded all expectations, their efforts were rewarded with a five star winery rating by James Halliday. The history of Sedona Estate has just begun and they hope to produce many more award winning wines.
With harvest approaching in autumn, the most rewarding and equally challenging time has arrived. Choosing the best time for harvest is a fine balance between optimum Baumé and fruit flavour. The unique climate of the valley where Sedona Estate lies in delivers hot and dry summer days, but cool nights, which aid in slow fruit ripening and complex flavour development.
The Sedona vineyard has also been a food source for many animals including wasps, grasshoppers, birds and even sheep. One of the most challenging years was the 2007 vintage, starting with spring frosts followed by persistent drought impacting on the canopy development and bunch weights. The already low crop was further reduced by hungry animals resulting in a harvest of just ¼ tonne per acre.
Mother Nature always manages to throw obstacles in the way such as spring frosts, drought and fires. But nevertheless, with many more vintages ahead of them, Sedona Estate will continue to face Mother Nature’s unpredictable challenges, requiring skills, flexibility and continuous improvement to create the best wine from each variety. In winemaking, science provides the foundation and art delivers the distinction. The fruit are the tools and it is the winemaker’s art that adds the fingerprint to every wine, creating unique and interesting wines of impeccable quality. Finding the optimum blend of fruit flavour, acid, tannins and oak to produce well balanced wines is the aim. In some years, the fruit presents itself with ideal characters allowing for a smooth transition from grape to a well-balanced wine.
Through their minimalistic winemaking approach, Sedona Estate are able to capture and retain the true varietal characteristics and primary fruit flavour. With many more vintages ahead of them, Sedona Estate endeavour to continue working with Mother Nature to create the best wine from each variety for you to enjoy. The philosophy is to always create wines with true varietal characters, power and fruit weight that has become indeed become the hallmark of the Sedona style.
