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Planted to the tranquil Shangri-La of a sun warmed slope in Yarra Valley, TarraWarra was established 1983 by the founders of the Sussan and Sportsgirl brands. Philanthropists and patrons of the arts, Mr and Mrs Besen, AO and AO respectively, took a highly aesthetic approach to the pursuit of viticulture. Healthy soils and happy fauna were the means to an end, good wine comes from a sound ecology, but great wine needs the inspiration of a holistic engagement with the arts. It is here at Healesville that habitues can savour the Sauvignon while immersing themselves amongst the work of our national masters. A costly collection of canvas by our merry Messrs Boyd and Whiteley, Drysdale, Brack and Pugh,.. Take the trek to tarrawarra»
Just a few kilometres north of Lowburn, near the windswept shores of frigid Lake Dunstan, atop the parched and laborious terroirs of Central Otago, a high country merino stud between the Amisfield and Parkburn streams was sown to vineyards two decades ago. Grazing country makes magnificent viticulture, the austere alluvial and glacial schist soils now yield the quality of Pinot Noir which has defined Central Otago as the world's most demonstrable marque in full bodied, intensely complex, yet beguilingly seamless Pinot Noir. The challenging terraces which spiral around the fractious knolls of Amisfield Vineyard, sire a sensational range of wines defined by their affable excellence, sound structure and.. Satiations from the nethermost regions»
Hurtle Walker first picked grapes as a ten year old on the celebrious Magill property in 1900. Apprenticed to the legenderies Monsieur Duray and Leon Mazure, Walker was placed in charge of sparkling wine production for the historic Auldana Cellars at the ripe old age of 21. He saw service as a soldier in World War I and made great wine until 1975. Hurtle Walker's grandson continues the family tradition, partnering with Jimmy Watson winner David O'Leary to acquire the most auspicious Clare Valley vineyards and establish one of the nation's leading marques. Between the two, O'Leary and Waker have claimed every prestigious accolade in the land, a breathtaking tally of dozens national Trophies and.. The illustrious pair of valley clare»
Fox Creek
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Fox Creek
It all began when a group of medicos decided to realize a lifelong passion - creating a wine from bare earth and sunshine

In the past years since Fox Creek was established, many of the Fox Creek wines have been recognized by being awarded both Trophies and Gold Medals from National and Regional Wine Shows. The McLaren Vale Region has a Mediterranean style climate with a strong maritime influence and is frost-free as we are 7km from the sea. Annual Rainfall is 600-700mm falling mainly in Winter. It is an ideal location for growing grapes, with little disease pressure.

Fox Creek

Fox Creek has three company vineyards or approximately 60 hectares of vines. The vineyards are within a range of 5 kilometres, near the village of Willunga. "On our vineyards we grow most common grape varieties. The red varieties are our specialty, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The white varieties grown are Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Verdelho and Semillon.

"Fox Creek has always protected and enhanced the areas surrounding the vineyards with plantings of indigenous native trees. These provide habitat, food and shelter for native birds. Our focus is to be environmentally friendly and only use sustainable practices if possible. We strive to minimise the use of any chemical or other artificial agents."

There are many different soil types at the estate vineyards. About one half are black cracking clays full of organic matter which can develop deep cracks in summer. The rest are red sandy loams with rocks right through their profile. These soils are well drained and aerated.

Fox Creek

Fox Creek manage the vineyard floor with a mix of cover cropping and permanent swards. Mulching the under-vine area is also carried out to improve the structure, fertility and microbiological diversity in soil. Cultivation is kept to a bare minimum to conserve soil structure. The vineyard layout and trellis systems have been designed to best suit the specific needs of individual varieties.

Most of the Shiraz is grown on a trellis system called Scott-Henry, and the vines are trained to two cordons. The shoots from the top cordon are lifted by a set of foliage wires while the bottom cordon shoots are down-turned. This system helps control the natural vigour of Shiraz while allowing maximum sunlight penetration and ventilation of the canopy. Most white varieties are grown on a Vertically Shoot Positioned trellis. This gives excellent fruit exposure and ventilation to reduce disease pressure, but enough shading to prevent sunburn damage to the bunches.

With the use of weather stations and continuous monitoring of soil moisture, stress can be minimalized in critical periods such as the time of flowering, controlled stress is utilized to dictate shoot size after fruitset. The outcome of this careful management is to make the most efficient use of limited underground water supplies. All the estate vineyards have drip irrigation, with the exception of one premiere dry-grown Shiraz vineyard.

"All of our vineyards are hand pruned to control vigour. Hand pruning also controls cropping levels which are kept quite low, enabling us to produce small berries full of concentrated flavour and colour. Vintage time is always hectic!" The winemakers sample the grapes regularly to determine the optimum picking time as judged by flavour development and baum (sugar levels).

Fox Creek