Every release under the Chestnut Grove label is made fromestate grown fruit, the quality of the wines is a direct reflection of the quality of our vineyards. As the Chestnut Grove vines continue to mature, the wine improves dramatically. The natural balance maintained in the vineyard is evident in the wines, delicious on release, with the ability to age with grace.

Chestnut Grove is rapidly gaining an enviable repute for their world class wines, and created quite a stir when they took out the Most Successful Exhibitor award at the 2006 RSM Bird Cameron Timber Towns Regional Wine Show, winning three Silver and three Bronze Medals.

The long growing season, which extends into May, combines high sunshine hours with 1250 heat degree days, winter rains with no frost, to produce excellent quality cool climate fruit. The vineyard is a hundred metres above sea level and lies just twenty kilometres from the coast, being very much under maritime influence.

Inspired by the tremendous opportunities along the East Coast, Geoff and Susie Bull established Freycinet Vineyard in 1980. They were early pioneers in a new region which years later revealed exciting potential for the highest quality wines. The region now boasts over a dozen vineyards.

Daughter Lindy Bull and winemaker/ partner Claudio Radenti have taken over the family tradition of gently handcrafting the wines. Lindy and Claudio are passionate about their nine hectare vineyard and are extremely focused on maintaining quality.

The philosophy around Freycinet is to keep things simple, thereby allowing the vineyard to express itself without extra winemaking influence. The aim is to make the wines as big and as beautiful as possible. At harvest the fully ripened fruit has maximum flavour, which is very carefully retained throughout the winemaking process via a gentle and minimalist handling.

The techniques of barrel fermentation and lees stirring, maloactic fermentation and rote fermenters are utilised to produce wines of exceptional colour and flavour. Extended maturation in tight grain French oak casks for twelve to eighteen months completes the winemaking process. Radenti Champagne is crafted to methode traditionelle, an assemblage of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, reflecting the idyllic conditions of Tasmania's cooler climates in the production of premium sparkling wines.

The Barossa Valley is actually a long plain that sits at an average of 230m elevation, with small hills on the western side and the steeper Barossa Hills leading toward the higher Eden Valley on the east. The region includes the towns Nuriootpa, Tanunda, and Angaston. Saltram is situated on Nuriootpa Road just a kilometre from the town of Angaston. The soils of the Barossa are predominantly red brown loams, which are non-cracking, well structured and relatively free draining - making them ideal for growing grapevines.

Saltram draws fruit from its own 45 hectare Saltram Vineyard that surrounds the Saltram Winery and Cellar Door as well as from other vineyards throughout the region. These vineyards are spread over from the cooler hills of the Eden Valley to the warmer areas across the valley floor. The Saltram Vineyards yield many different varietals, the vast majority are planted to Shiraz, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, alongside some smaller plantings of non-mainstream varieties such as Malbec, Petit Verdot, Barbera, Nebbiolo and Sangiovese.

Peter Lehmann, while winemaker at Saltram, lightened the traditional styles and made distinctive reds, and fine ports. He encouraged the planting of cabernet sauvignon, harvested earlier for better pH control and introduced new oak casks Most of the Saltram vines are irrigated via drip irrigation and supported on a variety of trellising systems with more recent planting on single wire trellising and t-trellising systems. Drip irrigation was developed in the 1950s to allow viticulturalists to grow grapevines in climates with low rainfall.

The Barossa Valley receives moderate rainfall of approximately 520mm (mostly falling during the winter months), and has high summer evaporation and low relative humidity. This ideal climate produces relatively low disease pressure, which limits the need for chemicals in the vineyard and also maintains the natural environment. Today, vineyards with a range of climatic conditions use drip irrigation as it allows them more control over the amount of water the vines receive. This extra control allows them to stress the vine by not irrigating at certain times, and irrigating it at others in order to control the crop level and quality of grapes the vine produces.

The Saltram Vineyards also have a number of older vines that were planted in the 1950s and 1960s that are dry grown - not irrigated at all. Dry growing the grapes on these vines produces more concentrated flavours and a higher skin to pulp ratio which improves wine colour and tannin levels. In good years, select parcels from theses vines go into the renowned Saltram No.1 Shiraz and various other special blends that make up Saltrams superb range of wines.

As winemakers, it goes without saying grapes are pretty important. Starvedog Lane's come from a little place called the Adelaide Hills region. It’s called that because it’s near Adelaide. And there are plenty of hills. So while it’s not the most imaginatively named region, it has become highly regarded as one of Australia’s best cool climate grape growing regions.

The region itself stretches from Clarendon to McLaren Vale, up to Eden Valley and the start of the Barossa district so there’s a fair bit of it. More than enough, in fact, to give all the wonderful grapes needed to make equally wonderful wines. Some people get a bit nervous when you use a phrase like ‘fresh cut grass’ to describe the flavour of a wine. Unless you’re a cow, terms like this are hardly likely to get your tail wagging. But honestly, don’t let it put you off or else you’ll be missing out on a real treat. If you’ve got something to celebrate, Starvedog Lane is the puppy to do it with. If you haven’t got anything to celebrate, don’t worry, when you’ve got one of these handy you can always celebrate having a damn fine wine to drink.

Starvedog Lane uses many grape types, but it’s certainly no mongrel – quite the opposite in fact. It’s the combination of styles that gives Starvedog Lane it's characteristics, but plenty of the kind of flavour that makes a wine really good. Starvedog Lane goes sensationally well with anything, as aperitifs, with seafood, pasta dishes and the word ‘darling’.

Chardonnay is what many people refer to as The King of white grapes and is one of the most popular white wines going around. If you want a white, and you’re not sure what to get, this is a pretty good way to go. Keep in mind it’s no lightweight though – as far as white go, it’s got more body than most. Unlike their No Oak Chardonnay this one’s gotten rather friendly with French oak so has that classic hint of spicy oak in it. It’s a fine wine with real character, and if you’re thinking of tucking into something like antipasto, scallops, creamy pasta, chicken or even a Thai laksa, this drop is definitely one to savour along with your meal.

Starvedog Lane also makes unwooded wine with the same style of grapes as their regular Chardonnay, but this one’s steered clear of the French connection. While it’s never snuggled up to any French oak, it’s in great company if there’s fish and chips or creamy pasta on the menu. It’s a little lighter than traditional Chardonnay and has plenty of spicy, fruity, flavour without being at all sweet. Paul, the winemaker behind this one, uses words like ‘zest’ and ‘racy’ when he talks about it and says it’s particularly good sitting on ice – we can only imagine he means the wine, not you.