Aventine Wines

Aventine Wines make both traditional and non-traditional, non-commercial wine styles, utilising Aboriginal yeasts and minimal interference for many people to enjoy something special.

Aventine Wines was established in 1995, following a close association with the Granite Belt over many years. The property was purchased as a country retreat. They enjoyed the beauty of the country, the wines, and the typically 5 to 10 degrees below zero temperatures during winter. A wonderful excuse to rug up in front of a log fire and enjoy generous amounts of Ballandean's excellent liqueur muscats, and ports. They were visiting the area on such a regular basis that they decided that it would be more economical to buy a property. Two years after purchasing the farm, wine grapes were planted. The farm had been growing table grapes for about the last 100 years.

#THE VINEYARD The farm, on which the winery is located, was first cleared for farming in the early 1900's by the two Barker brothers. None of those fancy chainsaws or bulldozers in those days. The brothers used 6-foot long, (about 2 metres) steel saws with one man on each end pulling and pushing in turn. Horses were used to pull tree stumps and move granite boulders. They cleared about 600 acres (about 240 hectares) in that fashion. The last Barker brother passed away a couple of years ago. Up to a year before his passing, he was still running his farm next door to us, climbing picking ladders with the rest of his workers, harvesting plums for market. They don't make them like that any more. The farm had been growing table grapes for about the past 100 years. When it was taken over there were the remnants of various table varieties including a couple of acres of black muscat (Muscat of Alexandria) a variety from which just about all the area's muscats are made. By the time the vines are about 60 years old the quality of fruit and resulting liqueur is splendid. the remaining vines were planted, which total over 20 acres of wine grapes. The whole farm is essentially located on the side of a north-facing hill. The vineyard is about 1000metre above sea level, and is composed of shallow weathered granite soils. The climate is Mediterranean, with hot days and cool nights. The vineyard is hand pruned, and the fruit is hand picked. We crop at about 3 to 4 tons per acre.