Mt Lofty Ranges
Lenswood, South Australia
One bright March morning in 2009 Sharon Pearson and Garry Sweeney drove into the car park of Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard and took in the spectacular outlook ahead of them. Sharon’s first words were “we’re buying this”. As Garry responded with a “can we taste the wines first?” He bent down to grab a clump of earth and pressed the rich soil though his fingers. He knew Sharon was right, that their exhaustive six-year search for a property that matched their winemaking philosophy was over.
This was a very special block of land… where they could apply their sustainable and minimal intervention approach and create some magnificent premium cool climate wines. But more than that, Garry also instinctively felt the predominately sandy, clay loam with a rock base of quartz, sandstone and ironstone might one day produce something singularly spectacular. At 550 metres above sea level the region is classified as cool climate with the undulating and steep sloping terrain minimizing the risk of frost. The high altitude and protected site also reduces the chance of a heat wave during summer.
Established in 1992, the vineyard has 19,000 planted vines consisting of Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
The entire vineyard is hand caned pruned and harvested by hand picking. Whilst this is labour intensive, Sharon and Garry think the results speak for themselves. Harvest dates range from mid-March to early April for Pinot Noir, Chardonnay & Sauvignon Blanc. For the Riesling, harvest is up to early May.
The Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard wines you try today are the culmination of many years spent producing consistently good wines that have been recognised with a string of prestigious awards. But perhaps most importantly, Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard sends out a strong and unequivocal message that the Adelaide Hills can and does produce world-class wines.
| MT LOFTY RANGES | Vintage | Case |
| Mt Lofty Handpicked Riesling | 2016 | 12 |
| Mt Lofty Old Cherry Block Sauvignon Blanc | 2018 | 12 |
| Mt Lofty Not Shy Pinot Rose | 2017 | 12 |
| Mt Lofty Old Apple Block Chardonnay | 2016 | 12 |
| Mt Lofty Old Pump Shed Pinot Noir | 2016 | 12 |
| Mt Lofty Adelaide Hills Shiraz | 2016 | 12 |