coonawarra

Fantastic Australian wines of distinctive red earth. The agricultural history of what is now the Coonawarra wine region began in the mid-1800s, when settlers recognized the potential of the flat, fertile plains for raising sheep and growing fruit. Enterprising Scottish settler John Riddoch planted the first vines in Coonawarra in 1891, thirty years after establishing a lucrative sheep farm in Penola. Thanks to the pioneering work of people like David Wynn and Bill Redman, Coonawarra is now, perhaps alongside Margaret River, Australia’s most famous cool-climate region for Cabernet Sauvignon.

The grape variety has found a home on Coonawarra’s terra-rosa soils, producing rich, firmly structured red wines that are renowned around the world. But far from being a one-hit wonder, the region produces a wide range of varieties and styles. And the established winemaking families have been joined in recent years by a new generation of winemakers who continue the tradition of elegant cool-climate viticulture and are bringing the region to a new audience.