In 2009 we made the decision to adapt all of our vineyards to organic farming practices. This involved a three-year conversion, culminating in our certification in 2011. Simply put, this means we farm our vineyards without synthetic chemicals, sprays, fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides, or any other products that are not naturally occurring.
Outstanding Wine Quality
Organic wine farming reaps many rewards. There is an individual story to be in each wine, and farming organically makes for a more compelling wine; wines that better express the site and season in which they were grown. Wines with a sense of place.
Natural advantages
Our land does have a number of natural advantages when it comes to organic farming.
Protected against mould and mildew
The vineyard is planted into the foothills of the Warby Range, immediately below the Taminick Gap – a natural low point in the southern end of the range. This means cool breezes from the Victoria Alps to the east funnel through this low point in the Warby Range first. This gentle, but near constant breeze across our vineyard helps to dry out canopies after heavy rain, and disperse humidity, meaning mould and mildew outbreaks are rare.
Protection from harmful winds
Our vineyard adjoins the Warby Ovens National Park. The combination of dense bush and elevation protects our vineyards from heavy frosts, which can burn off delicate young shoots when they emerge in spring, and protects from buffeting winds that can cause issues with flowering.
‘spirit of sustainability’
Wine quality aside, we have seen some many other additional benefits in the vineyard and beyond. The ability of our soils to sequester carbon is measurably better, levels of organic matter (humus) within our soils are greatly increased, bio-diversity and beneficial bug activity is visibly better, our vines show much greater resilience when challenged by climatic events, and more broadly, this project has kick started a ‘spirit of sustainability’ that continues to flow through the rest of our business.
Our Unique Finger Print
In 2012 we took the next logical step of carrying the organic management practices from the vineyard through to the winery, producing a single organic Shiraz. From vintage 2019, we made all Baileys of Glenrowan table wines organically grown and produced. Our wine making philosophy somewhat mirrors the vineyard, which is based around the minimal intervention ethos which really lets the fruit shine. This allows the wine to possess the Baileys of Glenrowan unique finger print.
