d’Arenberg – One of the Australian First Families of Wine
d’Arenberg is one of the biggest names in wine in both the UK, the World and Australia. It was established in 1912 in McLaren Vale, South Australia.
The winery is famous for the quality of its wines and the character and longevity of the family business. It produces great wines with great stories behind the intriguingly named products – Dead Arm, Laughing Magpie, Dry Dam, Hermit Crab, Broken Fishplate, Pollyanna Polly, Peppermint Paddock, Love Grass, and many, many more. You can see and buy many of them on our website. Each story comes from the vineyards themselves or the creatures who live in them or even sometimes the land itself.
Many of these wines come and go in the UK, as the harvests vary and the popularity of them has led to increasing demand in the Far East, particularly China. Supplies of the top end wines such as Dead Arm, Coppermine Road, and Ironstone Pressings, all big full-bodied reds, all particularly likely to be in short supply at certain times of the year.
The winery is led today by fourth generation family member, Chester, who makes their distinctive wines using traditional methods both in the vineyard and the winery. He actually visited our shop in Warrington several years ago and presented a selection of d’Arenberg wines. We were honoured to have him there. The shop is no longer in existence, but we do have signed mementos from the day.
The wines have their own unique styles. White wine is produced from many different varietals. The wines are full flavoured with elegance and balance and have bright fresh acidity which pushes forward a long lingering finish. The whites have lifted aromas and delicate bouquets. Varietals such as Rousanne, Marsanne and Viognier are grown as well as the standards such as Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.
The reds also have a style of their own driven by the long-standing family traditions. No excess oak. Fragrant, sophisticated fruit flavoured wines are the order of the day. Long, lively, gritty and youthful tannins full of fragrant fruit and mineral notes, melding seamlessly with complex spice, game and earthy body. As well as the Aussie mainstays of Grenache, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Mourvedre (sometimes called Mataro in Australia) is also grown for use in blending. Viognier (a white wine, but commonly blended with reds) is also used to blend with Shiraz in some of their wines.
The Process
d’Arenberg is one of the only wineries in Australia to basket press both white wines as well as reds. This makes for a very labour-intensive process, but the quality of the results makes this worthwhile. The action is controlled and extremely gentle and enhances the wine substantiality. No mechanised processing which often damages the fruit.
White wines are basket pressed before fermentation to ensure no colour or tannins are extracted from the skins, and the reds are pressed afterwards. After pressing, reds are transferred to barrel to complete fermentation, and then aged on lees to slow the process and keep the wine fresh. This also reduces the oak influence.
All parcels of fruit are kept separate until final blending. An extensive barrel tasting process is undertaken to determine the final wine. There is no racking until the final blending, and the wines do not undertake fining or filtration prior to bottling
The winery is very much a family business. Walking the vineyard rows and tasting grapes, Chester Osborn classifies and determines the ideal picking time for each individual vineyard. Every vineyard is different and has its own unique “personality”, which is encouraged so that they flourish individually, and intervention is minimal allowing a uniqueness of “Terroir” to come through in the production. Adding this to proven techniques such as foot treading and basket pressing allows the individual personalities of the vineyards to come through and provides a uniqueness to the separate wines they produce.
Sustainability
All d’Arenberg estate owned and leased vineyards are NASAA Certified for organic and biodynamic processes. The winery is the largest biodynamic certified grower in Australia for wine grapes under one portfolio.
This natural and environmentally friendly philosophy encourages strong root systems that penetrate the soil, resulting in lively tannin structures, soil characters and fine minerality. These practices also ensure that yields are kept low with concentrated flavours and excellent natural acidity. Quality rather than quantity is the objective.
Sheep grazing, solar power, and natural disease control are a few ways in which d’Arenberg upholds their commitment to the environment that surrounds them. Throughout the winter months of May, June, July and August weed growth is managed with 200 sheep released into the vineyards, with the added benefit of the sheep providing manure to feed the vineyard area. A true natural cycle.
Pests and diseases are managed with careful monitoring and by reducing canopy and crop densities to minimise the use of organic fungicides and pesticides
The installation of a 200 kW solar PV generator which generates approximately 30% of the electricity use of the manufacturing process has reduced greenhouse gas emissions at the winery by more than 181 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide per year.
Harmony between environmental sustainability and wine industry practice is a strong commitment upheld at d’Arenberg, with the aim to pass on a sustainable business to the next generation.
d’Arenberg – One of the Australian First Families of Wine
In 2009, the Australian wine landscape was changed forever when 12 of Australia’s oldest family owned, multi-generational wine businesses came together to form Australia’s First Families of Wine. A unique collaboration designed to promote Australian wines across the globe.
This is a unique collaboration of like-minded families. Its intention was to change the narrative about the history, provenance and quality of Australian premium wine, telling the stories behind these families that form the golden thread that connects them.
Since then, Australia’s First Families of Wine have travelled the globe as a collective to share their vinous tales; tales of tribulation and success, experience and commitment. Ultimately it is the passion of over 48 generations of these families and 1380 years of collective winemaking experience that has helped to shape Australia’s wine narrative.
d’arenberg dogs
The idea to build the d’Arenberg Cube came to Chester Osborn in 2003. It is now almost an iconic destination in McLaren Vale.
Inspired by the complexities and puzzles of winemaking, Chester created the idea of a cube-shaped building. Each of the five levels have been carefully designed to entice and excite the senses, including features such as a wine sensory room, a virtual fermenter, a 360degree video room, and many other tactile experiences.
Visitors are encouraged to explore the Alternate Realities Museum, located on the ground floor, and view the many art installations on display.
The Cube also currently houses an exhibition of Salvador Dali works. These have been shown around the world and are now in this iconic building.
McLaren Vale is the ancestral home of d’Arenberg wines and is home to some of the oldest vines in the country, some dating as far back as 1850.
McLaren Vale has almost a Mediterranean climate It includes a huge array of soil types, and its proximity to the ocean with the resultant cooling sea breezes make it an idyllic location for wine grape growing.
Best known for Shiraz, McLaren Vale also excels in the production of ultra-premium Grenache and Cabernet. Mediterranean red varieties such as Vermentino, Tempranillo, Sangiovese are also very well suited climatically, along with the white varietals of Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier. These interesting varietals provide wine lovers with yet another layer of discovery.
You can buy d’Arenberg wines at our Auswinesonline website