Tasting Notes for Current Vintage

James Haliday Rating: ««««

40 minutes drive south of Adelaide and 10 minutes from some of the best beaches in the world is the McLaren Vale wine region.

 Chalk Hill Wines was established in 1973 in the heart of McLaren Vale, one of Australia’s most famous wine regions. At Chalk Hill, we blend the best fruit from four of the Harvey family’s vineyards spread throughout the district. Each vineyard has its own microclimate and distinctive characteristics of soil, altitude and aspect. The fruit for Chalk Hill’s limited production is carefully selected to reflect these characteristics. 

The soils in the four vineyards range from ancient sands overlying ironstone bedrock to inhospitable black clays that produce intensely flavoured fruit. Nurtured with minimal influence, the grapevines express the ideal elements of the region. As sixth-generation Australian farmers, we understand that there is a fine balance to be struck. We practise sustainable, ecologically friendly farming to ensure that our natural environment can flourish alongside our grapevines. Over the last decade, thousands of feral trees have been removed and replaced with local species, which has seen the return of native birds and wildlife.

Chalk Hill Wines are crafted by Emmanuelle Requin-Bekkers, a French winemaker with experience across three continents. Emmanuelle’s wines display finesse and seamlessly combine the robust nature of the Australian environment with the grace of premium fruit. 

The wines produced to date reinforce the Harvey’s belief that the Chalk Hill Vineyard has great potential to produce not only superb Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, but varietally distinctive Barbera and Sangiovese