Hewitson Old Garden Vineyard

AGEING

22 months new French oak barriques (Remond: Allies, Troancais and Betranges forests)

VINEYARD 

The Old Garden Vineyard planted 1853, the oldest Mourvedre vines on Earth

ALTITUDE 

210m

SOIL 

2 metres of sand over limestone; an ancient lake bed

VINE AGE 

Every vine is the original 1853 planting; 165 years

PLANTING SYSTEM 

Old low trellis system

VINE DENSITY

2,000 per Ha

FARMING 

Dry-land, unirrigated, rye grass between rows,hand pruned

YIELD 

3.1 tonnes/Ha. 2.3HL/Ha

VINIFICATION 

43% whole bunch. In vat for 28 days

PROFESSIONAL REVIEWS

AWARDS & ACCOLADES – APRIL 2024

98 points Blueberries ripe to bursting, dried orange rind, coriander seed, candle wax. The fat and fur, salt and smoke from a poacher’s fire. A dark earthy seam. Sinewy flesh melts across the mid-palate and a fine grained grit pulls the wine through a sustained finish suggesting cellaring will be rewarded. One of the most significant Mourvèdre wines on the planet. – Nick Ryan; The Weekend Australian Magazine – April 2024

96 points Hewitson Old Garden Vineyard Mourvèdre 2021 A special wine and no mere curio, Old Garden Vineyard is home to what is believed to be the world’s oldest Mourvèdre vines, planted in 1853. It’s a treat to taste. Lovely lifted florals and intense red fruit aromas invade the glass. With 18 months spent in new French oak barriques, the role of oak can’t be denied. It brings a charry smoky cedary influence, joining black cherry, plum, baking spices and a delightful pepperiness to the warm-hearted palate. Throughout, there is an under-current of meatybacon-smoked charcuterie which tantalises. Day two, it was possibly even in better form. – Jeni Port; WinePilot.com – April 2024

96 points The Old Garden vineyard planted in 1853 is renowned as the oldest Mourvèdre vineyard on the planet. This vintage sees 85% whole bunches in the ferment and held in the vat for 30 days. 18 months maturation in new French oak barriques. Beguiling and potent aromas with signature dried paper over potpourri, raisin tea cake spice, fruits of dark cherry and blueberry and chocolate wafer, all tempered with a fresh soil and black tea earthiness. Potent on the palate, also. Umami, savoury qualities drape over the layers of rippling dark cherry fruit. Bound with tension, this presents a very linear projection of structure with incredibly fine and ripe tannins showing their hand late in the piece. Darkly brooding and delicious. – Regan Drew, WinePilot.com – April 2024

96 points Planted in 1853, the original, ungrafted vines producing the Hewitson Old Garden Mourvèdre are believed to be the oldest on the planet. In the 2021 vintage a fruits-of-the-forest fragrance abounds: raspberries, blueberries and blackberries with red plums and violets, with French barrique aromas of mocha, vanilla, clove and cedar alongside savoury sanguine and dried leaf notes. It’s a full-bodied wine, but with medium alcohol at 13.5% has elegance too and freshness with acidity, dusty but firm tannins and a long finish – a structure crying for some charry BBQ goodness. Youthful and fruitful, drinking well now and will certainly last the distance for 15+ years. RRP $90. – Melissa Moore, WinePilot.com – April 2024

95 points Deep ruby and purple colours. Blood plum, vanilla bean and bresaola aromatics. Rich and ripe plum fruits fill the mouth with savoury layers of dusty earth and boudin noir. Tannins work hard to drive from the background and do it successfully, so it glides with power and focus to a very long and feathering finish. – Stuart Knox, TheRealReview.com – April 2024

93 points Old vines servicing full-weighted extract, impact and a welcome savoriness. Cherry liqueur, menthol, smoked meats, camphor and polished leather. The tannins, the latticework of sanity and structure, constrain a tip into excess. I like this wine. The old vine sourcing, formidable. Yet the oak is varnishy and sweet. Local cooperage? I am scoring this with the benefit of the doubt. Best after 2026. – Ned Goodwin MW; JamesSuckling.com – August 2023

2021 The Mad Hatter Shiraz

95 points – Stuart Knox, TheRealReview.com – June 2023  

Opaque core into a deep ruby and purple rim. Blood plum, liquorice and violet aromas leap from the glass. Lovely full weight and density as it glides across the tongue. Dark fruits, anise spice and graphite undertones all meld well to ensure character and interest. Tannins are supple yet amply powerful for the job at hand, driving it long and lingering to the finish. A lovely balance of Barossa intensity with winemaking vitality.

94 points – Dave Brookes, WineCompanion.com.au – May 2023

Deep crimson in the glass with classic aromas of satsuma plum and summer berry fruits layered with baking spices, licorice and dark chocolate. Nary a hair out of place on the palate with impressive fruit purity and a harmonious, dark savoury flow to the wines form; powdery tannin in support with a minerally driveline.

2020 Monopole Mother Vine Shiraz

95 points – Stuart Knox, TheRealReview.com – June 2023  

Deep and dense ruby from core to rim. Rich and intense nose of mulberry, violets, and black olive tapenade. Palate brings a huge intensity of fruit yet with a deft touch that brings life and vibrancy as well. Roses, plums, nori, and black olive all meld across the palate ensuring there’s multiple facets that capture your attention whilst fine sandy tannins bring drive, focus and a great deal of length. Many years ahead of it.

2019 Barrel 1853

96 points – Dave Brookes, WineCompanion.com.au – June 2023 

An equal split of the best barrel of Hewitson’s Monopole shiraz and the Old Garden mourvèdre. Aged for 24 months in a mix of new and seasoned French oak barrels. What a beautiful smelling wine. The aromatic composition is on song, both rich and pure with deep plum a macerated black fruits with exotically spiced nuance. It’s earthy and multi-layered with a gorgeous fruit flow and presence and trademark savouriness. Tannins, fine and powdery, resolve nicely into the wine as the fruit slowly sails off into the distance.