The History of Shiraz in the Hunter Valley, Australia

To celebrate Shiraz Day on 25th July 2024, we are diving into the history of Australian and Hunter Valley Shiraz...

In 1823, 20 acres of grapevines were planted along the northern riverbanks of the Hunter River by early European settlers. Previously this area’s first inhabitants were the Wonnarua people who occupied the Upper Hunter Valley for at least 30,000 years.

When James Busby returned from Europe in 1832 with over 20,000 vine cuttings and distributed them to around 50 or so winemakers. This was around the time Semillon arrived in the region and he helped establish the Hunter Valley as a key wine region. Although back then it was known as Hunter River Riesling, Shepherd’s Riesling or White Burgundy.

In the mid 1800s, Dr Henry Lindemen moved to Australia and became president of the local vineyard association and helped to establish key varieties including Semillon, Verdelho and of course… Shiraz! The Hunter Valley became the birthplace of Shiraz in Australia, the styles produced here unique to our region. Hunter Shiraz is proudly medium bodied, with a distinctively savoury structure and food friendly texture. An inwardly concentrated core ensures the best examples of Hunter Shiraz have amazing long term cellaring potential.

With vineyards dating back to the 1860s, the Hunter Valley also have some of the oldest and rarest vine stocks in the world. Heritage plant stocks of international value, such as Shiraz from 1867 and Semillon from 1899, are still nurtured. The Hunter Valley has the largest acreage of old vines in not just Australia but the world, mainly Shiraz, growing on its own roots. Some Shiraz vines are more than 120 years old and still produce excellent wines.

Why are old vines important? Well, they can produce wines with characteristics different from their younger counterparts. Their lower yield typically means the flavours of these grapes are full of intensity and flavour which make for a more complex, balanced wine. 

Kiss Shiraz is our best example of a wine made from established, older vines and while they don’t go back as quite as far as some of these heritage vines mentioned above, the Pokolbin Estate Vineyard planted in 1969 has naturally low-cropping vines that consistently produce fruit of exception depth and concentration. It has become the benchmark Shiraz for Thomas wines, each vintage expressing only the best qualities ever since the first vintage in 2001. Kiss Shiraz has received numerous awards, accolades and quite the fan base...we highly recomend trying it to see what all the fuss is about.

If you are interested in celebrating Shiraz Week with us, don't forget to check out our two limited-time-only promotions - the Shiraz Entertaining 12 Pack and the Shiraz Appreciation 6 Pack (includes a bottle of 2022 Kiss Shiraz). Don't forget to tag us on socials so we can raise a glass with you on 25th July to Shiraz no matter where you are!

19/07/2024 at 4:23 PM Permalink

Is it a Case of Déjà Vu?

Déjà vu is the phenomenon of feeling as though one has lived through the present situation before. In the case of our 2023 Shiraz Pinot blend, this region has indeed seen it before...

Blending Hunter-grown Shiraz with Hunter-grown Pinot Noir is not a new concept and any winemaker worth their salt in this region will be able to provide you with some context that stretches back to the heydays days of Maurice O’Shea. 

The 20th century Hunter Valley winemaker, considered the Father of Australian winemaking, helped Pinot Noir to become one of, if not the, the most planted red varietals in the region during the 1960s.

The medium bodied blend of Hunter Valley Shiraz and Pinot Noir is a wine style of which O’Shea himself is most famous for - aka Hunter River Burgandy -  and some of O’Shea’s wines from the 1940s and 50s are regarded as some of the finest Australian wines ever made.

Thommo and Dan’s contribution to this category for Thomas Wines is inspired by Hunter Valley winemaking legends such as the aforementioned Maurice O’Shea and of course the late Murray Tyrrell whose 1976 Vat 6 Pinot Noir was acclaimed the best wine in the world in 1979.

This is a modern spin on the traditional Shiraz Pinot Noir blends of days gone by. The name “DJV” refers to the feeling of déja vu that you may well experience when tasting this wine, and is our tribute to the traditional “Hunter River Burgundy” style.

With only 270 dozen bottles produced, less than 2500L, you can be sure the 2023 DJV Shiraz Pinot won’t last long!

SHOP OUR 2023 DJV SHIRAZ PINOT

02/07/2024 at 4:13 PM Permalink

The 2023 suite of Shiraz is looking sharp...

Dan and I have literally just pulled all of our 2023 single vineyard Shiraz parcels from oak into tank in preparation for bottling. These (nine!) wines are all set to go to bottle later this month.

From Synergy through to Kiss these wines look spectacular, this is by far the best suite of red wines we have produced since at least 2019.

We'll give them almost 12 months in bottle before release next year (May 2025), keep in touch, this will be very exciting indeed.

Watch this space......

05/06/2024 at 6:21 PM Permalink

The Real Review Top Wineries of Australia

We are delighted to announce that Thomas Wines has been listed again in the updated Top Wineries of Australia for 2024 by the respected wine critique website, The Real Review.

"We review around 10,000 wines each year, and are delighted to see so many wineries producing wines of outstanding quality. The Real Review Top Wineries Certificate is awarded to a select group of wineries that consistently produce excellent wine. The Top Wineries list is a national benchmark that shows where your favourite winery is placed amongst its peers."
Huon Hooke, The Real Review

With over 2500 wine brands in Australia, we have been included at number 89 in the updated list for 2024, up 25 places from our position in the inaugural 2023 Top Wineries of Australia list.

11/04/2024 at 12:18 PM Permalink

Braemore Semillon listed in the Top 50 Most Collected wines in Australia

BRAEMORE SEMILLON NAMED AMONGST THE TOP 50 MOST COLLECTED WINES IN THE COUNTRY

Every three years Wine Ark conducts a comprehensive audit of over a million bottles of wine stored in their facilities all around Australia, and releases a list of the Top 50 most collected wines. We're beyond excited to see that Braemore Semillon has made the list for the very first time, coming in at #40!

Proudly sitting alongside some of the most highly regarded 'blue chip' wines in the country, and only one of 6 wines from NSW, it's a pretty special accolade for Thomas Wines. The other NSW wines, also from the Hunter Valley, were 3 from Tyrrell's and 2 from Lakes Folly. BOOM!

See the full TOP 50 list at the Wine Ark website here

13/12/2023 at 10:07 AM Permalink

Thommo's Selection Shiraz six pack video - Summer 2023

Click on the video below to see Thommo chat about the wines he's selected for your Summer Shiraz six-pack.

2021 Sweetwater Shiraz (2 bottles) - Trophy winner 2023 Hunter Valley Wine Show
2021 The Dam Block Shiraz
2022 Synergy Shiraz (2 bottles)
2022 Two of a Kind Shiraz

Thank you for your continued support, and best wishes to you and your family for the festive season
 

04/12/2023 at 12:51 AM Permalink

Thommo's Selection Semillon six pack video - Summer 2023

Click on the video below to see Thommo chat about the wines he's selected for your Summer Semillon six-pack.

2023 Braemore Semillon
2023 The OC Semillon
2023 Fordwich Hill Semillon
2023 Synergy Semillon (2 bottles)
2023 Two of a Kind Semillon Sauvignon Blanc

Thank you for your continued support, and best wishes to you and your family for the festive season
 

03/12/2023 at 12:45 PM Permalink

Thommo's Selection Mixed six pack video - Summer 2023

Click on the video below to see Thommo chat about the wines he's selected for your Summer Mixed Semillon and Shiraz six-pack.

2023 Braemore Semillon
2021 Sweetwater Shiraz - Trophy winner 2023 Hunter Valley Wine Show
2023 Fordwich Hill Semillon
2022 Synergy Shiraz
2023 Synergy Semillon
2022 Two of a Kind Shiraz

Thank you for your continued support, and best wishes to you and your family for the festive season

01/12/2023 at 12:49 AM Permalink

Some more gongs for the trophy cabinet.....

What a great start to the wine show season for Thomas Wines. Here's a snapshot of our recent award-winning wines...

2023 Hunter Valley Wine Show
Trophy - 2021 Sweetwater Shiraz (Best Two year Old Shiraz)
Gold - 2021 Sweetwater Shiraz
Gold - 2021 Elenay Shiraz
Gold - 2021 Kiss Shiraz
Gold - 2019 Elenay Shiraz
Gold - 2013 Braemore Semillon

2023 NSW Small Winemakers Show
Trophy - 2017 Cellar Reserve Braemore Semillon (Best Mature Semillon)
Trophy - 2018 Elenay Shiraz (Best Mature Shiraz)
Gold - 2017 Cellar Reserve Braemore Semillon
Gold - 2018 Elenay Shiraz
Gold - 2021 Elenay Shiraz

2023 Winewise Small Vignerons Awards
The Len Sorbello Trophy - 2023 The OC Semillon (Best Young Semillon)
Gold - 2023 The OC Semillon
Gold - 2017 Cellar Reserve Braemore Semillon
Gold - 2021 Elenay Shiraz

04/09/2023 at 10:14 AM Permalink

Huon Hooke on Braemore Semillon

A nice article by Huon Hooke (The Real Review) on the Iconic Braemore vineyard following a recent vertical tasting

https://www.therealreview.com/2023/08/30/andrew-thomas-and-his-/braemore-passion

04/09/2023 at 10:11 AM Permalink