About Us
Our Story
Greenstone Vineyards was established in 2003 as a 40 ha property near the town of Colbinabbin in the renowned Heathcote region of Victoria by global industry leaders David Gleave MW (Liberty Wines UK), Alberto Antonini (Poggiotondo) & renowned Australian viticulturist Mark Walpole. Collectively, they recognised the site being ideal for Shiraz and Sangiovese.
Lying just north of the Great Dividing Range, at an altitude of around 200 metres, the vineyard was planted on a ridge of old Cambrian soil that runs through the eastern side of the range. This narrow strip is unique, not only to vine growing in Victoria, but in Australia. The soils are the oldest known in the country, originating over 550 million years ago. Most soils of volcanic origin in Australia are young and highly acidic whereas these ancient Cambrian soils are near neutral in pH. The range itself is a result of a rift in the sea floor, from which molten rock arose, encapsulating limestone into the lava. The resulting soil is deep, red-coloured, mottled with lime. It is from these soils that we derived our name - Heathcote ‘Greenstone’ is a form of copper-infused basalt and is an integral part of the soil.
With a change of ownership in early 2015, the success of Greenstone’s Heathcote wines led the team to explore opportunities and expand their repertoire. Upholding the requirement to find the best locations for each varietal the search led to the Yarra Valley and acquisition of the Sticks Winery & vineyards in Yarra Glen later in 2015. Originally established as Yarra Ridge in 1983 by Melbourne Lawyer Louis Bialkower (a close friend and colleague of Australian wine legend James Halliday who assisted in the planting of the vineyard) on 33 hectares at the base of the Christmas Hills, the vineyard quickly gained recognition as a prime site for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon. Today this is the home, Cellar Door & Winery of Greenstone Vineyards.
Heathcote - Colbinabbin
Our Heathcote vineyard shows little similarity to any others along the range, looking more at home in a European setting than in the Australian countryside. The vines enjoy a warm Mediterranean climate as the region avoids weather extremes such as snow and strong winds. The site was specifically designed to produce low crops with a vine density of 4,500 vines per hectare, over twice the average for the rest of the region.
Orientation of the vines at Greenstone is also unique with the rows running in an east/west orientation rather than the typical north/south direction. This ensures protection from the hot afternoon sun which is crucial during the ripening period. The resulting lower berry temperatures produce fruit of livelier and complex characters with brighter acidity.
The bedrock in our Heathcote vineyard was formed as a result of underwater volcanic activity between two fault lines on the ancient seabed half a billion years ago. The result is the Cambrian Greenstone strewn throughout our vineyard. It is a copper-infused basalt interspersed with complex minerals such as quartz and limestone from weathered sedimentary bedrock. Extreme weathering throughout the past 500 million years led to the formation of the iron rich, ‘terra rossa’ surface and subsoil.
It is this complex geology, together with the warm climate, that makes this site perfectly suitable to growing the Mediterranean varieties of Shiraz, Sangiovese, Mataro and Colorino.
Yarra Valley - Yarra Glen
Established in 1983, the Yarra Glen vineyard is situated on 33 hectares at the base of the Christmas Hills with 27 hectares under vine. A cool climate region, the longer ripening periods favour the region’s iconic varietals – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.
These 3 varietals, along with Sauvignon Blanc, were the first to be planted in 1983/84 with the addition of small parcels of Viognier and Petit Verdot following. Staggered planting has provided a wide range of maturity in the vines and these variances can be highlighted within specifically handcrafted parcels. The gently sloping and undulating land of this “Yarra Floor” vineyard is moderately warmer than its Upper Yarra counterparts.
Composed of grey silty loams formed from 400+ million year old Silurian mudstones and degraded by hundreds of millions of years of alluvial activity, these old and hungry soils are naturally low in nutrients. This is critical to controlling vegetative growth (and thus disease prevention) ensuring that, during the most critical period of fruit ripening, the vines’ energy is focused towards low yields of intensely flavoured fruit.
These unique soils also provide a consistent nutritional base for the vines, producing wines of varietal intensity together with complexity and elegance.
Viticulture
Our wines are anchored upon our estate vineyards, grown on the ancient soils of two of Australia’s most renowned wine regions: the Heathcote vineyard where Greenstone was born, and our Yarra Valley vineyard where our winery is based. Both vineyards share common characteristics, with the ancient and complex geology of both sites being the main feature. We take a sustainable approach to grape-growing with the purpose of respecting and protecting these ancient sites. The viticultural team have a deep connection with the vineyards they manage & farm our vineyards with a light hand & minimal soil disturbance, maintaining a healthy cover crop throughout the season to protect the soil structure.
Marty - Vineyard Manager
Marty began his viticultural career at the acclaimed Upper Ngumby vineyard just around the corner from us, which supplies fruit to many highly regarded Yarra Valley wineries. His long-standing connection to our Yarra Glen vineyard began back in 2008
under Yarra Valley stalwart Rob Dolan, then known as “Sticks”. “At the time there were five different trellising systems, 4 of them high-yielding” he says.
Marty and the team have painstakingly converted all the vines to a VSP trellising system as, in his words, “it’s no longer about quantity but quality!” A lot of work has also been done to cut out deadwood and cane-prune the whole vineyard to restore balance with a focus on producing the best quality fruit possible..
Marty knows the vineyard like the back of his hand. On any given day, he could be found pruning, repairing trellising wires, slashing, or walking up and down the row monitoring the vineyard, all the while dodging kangaroos and accompanied by his faithful rottweiler, Pink.
Winemaking
Our winemaking ethos is inextricably linked with the approach in our vineyards. We strongly believe that we have some of the most distinguished sites in Australia and that each wine has a story spanning hundreds of millions of years. Our attitude is to respect the history of each site and to allow its time, place & fruit to shine through in every wine. This is achieved by focusing on freshness, brightness & purity - the qualities that we strive for in the story’s narrative, with minimal winemaking artifice. Simultaneously, we are constantly on a mission to explore & push the boundaries of what can be achieved on each site. There are constant experiments such as new clonal planting material & fermentations with varying amounts of whole-bunch & skin contact time. The story of each vineyard is an evolving one which are constantly seeking to make more interesting.