Audrey Wilkinson

The Wilkinsons were true pioneers of the Australian winemaking industry.

Despite two earlier ventures in Australia, the Wilkinson family returned after the brothers Frederick and John had studied winemaking in France and Germany. In 1866 the family acquired the present site of the Audrey Wilkinson vineyard. Living in tents, they cleared the land and planted vines sourced from the MacArthur Onslow property.

By the early 1900s, Audrey Wilkinson collected awards around Australia for his hock, claret and fortified wines. Large quantities were exported to London.

Audrey committed to leading- edge technology which, at the end of the 19th century, included open cement fermenters and steam-powered crushers and hoppers.

Winemaking

Winemaking is a mix of art and science, of passion and logic, of heart and head.

It is this rare mix that we strive to apply to our winemaking today. We hand make our wine in our recently constructed state-of-the-art winery employing the best that modern winemaking techniques can offer.

The Vineyards

The Audrey Wilkinson Vineyard was first planted in 1866 making it the oldest vineyard site in Pokolbin and one of the oldest in Australia.

It has approximately 20 ha under vine, located in a naturally formed, north facing amphitheatre, with elevations from 260 m down to 180 m.

Curiously, the vineyard has seven different soil types, with the majority of the Vineyard planted in either hard shale limestone soil or weathered Terra Rossa soil, providing naturally occurring variance in soil types that ideally suit white and red grape production respectively.

Varieties planted on this site include Semillon, Chardonnay, Verdelho, Gewurztraminer, Shiraz, Malbec and Tempranillo. Our old vines are all almost 50 years old, with the majority of the Vineyard being 15 to 20 years old. This site is also home to The Lake and The Ridge blocks – the eponymous homes to our two marquee wines in the Audrey Wilkinson range.