Australia's Oldest Vines?

[GraemeG]

But it's just a vineyard, right? There are no vines from the establishment in 1830 left on the site. I thought it was the "oldest vines" that were the attraction. The Wyndham site has probably been grubbed up and replanted 6 times in 180 years.
There are plenty of vineyards in France and Germany that are a thousand years old, but the vines are no more than 35.
I think you've rather missed the point of the thread, old as it is...
GG

[Waiters Friend]

Which Is Australia's Oldest Continuous Commercial Vineyard?
Grapevine cuttings arrived with the First Fleet in 1788. By 1791 Governor Phillip had 3.5 acres of vines in his garden at Parramatta. The first wine in the colony was made in 1792 by Philip Schaeffer (a German free-settler and superintendant of convicts) at his Rydalmere farm.
In 1800 Antoine Landrien and Francoise de Riveau, French prisoners-of-war, were sent to Sydney to promote viticulture, but had little success.
In 1806 Gregory Blaxland arrived, purchased 450 acres at Brush Farm (Eastwood) and began growing vines. In 1822 he was the first to export wine which won a Silver Medal from what is now the Royal Society of Arts in London.
In 1817 William Macarthur returned from France with a small collection of vines to start vineyards at Camden Park and near Penrith.
In 1824 James Busby arrived with some vine cuttings from France and planted them at the Male Orphan School, Cabramatta. In 1830 he published "A Manual of Directions for Planting and Cultivating Vineyards" in which he recorded that, "...he had also applied, at the pruning season, to every person whom he knew to possess vines of the varieties best suited to the climate, requesting that all spare cuttings might be preserved. These, to the number of upwards of 20,000, were brought to the Government Garden at Sydney, and persons who were desirous of commencing the planting of vineyards were invited to send a written application for plants before a certain day. The cuttings were distributed among upwards of 50 applicants."
Busby subsequently recorded that, "William Macarthur of Camden, Gregory Blaxland of Brush Farm, Field of Mars, Mr Sadlier at the Male Orphan School, Cabramatta, Mr Frazer, the Colonial Botanist at the Botanic Gardens, [and] Sir John Jamieson (Sweetwater)" supplied the cuttings which he subsequently distributed from the Government Garden (where Sydney University and Victoria Park are now.)
Busby delivered vines in July and August to the following Hunter Valley applicants: George Wyndham of Dalwood, William Kelman of Kirkton, James King of Irrawang, Captain Pike of Pickering, George Townshend of Trevallyn, James Webber of Tocal, Colonel Dumaresq of St Helliers, William Ogilvie of Merton, Mr Little of Invermain, Mr Pilcher of Maitland and James Glennie of Dulwich.
George Wyndham's Diary records that he planted 600 vines on 1st September 1830.
Dalwood, now called Wyndham Estate, has been a vineyard ever since.
None of the other vineyards listed above remained in continuous production although several have been subsequently re-established.
Until 2005, the claim to be Australia's oldest continuous commercial vineyard went to Olive Farm, in the Swan Valley, planted by Thomas Waters in 1829. Whether it had been in continuous production, as it was derelict when Ivan Yurisich bought it in 1933, is no longer relevant, as it has ceased operating on that site. Thus the claim of Wyndham Estate to be the oldest continuous commercial vineyard in Australia is soundly based.
This claim now resides with Wyndham Estate

Thank you indeed Historian.

But can you tell me which vineyard is producing wine from the oldest vines in Australia? Continuous production does not mean all of the original vines (or any) have survived.
As far as I can tell, Langmeil holds the crown.

Regards

Allan

[Gavin Trott]

I'm with Allan

Langmeil, the Freedom Vineyard, 168 years old this year, still producing (great) Shiraz grapes. Indeed, Langmeil the Freedom Shiraz is from those great old vines!

I believe this plot (300+ vines only) the oldest vines still and continuously producing grapes for wine.

.

[Mahmoud Ali]

Count me on Allan's side as well. The post's subject clearly refers to the oldest VINES.

Mahmoud

[DJ]

Can anyone find the list of the oldest vineyards in the Hunter Gary Walsh had up on WineFront at some stage. I've failed to find it and wish I'd bookmarked and printed it out.

[Mahmoud Ali]

Would it be a Mount Pleasant vineyard? Something like the Old Paddock or Old Hill (OP or OH), or maybe even the Rosehill vineyard?

Cheers........................Mahmoud.

[n4sir]

I'm with Allan

Langmeil, the Freedom Vineyard, 168 years old this year, still producing (great) Shiraz grapes. Indeed, Langmeil the Freedom Shiraz is from those great old vines!

I believe this plot (300+ vines only) the oldest vines still and continuously producing grapes for wine.

.

A small question to do with the continuously producing bit. Last year we did a tour of the winery including a look at the Freedom Vineyard near the banks of the Para, and I'm sure we were told by the guide they had been non-productive for many years and were overgrown by reeds (edit: Danny also said early on in this thread they were neglected for some time). When the current owners discovered them, they had to carefully prune back the mess and re-trellis them, at which point they began to produce their miserly quantity of fruit - if that's the case, should they be regarded as continually producing?

Cheers,
Ian

[Mahmoud Ali]

I don't think that neglect would disqualify the vineyard; it still produced fruit. It's not the wine that makes the vineyard the oldest, just the fact that the vines have been producing fruit, whether a winemaker was on hand or not.

Cheers.....................Mahmoud

[ticklenow1]

I was told that Marco Cirillo's Grenache Vineyard was planted sometime in the 1850's, hence the name of his flagship Grenache.