Single Vineyard, Eden Valley Wines of elegance and finesse

ESTATE GROWN . FAMILY OWNED

VITICULTURE

Vineyard Manager

Dan Falkenberg is a fourth generation Barossa grape grower. As a boy he grew up helping his parents in the family vineyard after school, on weekends and during school holidays. What started as a family chore over time developed into an occupation that Dan has become extremely passionate about. After leaving school he took up a position with Southcorp at various sites including the High Eden vineyards of the picturesque Eden Valley. Working with Southcorp also gave Dan the opportunity to spend time as a cellar hand, in the bottling hall and champagne cellar. This experience gave him fabulous insight into the requirements of the winemaker and a firm understanding that high quality fruit is essential in order to produce premium wine.

Dan has tertiary qualifications in viticultural management and after 23 years gaining experience in all facets of vineyard management and the wine industry is an active leader in the Barossa viticultural community. He has been the recipient of a number of grants to investigate native grasses and bio-diversity. He is involved in various working groups and presents and publishes regularly, particularly in the area of bio diversity, native grasses, as well as water and vine management.

Dan has managed the Eden Hall vineyard and viticultural program since 2011. He has implemented extensive viticultural practises including bio-diversity programs, mulching, mid-row native grass improvements and more precise water management. These carefully instituted refinements have lifted the quality of fruit production and provided more consistent yield across each block and are gratefully acknowledged by the winemaking team. Dan is a key figure in the Eden Hall team. He brings experience, vision and passion so that you can enjoy great wines from the beautiful Eden Valley.

WINEMAKERS

Winemaker – Appointed November 2018

Phil’s winemaking journey is extensive. Not only is he from one of the most famous winemaking families in the country, (his father was the late great Peter Lehmann), he has a wealth of experience covering all areas of the industry. Time spent in the Napa Valley, South Africa and Burgundy set up his journey, before winemaking stints at Yalumba, Peter Lehmann, Teusner and more recently WD Wines cemented his position. He lives in the Eden Valley and besides running his own family vineyard and wine brand “Max & Me” he shares many of our philosophies and values. Family, integrity, respect and hard work.

Phil was the Boy Dux at Nuriootpa High School before gaining a degree at Adelaide University in Bachelor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering with Honours. Following this he completed his Graduate Diploma in Oenology.

Phil was a finalist in the 2017 Gourmet Traveller Wine Winemaker of the Year, is a regular wine show judge and has a comprehensive knowledge of the industry from the vine to the bottle, including managing his own 25-acre vineyard in the Eden Valley.

FAMILY OWNED

Owners

The medical profession features prominently in the Australian wine story. David Hall, a consultant Spinal Surgeon, followed the path of other medicos before him who went beyond developing a taste for good wine to wanting to produce his own fine wine.  In the early 1990’s he and his wife Mardi began exploring the beautiful Eden Valley in the Barossa high country. Compared to the Barossa floor, vineyard plantings were relatively sparse in the Eden Valley, scattered strategically amongst the rugged rocky outcrops and ancient majestic red gums. Eden Valley was already well recognised as a premium producer of Riesling maintaining a healthy rivalry with the Clare Valley as the two most eminent Riesling producing regions in Australia.  However, the Eden Valley was also developing a reputation that is now well established for cool climate reds displaying finesse, elegance and understated power.

None of this was lost on David and Mardi Hall who could see that the Eden Valley high country offered the ideal environment to grow premium fruit and make wine in order to realise their dream. They were therefore very privileged to purchase the Avon Brae property in the Eden Valley in 1996, along with its historic homestead.  Avon Brae had been home to a vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Riesling prior to the vine pull in the 1970’s. It was subsequently a diary and then a sheep grazing property. While still maintaining sheep and wool production, David and Mardi set about re-establishing the Avon Brae vineyard. It now has over eighty acres of plantings including the red varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, and the white varieties of Riesling, Viognier and Grüner Veltliner. The fruit from Avon Brae vineyard has consistently made exceptional quality wines, with the first commercial production from the outstanding 2002 vintage released in 2004. It was particularly gratifying for Eden Hall to enter the James Halliday Wine Companion as a five star winery from the outset.

David and Mardi’s guiding principles are the pursuit of excellence and sustainability. It has always been the expectation that Eden Hall wines would sit comfortably and proudly at any table in the world. As a boutique wine producer the Eden Hall brand is now becoming recognised, appreciated and understood – a source of great pride for David and Mardi Hall.

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