The Hawkesbury Harvest Farm Gate Trail

Tizzana Winery

In 1968, Peter and Carolyn Auld were looking for a property where they could raise their children. They had enjoyed regular picnics in the valley near Ebenezer, a valley that had been devoted to vineyards in the late 1800s under the direction of Italian born surgeon Thomas Fiaschi, and were familiar with this part of the world.

The Aulds were able to purchase the old ruins of the sandstone winery, built by Fiaschi in 1887, from an American film producer who had used them as a film set. They set about restoring the fine old building, using building materials from such places as an old warehouse in Rhodes and leadlight windows and cedar doors from the church manse which used to exist at I York Street in the city.

 

 

In 1980 Peter and Carolyn purchased additional land to plant out a vineyard and olive trees and Peter (an industrial chemist by training) undertook a wine making course through Charles Sturt University. Five acres of land are devoted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Petit Verdot and Aleatico. Aleatico is an Italian variety of grape, originally introduced by Dr Fiaschi, and Tizzana is one of only three vineyards which grows this variety. 

Not only does Peter produce wine under his own label, he is also the winemaker for Jubilee Vineyard Estate across the road and five other vineyards. Fortunately different varieties ripen at different times so that he can juggle this responsability quite well but harvest and bottling must be frantic nonetheless. Fortunately, in a story that is not that common on the Farm Gate Trail, Peter is assisted by his two children, Gillian and Jonathan, and of course by his wife Carolyn. 

 

  
Not only do they run a vineyard/winemaking enterprise, but the Aulds also run beautiful bed and breakfast accommodation for visitors to the Hawkesbury. Peter calls this "agri - tourism" a wonderful term to denote the cross selling potential between agriculture, produce and tourism.

At harvest time, 20 or so friends join Peter and Carolyn over three weekends to hand pick the grapes.  A long lunch inevitably follows.

Such is life in a vineyard - hard work and convivial get togethers!

Tizzana Winery

518 Tizzana Road Ebenezer

02 45791150

www.tizzana.com.au

 

Please visit the Hawkesbury Harvest website

 

Jubilee Vineyard Estate

Number 22 on Map 1B Hawkesbury Harvest Farm Gate Trail maps

 

   

Part of the privilege of documenting producers along the Farm Gate Trail is discovering the passion which underpins the hard work which goes into farming. 

 

Situated by a beautiful lagoon which empties into the Hawkesbury River, lies the vineyard known as Jubilee Vineyard.  It is owned by Alison and Ray Hayek whose first vintage was in 2008 and whose passionate love for what they do is clear.

Prior to owning Jubilee they had held an interest in a vineyard in the Hunter Valley. As parents to four boys they were keen to find a property where the children could run and play freely in fresh air.  Fortunately they found this 27 hectare property near Ebenezer. Both Alison and Ray are chiropractors and whilst Ray still continues to work as a chiropractor and in academia, Alison is able to devote herself to mothering and the vineyard.

The Hayeks inherited a vineyard planted with Chambourcin, an American/French hybrid which can withstand humidity, essential in this area which receives summer rain.  They have planted viognier and also shiraz, "for the heartbreak," laughs Alison. As a boutique vineyard it is important that they develop handcrafted, unique wines and explore the potential of more exotic blends.

 

 

The Hayeks work in close co operation with Tizzana Winery across the road, where Peter Auld makes their wine for them. They sell their wine through markets and city restaurants, as well as, of course, through their own cellar door. They sell White Chambourcin, roses, reds and ports, all of which share a cleanliness on the palate characteristic of the Chambourcin grape variety.

 

Alison clearly adores the family's huge lifestyle shift.  She describes the beauty of dawn on the lagoon, which is home to cormorants, pelicans, swamp hens and a pair of nesting black swans.  She delights in the blossom of spring time and the seasonal changes in the vineyard.  This love is clearly communicated as she talks me through the various wines - it is clear that the work involved in running a vineyard is a labour of love in the best possible way.

Jubilee Vineyard Estate

519 Tizzana Road Ebenezer

02 45790740

www.jubileevineyard.com.au

 

Please visit the Hawkesbury Harvest website

Vicary's Winery

Number  44  Map 3 Hawkesbury Harvest Farm Gate Trail maps

 

 

The drive along the Northern Road from the M4 to Luddenham is surprisingly rural.  Cattle graze in paddocks and open land seems to stretch to the mountains in one direction and the city in the other.

Still, finding a vineyard/winery so close to the sprawling suburbs of outer Sydney is somewhat unexpected!     

87 years ago(in 1923) Cecil Vicary sold his first wines from the winery, the grapes having been planted in 1918. It is rumoured that he won the 40 acres that comprise the vineyard in a poker game in 1916!

Chris Niccol, the current owner of the vineyard and winery, was first introduced to grape vines as a young boy, when a seed in the yard of his home at Emu Plains grew into a healthy vine (one which still exists today!).  On leaving high school, Chris worked for a time at Minchinbury, and then undertook the highly regarded Oenology (Wine Science) course at Roseworthy Agricultural College in South Australia.  He came to Vicary's in 1984 as a winemaker after stints working in the Hunter, Clare and Barossa Valleys and ten years later bought the business.

Chris decribes himself as a "dirt winemaker" - he loves to get his hands dirty amongst the vineyards and with the grapes. All the crushing and bottling is done here at the winery, with the main variety of grape grown being a Chambourcin - a French hybrid which is resistant to fungus, so important in this region. It produces a soft, intensely red purple wine with berry and plum flavours. Chris is also the winemaker for 5 other vineyards in the Sydney region.

   

It is a tough business.  Fire, winds and drought have all had their impact here. Yet Chris, as with all of the producers I have met on the Farm Gate Trail, enjoys what he is doing here and seems philosophical about the difficulties involved. 

The old woolshed - constructed in the 1890s - is used for weekly bush dances - an important supplementary income when working in the fickle wine business. Picnics and barbeques can also be held in the grounds near the cellar door.

 

 

 

Wine tasting and bush dancing - sounds like the perfect combination to me! 

Vicary's Winery

1935 Northern Road 

Luddenham

02 4773 4161

www.vicaryswinery.com.au

Please visit the Hawkesbury Harvest website..