Trott Vineyard

The Trott Family Vineyard sits at 185 metres, the highest of our McLaren Vale sites, atop the deep sands of Blewitt Springs. The bush vine Grenache was planted in 1952 and has been dry grown by the Trott family for generations since.

Elevation is what separates Trott from our other Blewitt Springs sites. Forty metres above Douglas Gully and forty-five above Jericho does not sound like much, but it is enough to drop the overnight temperatures and stretch the ripening window out. The fruit hangs longer and comes in with acidity intact.

The sand here runs deep and holds almost nothing — no nutrition to speak of, and no water once the season dries out. Dry grown on a site like this, the vines have no choice but to crop lightly. Yields are among the lowest we work with, and what does set carries remarkable aromatic intensity and depth of colour.

Like Douglas Gully, the vines are trained as bush vines — each one standing free, without wire or trellis. The open canopy shades the fruit through the worst of the summer heat and keeps the crop small.

The result is a wine distinct from anything else in the range — more structured, more persistent, more demanding of patience. It is the wine at the top of our Grenache tier for that reason. Not the most approachable on release, but the one with the most to give over time.