Grape expectations: Adelaide botanical garden wine ‘world’s first’

It is thought that an urban winery in central Adelaide has produced the world’s first wine made solely from grapes grown in a botanical garden.

Due to be released in September, the 1,200 bottles of rose and dry white are a result of a partnership between the National Wine Centre, the Botanic Gardens of South Australia and Barossa Valley winery, Jacob’s Creek.

The CBD vineyard is in the southeastern corner of the Adelaide Botanic Garden and grows 16 grape varieties, including Shiraz, Merlot, Tempranillo and Riesling and has been used as a demonstration site for drought-tolerant vine varieties suitable for South Australia’s dry climate since 2011.

“Wine is intrinsically linked with South Australia – as a state we have some of the oldest grape vines in the world,” said the acting director of Botanic Gardens of South Australia, Janice Goodwins.

“We produce 75% of Australia’s premium wine, bringing in just under AUS$2 billion in gross wine revenue to accompany international acclaim.”

Following an official launch on 14 September, the wines are expected to be available at the National Wine Centre and Botanic Gardens Restaurant.

The technical team from Jacob’s Creek provided viticulture and winemaking expertise, as well as managing the harvest and winemaking at the Australian Wine Research Institute in Adelaide.

Jacob’s Creek vineyard manager, Tim McCarthy who oversaw the harvest in February said that the project highlighted the “collaborative and innovative approach” to producing wine in South Australia.

“We created two ‘field blends’, which involves combining different varieties of grapes in the vineyard as we harvest them, and fermenting them together,” he said.

“It’s an unusual way of making wine, and it adds an extra element of challenge, but also excitement.”

It is hoped that a vintage will be produced every year until 2018.

South Australia is responsible for about 50% of Australia’s annual wine production and is home to 18 world famous wine regions including the Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Coonawarra, Adelaide Hills, Langhorne Creek, McLaren Vale, Limestone Coast and Riverland.