Clevedon Hills Estate covers forty acres on the southern slopes of the Clevedon Valley, facing north west. It is situated in a micro-climate that traps the heat, between hills to the east and native bush to the west.
The first vines were planted in August 1998. While nine varieties found their way into forty rows, some were purely on an experimental basis.
We now produce grape varieties that find their way in the following wines:
The Pinot Noir is a bit of a surprise, as somehow by accident a number of Pinot Noir vines found their way into the vineyard and they were doing surprisingly well. Despite receiving advice to ignore them, we decided to plant more Pinot Noir and in 2006 the first grapes were harvested. The resulting wine, only 50 cases of it, came out very well and those who have tried it are raving about it.
Clevedon Hills is not so much a dream as a vision that took many years to eventuate. We share our love for Italian style wines with neighbouring Vin Alto, the wines are made by my good friend Enzo Bettio and they can also be purchased through the online store of Vin Alto.
Salute!
Leighton Smith
