Vinden Estate & Somerset
Family owned and farmed with organic & regenerative practices, producing minimal-intervention wines
Vinden Estate | est. 1990
Vinden Estate was first established in 1990 by Guy & Sandra Vinden, and is now under the guidance of second-generation winemaker and viticulturist, Angus Vinden.
The soil is heavy red clay, and was first planted in 1995. It currently has 12 acres under vine, including: Alicante Bouschet; Gamay; Grenache; Mourvedre; Pinot Meunier and Shiraz.
Vinden Estate is also the home to 19 heritage breed chickens, wild ducks, wild swans, and will soon inherit peacocks and Toulouse geese.
Our winery, cellar door, and family homestead are all situated at Vinden Estate - 138 Gillards Road, Pokolbin Hunter Valley.
Somerset Vineyard | First est. 1863
Somerset vineyard was settled just after land grants in 1863. As a hillside site, it has both fine sandy loam soils and boasts a limestone hillside with granular red volcanic clay.
Somerset vineyard was originally planted in 1891, during WWII the vines were pulled as demand for war time food outweighed grapes. Luckily in 1965, replanting began by the Howard family to re-establish one of the great sites in the original Parish of Pokolbin. Fruit from the Somerset vineyard has supplied both Maurice O’Shea (Mount Pleasant), Len Evans (Rothbury Estate) and Karl Stockhausen (Lindeman’s), and has formed the backbone of many of the highly awarded wines of the region.
Somerset Vineyard was managed by the Howard family, for six generations. Angus was mentored under the fifth generation grower, Glen Howard and in 2021, Angus and his wife Hannah purchased the 90 acre Somerset vineyard, making them the current custodians of this famed site.
In 2022, Angus leased the adjoining 20 acre vineyard (North West of Marrowbone Creek, shown on the map) from Glen’s sister, Robin.
In total, the two vineyards combined cover 110 acres, with currently 80 acres under vine, growing the following varieties: Chardonnay; Chenin Blanc; Fiano; Gewürztraminer; Semillon; Shiraz; Tempranillo & Verdelho.
Our Farming Practices
We farm our vineyards with organic principals, producing our own compost and each year seed cover crops to increase organic matter in the soil, as well as to act as insectary plantings to encourage beneficial insects. Under-vine is managed with mowers/cultivators employed in lieu of herbicides.
“Making great wine starts in the vineyard, first and foremost. If you invest your energy in treating the soil and the vines with due diligence and the care that it deserves, you’ll be rewarded with great fruit that can be used to make great wine.”
The Hunter Valley Wine Region
The Hunter Valley is the oldest commercial wine region in Australia, dating back to 1828, and is also the most visited wine region in the country. The Hunter is comprised of three wine regions: Upper Hunter Valley; Broke Fordwich and Lower Hunter Valley, which includes Pokolbin.
The Geographical Index is 19,578 km2 in size and has a total of 2,605 hectares across 150+ vineyards. The main varieties grown in the region are Shiraz, Semillon, Chardonnay, and Verdelho - all of these famed varieties are grown across our two vineyards.
“As the current custodians, it is our role to not only maintain, but to improve the Hunter Valley. All of the wines we produce are strictly sourced from Hunter Valley vineyards. I believe when you go to Burgundy, you drink Burgundy. Therefore, when you are in the Hunter Valley, you should drink from the plethora of stunning and ancient viticultural sites we possess.”