Page 30 - OurStories-2022_Preview

30 | OUR STORY: BALNAVE

Balnaves family
LOCATION: Coonawarra
FARMING SINCE: 1948
OPERATION: Vineyard management, wine, cattle

BY CATHERINE MILLER booming, their parents gave them some sage home from the war, Doug’s father Ian took a
advice. different path.
S a young shearer, Doug Balnaves could “Mum and Dad said to Pete and I ‘don’t get “He realised that working with his father and two
never have guessed that it would be a too carried away, don’t forget wool and wine are or three brothers in the store may not be a good
Atally of a different kind that his family would both four letter words’ because Dad had been thing so he jumped across the street and went
become recognised for. through the boom and bust of the wool industry,” with DeGaris the stock agents,” Doug said.
But more than 40 years on, the family’s former she said. In 1948, Ian and his wife Gwen bought their first
sheep paddocks are now in the heart of the The Balnaves family has worked hard but also farming land and soon after added the land where
Coonawarra wine region, producing premium know they have been fortunate to have some Balnaves cellar door and winery is today.
cabernet sauvignon, as well as cabernet franc, fantastic long-term relationships with suppliers, Doug left school at 15 years of age in 1953
shiraz, merlot, chardonnay and petit verdot. distributors and many loyal staff who have been and for the next decade or so divided his time
The ultimate achievement of Balnaves of with them for 25 to 30 years. between helping on the farm and shearing.
Coonawarra has been its Reserve Cabernet “One of the people we planted vineyards for in After the disappointment of missing out on
Sauvignon Tally wine, which is only produced in 1990 is still with us and it was all done on a hand several blocks, in 1966 they finally acquired
years of super premium fruit but is an acclaimed shake,” Pete said. another 162ha - opposite where Katnook is now
top drop. Doug is quick to acknowledge luck has also located.
Doug - the general manager and his children been on their side. It would cement the family’s future in
Kirsty (the business manager) and Pete (the “You need a bit of luck sometimes to be in the Coonawarra’s wine industry.
viticulturist) have built a very successful brand right place at the right time,” he said. “They backed me into this and it was a horrific
selling wine across Australia and the globe. cost, but Coonawarra was expanding and we
They also manage about 1011 hectares of vines Scottish heritage always thought we would sell the 50 acres (20ha)
in the Coonawarra and Wrattonbully wine regions, out the front to a wine company and keep the
The Balnaves family’s history in Penola can
including their own. rest,” Doug said.
be traced back to 1855 when their Scottish
Balnaves of Coonawarra is one of the most
forebears emigrated from Paisley, near Glasgow. “Would you believe it? In1970 a NSW company
picturesque cellar doors along the Coonawarra
At the time Scotland was in economic hardship (Hungerford Hill) turned up and bought the lot.”
strip, especially when the more than 1000 roses Doug - who had married Annette a few years
with the clearing of the Highlands and thousands
are in full bloom.
out of work due to the industrial revolution. earlier - stayed on as the manager to transition
But it is their wine that has put them on the map,
Many Scots who settled in the South East the grazing land to vineyards.
with respected reviewer James Halliday awarding
region became shepherds on pastoral runs but At the time, only about 3600ha of Coonawarra
their winery a five-star rating for a remarkable 20
Doug’s enterprising great great grandmother had been developed - about half of the area it is
years in a row.
Jane Balnaves opened a general store in the early now.
The tight-knit family are passionate about wine
1860s. The following year Hungerford Hill planted 100ha
but acknowledge a big part of their success has
Subsequent generations grew it into a bustling of vines with overhead irrigation- the biggest
come from never losing sight that they are running
store in the main street, which employed up to 17 single development that Coonawarra had seen at
a business.
people just prior to World War II, but after coming the time.
Kirsty says in the early 1990s, when wine was “I didn’t know much about vineyards and I didn’t
like red wine all that much either,” Doug said.
“We put in cabernet sauvignon, shiraz and
riesling and it all grew strangely enough.”
Doug recalls it being a huge change from
running sheep and is hugely grateful to many
in the local wine industry who shared their
knowledge.
Throughout the years Doug and his employees
developed more bare land into vineyards for
Hungerford Hill, which also had extensive areas of
vineyards in NSW, as well as Reynella.
The company was one of the early adopters of
mechanical harvesting and multi-row spraying in
Coonawarra.
In 1975 Doug and Annette planted 2.5ha each
of cabernet sauvignon and shiraz of their own and
began selling their grapes to Hungerford Hill.
“It was a weekend hobby that got out of hand,”
Doug said.
Eventually in 1988 Doug resigned from
Hungerford Hill to focus on their own vineyard.
At the same time Doug and Annette started
Balnaves Vineyard Services developing 690ha of
▲ OPEN DOOR: Balnaves of Coonawarra makes about 60 per cent of its annual domestic wine sales through its vineyards for other growers in the next decade.
cellar door.