Vineyards

The Adelaide Hills region is known for its relatively cool climate, undulating topography and ancient soils, although within the region there is considerable diversity of these natural elements. The Johnston vineyards are situated near Oakbank and Balhannah where rainfall (750-800 mm per annum), temperature and elevation (350-400 metres above sea level) are near the middle of the spectrum found in the region. The topography is undulating rather than steep and the soils are more naturally fertile than in some parts of the region. Indeed, the area is similar to the cooler parts of the Bordeaux region, the combination of extended dry periods and low temperatures causing the fruit to ripen gently, enabling the complexity of varietal aromas and flavours to be expressed in the region's wines.

Johnston Vineyard at Wenzel Road, Oakbank

Although vines were planted at Oakbank and Balhannah soon after European settlement, other forms of agriculture and horticulture soon took over and as with much of the region, Johnstons' vineyard land was formerly used to graze stock and grow crops such as cereals and potatoes.

The emergence of the Adelaide Hills as a premium grape-growing region is therefore recent in the context of the South Australian wine industry. David O'Leary first planted vines near Balhannah in the early 1980s and Johnston's 22.5 Ha Galbraith vineyard, which is adjacent to the Oakbank Racecourse, was planted late in 1993. With the exception of five hectares of cabernet sauvignon, the varieties planted were suited to the sparkling products of the company's two contract grape purchasers at the time. Five hectares was planted to pinot noir and twelve to chardonnay.

In 1998, Johnstons purchased 40 Ha of land on Wenzel Road, Balhannah that had been farmed by the Wenzel family for several generations. Twenty seven hectares of this property was planted to sauvignon blanc, merlot, pinot noir and shiraz. Portion of this fruit is devoted to the Johnston label and the other portion is sold under contract to a large winemaker. The first vintage was 2001 and the first wine sold under the Johnston label was the 2002 Sauvignon Blanc, made by David O'Leary. He also made the 2001 Johnston Shiraz, which was released subsequently.

Although situated in much the same geographical area, the two Johnston vineyards have some quite distinct characteristics - notably soils. The Galbraith vineyard has variable soil types; mainly acidic, sandy loam to sandy clay-loam topsoil overlaying heavy clays, gravels and weathered rock, in some cases quite shallow. Those at Wenzel vineyard are also derived from ancient, weathered sedimentary rock, but the topsoils, whilst also acidic, are generally much deeper, less variable and have better structured clay sub-soils. This vineyard is generally easier to manage, but has a propensity towards excessive vine vigour, while Galbraith is more demanding, but rewards with a natural, desirable fruit and foliage balance.

Each block in the two Johnston vineyards is managed to maximise quality consistent with the desired end-product. Pruning, water application and harvesting is all carried out in a manner consistent with this objective.