The Winery

First and foremost, we want our wines to be a reflection of our vineyard site and the year in which they were grown. There is no recipe for what we do in the winery. It is our belief that respectful, thoughtful handling of the fruit and a lightness of touch approach in the winery influences the pure, elegant quality of our end product. Our winemaker works throughout the year in the vineyard, ensuring detailed knowledge of any given season translates eloquently through to the final product.

We use a combination of crushed and whole bunch fruit in our white presses, depending on various parameters displayed in any given year. We do not filter our juice, preferring to let it slowly settle prior to racking and fermentation in stainless steel. The only cultured yeast used in the winery is the neutral PDM, with spontaneous fermentation employed across various varieties.  Our red grapes are destemmed only, soaked for up to a week and then fermented in open fermenters. They are hand plunged and pressed when dry, prior to settling in tank. Maturation occurs in French oak for between 12 – 24 months, depending on the product.

Belinda is Chief Winemaker and Viticulturist at Crawford River Wines in South West Victoria and is the creative force behind the vineyard and wines. After studying Viticulture and Oenology in NZ in 2002 and staying on to work for several years, she returned to work with her father in 2005 after overseas harvests in France, Germany and Spain. A hunger for knowledge together with a passion for family, led her to combine responsibilities at Crawford River with extensive international experience across a range of countries, before returning full time in 2014 to her family estate.  In 2020 she was a finalist in the Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year list, as well as being included in the Top 50 Young Gun Vineyards of the year awards.