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d'Arenberg

Osborn Road
McLaren Vale, South Australia 5171
Australia
Phone: 618 323 8206 Fax: 618 323 8423
Winery Established: 1912
Wine Production: 120000 cases
Winemaker(s): Chester Osborn
Wine Region: South Australia - McLaren Vale

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d'Arenberg is one of the most significant wineries in McLaren Vale. In 1912 Joseph Osborn, a teetotaller and director of Thomas Hardy and Sons, purchased the well established Milton Vineyards in the hills just north of the townships of Gloucester and Bellevue, now just known as McLaren Vale.

Joseph's son Frank left medical school, choosing to forsake the scalpel for pruning shears. Fruit from the 78 hectares of vineyards was sold to local wineries until the construction of his own cellars were completed in 1928. Dry red table and fortified wines were produced in ever increasing quantities to supply the expanding markets of the Empire.

In 1943 Frank's son d'Arry returned from school, age 16, to help his ill father run the business, eventually assuming full management of d'Arenberg in 1957. d'Arry bottled the first of the famous diagonal red stripe labelled wines the following year.

d'Arenberg's wines of the 1960's gained immediate cult status amongst imbibers and judges. One Cabernet Sauvignon won a Jimmy Watson Trophy at the Melbourne Wine Show and another Grenache based wine was awarded 7 trophies and 29 gold medals from Australian capital city wine shows. It is understandable that by the 1970's d'Arenberg Wines had become very fashionable having gained significant national and international profiles in less than 20 years.

Enter the fourth generation, d'Arry's son Chester. After graduating from Roseworthy College and touring other Australia and European wine regions Chester took over the reigns as Chief Winemaker in 1984 and immediately set about rejuvenating the 70 year old cellars and 19th Century Vineyards. Investing in new oak, refrigeration and lots of small stainless steel tanks resulted in immediate white dividends with his Dry Dam Riesling, Dryland Sauvignon Blanc, Olive Grove Chardonnay and Botrytis affected Noble Riesling all winning gold medals and trophies at wine shows.

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