half moon wines

Half Moon Wines Vineyard was set up in 2000 to produce good quality wines for the boutique wine market.

The vineyard is situated in Mongarlowe, about 12 Km from Braidwood, 630 metre above see level, on a hill facing North and is a part of the Half Moon Wildlife Reserve.

History

The area is renown for its cold winters and out of season frosts and rated by some as an unlikely place to grow grapes as the season would be to short. To some extent this was to prove right as in October 2006 the vinery was hit by minus 3, 5 and 8 deg frosts just at a time when the vines were in full sap flow, resulting in the loss about 500 vines, mainly of grafted Pinot Noir.

Vines have been in a recovery stage since the 2006 frosts with smaller crops being harvested, but the 2010 pick has been given the thumbs up by the wine maker as outstanding quality of fruit.

Wine Range

Grape varieties better suited to this area were planted such as Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Chardonnay, Shiraz and Viognier.

The wines to date have been met with a good response from the public. Two years ago it was decided to add a blended wine to the Half Moon wine list and a blend of Riesling and Pinot Gris resulted in a new label called Two Vines .

Wines on offer in 2010, still displaying the well recognised Half Moon label (see right) will be:

• Riesling
• Pinot Gris
• Chardonnay and
• Shiraz

And Two Vines under the new label shown right

Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc will come to the market in 2011.

The vineyard is managed by Mal and Jen Sharp, and all work is done by hand due to the steepness of the ground and width of rows making it a very unique vineyard -  some grapes are grown VSP others are grown as bush vines.

Half Moon Wines does not have Cellar Door sales and is not open to the Public.

Wines can be purchased from the Braidwood liquor store or by contacting Mal.