Seppelt Great Western Vineyard, Great Western
The Seppelt Great Western is the oldest continuous wine producer in the Grampians region, with the historic winery sitting atop a kilometre and a half of 19th century tunnels used for maturing wine. While Seppelt has other vineyards in the region, along with elsewhere, the 100-odd hectares of mainly shiraz that wrap around the winery is the heart of the Great Western operation, providing fruit for their pinnacle wines, including the benchmark ‘Show Sparkling’ Shiraz’ and flagship ‘St Peters’ Shiraz. Although the vineyard was replanted in the 1960s – meaning there are no ancient vines – it is the heritage clonal material and nuanced management techniques that set the Great Western Vineyard apart. The vineyard has been tended by James McKenzie since 2017