Gembrook Hill Andrew Marks

Top Vineyards

Home > Top Vineyards

Sitting in a natural amphitheatre, the Gembrook Hill Vineyard on the fringe of the Upper Yarra was first planted in 1983 by Ian and June Marks. The oldest vines are now 42 years old, with an average vine age across the 5-hectare property of 34 years. It’s a cool site – the southernmost vineyard in the Yarra Valley – and one that is responsible for arguably the Yarra’s most distinctive pinot noir, along with what many regard as the country’s best sauvignon blanc; the chardonnay and Blanc de Blancs sparkling are equally acclaimed. While he has worked around the world and steers his own The Wanderer label, Andrew Marks – Ian and June’s son – has always also worked on home soil, with him now managing everything from soil to bottle.

“My parents took a calculated risk by planting the southernmost vineyard in the Yarra Valley,” says Marks. “It’s a site that is markedly different from the rest of the valley with deep, rich red volcanic soils …with a rainfall almost 400mm per annum more than the Yarra floor and a ripening window up to a month later than the norm. They’re marginal growing conditions. Our goal has only ever been to produce wines of the highest quality with distinct character that reflects the place they are grown.”

“It’s a site that is markedly different from the rest of the valley with deep, rich red volcanic soils …with a rainfall almost 400mm per annum more than the Yarra floor and a ripening window up to a month later than the norm. They’re marginal growing conditions.”

Marks is the Gembrook Hill winemaker, but vigneron is certainly a more apt title, with much more time spent amongst the vines than in the shed. “We pride ourselves that it is the winemakers [with Shaun Thornton] who do all the work in the vineyard,” says Marks. “Every decision taken in the vineyard is made with the goal of attaining the finest example of terroir-driven wines that we are able to in any given year.”

The only contract work done at Gembrook is to remove material post pruning, de-sucker and pick fruit. That’s a lot of work for Marks and Thornton, and the presence of Eutypa – which causes vine trunk dieback – has increased that workload by about 30 per cent. Management of Eutypa involves avoiding large pruning cuts in winter to limit the spread of the fungal spores, but it is also about rejuvenating affected trunks. The program of bringing up water-shoots alongside old trunks, nurturing them for approximately four years and then cutting out the affected old trunk entirely, has been expanded to encompass a whole-of-vineyard revitalisation. “Our program of cutting out Eutypa-affected vines over the years has been expanded to encompass the whole vineyard revitalisation task of bringing up new suckers to create new trunks on old root systems,” says Marks. In June 2025, around 10 tonnes of old trunks were removed from the pinot noir block, following the successful application of the same method in the chardonnay.

“Our program of cutting out Eutypa-affected vines over the years has been expanded to encompass the whole vineyard revitalisation task of bringing up new suckers to create new trunks on old root systems,” says Marks.

Alongside the trunk renewal program, Marks adopted the Poussard pruning methodology in 2023 – a soft pruning system designed to preserve sap flow through the vine’s vascular system and extend vine longevity. “Learning this system was both elating and devastating at the same time,” he says. “Elating that you can still teach an old dog new tricks and devastating to think of the damage we have done with poor pruning over the years.” The vineyard now uses only hand secateurs rather than electric ones. Taken together, the trunk renewal and Poussard pruning represent the most significant shift in vineyard management at Gembrook in decades, and one driven squarely by the need to protect the 42-year-old vine resource for the decades ahead.

Preparing for the almost inevitable arrival of phylloxera has also shaped the vineyard’s evolution. The first rootstock plantings were made in 2014 using 10114 rootstock, which was selected for its vigour-reducing qualities on a naturally exuberant site. Experience has since shown that block does not respond well to water stress – a real limitation on a dry-grown vineyard. Newer plantings in 2021 accordingly use more vigorous rootstocks better suited to the site’s conditions. Significantly, Marks has also grafted budwood from the oldest own-rooted vines directly onto rootstocks, preserving the character of those original clones – whose origins are unknown – as a hedge against phylloxera’s eventual arrival. “The clonal origins of our first plantings are unknown, and the wine they produce is elegant and perfumed,” he says. “The introduction of MV6 on rootstock has brought a depth and tannin profile not seen before. This has allowed us blending options, which we have used to expand the range of wines that we offer.”

“The clonal origins of our first plantings are unknown, and the wine they produce is elegant and perfumed,” says Marks. “The introduction of MV6 on rootstock has brought a depth and tannin profile not seen before.”

“Every decision taken in the vineyard is made with the goal of attaining the finest example of terroir-driven wines that we are able to in any given year.”

Marks has introduced wines using the original and new vine fruit, both named after his parents. The ‘IJM’ Pinot ($110) is 60 per cent of the oldest vines combined with the youngest. “It’s like the snake eating its own tail – ourobos – the symbol of eternal life,” Marks says. “I describe it as a vigneron’s wine – 100% destemmed, no new oak, all about the terroir of the site.” The ‘JKM’ ($110) is more a winemaker’s wine, with the new plantings’ denser fruit fermented 100 per cent whole-bunch and the older vine fruit destemmed with 30 per cent new oak. “The three Gembrook pinots come from the same tiny 5-hectare vineyard but show very different properties.” A Village Pinot Noir ($38) and Blanc de Blancs sparkling ($62) round out the range alongside the Chardonnay ($55) and Sauvignon Blanc ($38).

The soil metrics back up the intuition that long-term, low-intervention management pays dividends. Soil organic matter at Gembrook Hill has been measured at 8.7 per cent – well above the benchmark range of 3.25 to 5.2 per cent – a reflection of the permanent sward maintained between vine rows and the systematic mulching of that sward back into the soil. Microbial soil indicators tested in 2024 showed excellent biological activity. Chicory has been planted in wetter parts of the vineyard to compete for excess moisture, while a buckwheat cover crop is being trialled at intervals throughout the vineyard to attract beneficial insect predators that prey on light brown apple moth. A worm farm has been established on-site to recycle packaging waste; the resulting worm castings are brewed into a tonic and applied back to the vineyard to increase microbial and fungal activity in the soil.

“We grow to the season without rote methodology.”

The vineyard also faces new challenges. Pseudomonas Syringae – a bacterial disease that became widely recognised in the Yarra Valley after the cool, wet 2023 season – is now present and requires management in cool wet years. Deer have caused significant damage in the last two years, chewing out new shoots and important spur positions in early spring. And the shifting patterns of rainfall and temperature that come with a changing climate continue to demand adaptation. “We are seeing a disruption to normal patterns of weather,” says Marks. “Hotter, drier, wetter, colder. Lots of curve balls. We are a naturally vigorous site but have selected vigorous rootstocks for our new plantings as we believe these will be best suited to hotter drier conditions.” Taller posts – eight feet rather than the previous seven – are also being progressively installed across the vineyard to create a taller canopy and greater shading of the fruit zone through the late-summer heat.

It is observation and sensitive response to the site’s unique conditions that drives Marks’ approach, rather than sticking to a recipe, no matter how well regarded. “We grow to the season without rote methodology,” he says. It is a philosophy that has not gone unnoticed among his peers – local winemakers have been known to say that Gembrook Hill is the wine the winemakers drink. And that is an attitude he will take going forward as he enhances the legacy of his parents. “Our vineyard has always produced distinct wines that speak of a specificity of site to the Upper Yarra and of a terroir informed by the amphitheatre that we enjoy here at Gembrook,” Marks says. “Aside from the fact that it is an exceptionally beautiful place to spend your time, one of the great thrills working here is that the vineyard is a legacy of the hard work of my parents. Something I am very proud to contribute to and continue to evolve into the future.”

Gembrook Hill Andrew Marks

Bookmark this job

Save this search

Create Resume