In the back streets of Watervale, a cute little stone village in the middle of the Clare Valley, Crabtree elevates the art of viticulture to obsessive heights. Across a modest 13.2 hectares of individually named blocks, Crabtree’s vines are optimally spaced (1,684 per hectare), protected from prevailing winds, and are thoughtfully aligned with sun movements. Terroir is a block-by-block consideration; the soils here shift from slightly alkaline red loam over limestone (good for riesling), to red loam over sandstone and ironstone (shiraz), to ‘Bay of Biscay’ clay (cabernet and grenache). Dry-grown and hand-picked, the resultant wines are true labours of love.
Nose your way into a glass or two at the heritage-listed stone cellar door, parts of which date back to 1849. Crabtree’s riesling is a Clare Valley classic, and – unlike a lot of Australia’s drink-me-at-the-BBQ-this-arvo whites – can be stashed away for a decade and emerge on the other side with grace and maturity. The challenge is to wait that long…
