NINETEEN CRIMES turned criminals into colonists. Upon conviction, British citizens, guilty of at least one of the 19 crimes, were sentenced to live in Australia, rather than death. Approximately twenty percent of those banished to Australia were women. As pioneers in a frontier colony, they forged a new country and new lives, brick by brick. This wine honours the history they wrote and the culture they built.

Learn About Jane Castings: Married with 4 young children, and employed as a housemaid, in 1846 Jane was sentenced to 7 years transportation for “receiving cheese and bacon knowing the same to have been stolen”.

Our Hard Chard honors the brave contributions of the women banished to Australia with the boldest expression of Chardonnay we could make.

Tasting notes: Bold and strong in character, this deep and golden Chardonnay is filled with stone fruit aromas and a sweet textured palate balanced with fresh acidity. The toasty oak notes have hints of spice and honey balanced with layers of ripe fruit. This full bodied wine finishes with cream notes of butterscotch and vanilla.

Vintage coditions: Temperatures were significantly warmer than the average during the spring and summer months. These weather conditions caused bud burst to occur at the usual time, but vine growth and development rapidly increased with flowering, and harvest dates occuring earlier than ever before on most vineyards. A dry winter and spring with little effective rainfall resulted in reliance on irrigation with little disasese incidence. All fruit varieties matured rapidly, resulting in an unprecedented compressed vintage. Fruit fully ripened with good flavour and varietal definition.