Pinot Noir at Historic Hurley Farm

Queen's Counsel, Kevin Bell and family law solicitor Tricia Byrnes have ventured into something quite unique at their Balnarring vineyard. They grow and make only Pinot Noir. In fact they are very passionate about how it is done and the end product.

The site is nestled on an ancient volcanic basalt hill and the soil is full of ironstone (bring a magnet and see). The aspect is north easterly and the huge old trees on the boundary provide perfect shelter. It is a special place to grow pinot noir. The family chose it for those reasons. The property is also significant in local history.

When orchardist, William Hurley and midwife, Johanna Hurley, selected the site in the 1870’s they too must have realised its potential, planting an orchard and market garden and also pasture for dairy cows. The produce was famously good and a general store, one of the first in Balnarring, was established in a small room on the side of the wattle and daub cottage (“Hazelgrove”) which Hurley himself built. Twelve children were raised in the cottage. So strong was the tradition that the property remained in the Hurley family’s hands until 1988.

Kevin and Tricia, and their daughter Imogen, now live in the Hurley cottage, which they have restored. The family have given the land a new lease on life as a 9 acre pinot noir vineyard, landscaped with considerable plantings of local indigenous plants.

The venture is a family concern. Its hands-on for Kevin and Tricia.

Family and friends make it all possible, helping in the vineyard and the winery. Kevin makes the wine and the first vintage, Hurley Vineyard 2001 Pinot Noir, was released in September 2003. The second, the 2001, will be released in spring 2002. The

2003 and 2004 are in barrel.

The couple are committed to the philosophy of respect for the vineyard terroir. Their viticultural principles are non-irrigation, low yields, open canopies and minimal chemical use. The winemaking philosophy is simply to let the terroir and vintage reveal itself in the wine. To allow this Kevin uses wild yeast, natural and slow malolactic fermentation, gentle and minimal wine handling, only about 25% new French oak barrels and 18 months in barrel before bottling (under gravity). He uses Burgundian hand pumps for transferring the finished wine so as to protect the delicate texture of Pinot Noir.

James Halliday describes the 2001 Pinot Noir as “a first vintage wine of exceptional quality and style…It is all a pinot noir should be, a rich and complex mix of plum, spice plus a savoury twist, and a long and persistent

finish” (Medical Observer August 2001). Jeni Port says: “What a wine… thought provoking… silky and elegant.” (Age 2003).

Come, meet the family and taste the wine at the cellar door in the winery. Just look for the . . . .

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