Celebrating a golden milestone

As anniversaries go, 50 years is often represented by gold so not surprisingly that was the colour chosen to grace the label of Leconfield Coonawarra’s Sparkling Blanc de Blancs, released to celebrate five decades of history.

The Blanc de Blancs was made from estate grown Chardonnay and is the winery’s first Estate labelled sparkling. Leconfield Noble Riesling, from one of the late founder Sydney Hamilton’s first Leconfield vineyards planted in 1975, was used as the dosage and supporting the Chardonnay’s cool-climate, crisp, structural finesse.

The sparkling wine will flow at a public event held at the Coonawarra cellar door this Saturday, celebrating those five decades in Coonawarra.

There’s plenty of history to toast during the milestone celebration, most notably Sydney Hamilton’s vision.

When the noted oenologist approached the golden years of retirement during the 1970s, he turned his back on relaxation, deciding instead to dig a cellar, plant vines and ultimately fulfill a life’s ambition to grow and produce a classic Australian Cabernet Sauvignon.

Sydney was 76 when he selected 30 hectares of fine ‘Terra Rossa’ country in the southern half of the Coonawarra strip and named the estate Leconfield after his English ancestor Lord Leconfield.

In 1981, with 65 vintages under his belt, Sydney finally decided to retire and Leconfield was acquired by his nephew Dr Richard Hamilton, the great-great-grandson of his namesake ‘Richard Hamilton’ who in 1837, at the age of 45, emigrated from the UK and pioneered the South Australia wine industry.

Everyone is invited to join the Hamilton family on Saturday from 12noon to 5pm when they will celebrate Leconfield Coonawarra’s 50-year anniversary with a family-friendly public event at the Coonawarra cellar door. The event will feature live music by band Limestone Americana, food by Lumberjack’s BBQ, Leconfield wines, coffee, and lawn games. Entry is free.