Order samples from ECK Wines

Our wines are often inspired by a sense of place.

The vineyard is an incredible ecosystem. It amazes me that every year the vine can be cut back so heavily, yet it grows so vigorously and produces such incredible fruit; year in, year out. There are so many factors that influence the fruit we pick, that is used to make the wine we drink. To name a few: the weather, amount of water (rainfall and whether the vineyard is irrigated or dry grow), nutrients in the soil, exposure to sunlight and, of course, ripening conditions. Some of these elements are entirely out of our control. For example, during the 2020 vintage, we had above-average rainfall in Spring, crazy hot weather in early December (2019) which affected bud flowering, and unprecedented rain which slowed ripening at harvest. Therefore, the factors that we can alter are so incredibly important.

In September 2019, I attended a field day workshop with Dr Mary Cole, who spoke at length about creating a "soil web" where soil microbes prosper and organic matter is used to feed the vineyard. When one element in the web is disturbed, the entire biological system can be disrupted. I'm no expert in this field, but Dr Cole's words resonated with me. And so, it is important to us that the fruit we pick is as sustainable as possible, where soil health is considered and harsh pesticides and synthetic fertilisers are avoided. For our own vineyard, this means that we try to improve how we do things every year. And for the vineyards that aren't our own - we work closely with our growers, with whom we have had long-standing relationships, to ensure their farming practices are aligned with our own practices and beliefs.