We are a small family owned and operated winery in the Hunter Valley. since our first vintage in 2005, Harkham Wines have focussed on making wines that are honest to their origins and whose personalities roam free. Wine to us is a living thing, a snapshot of a particular vineyard which produced fruit in a particular year from the nutrients in the soil, from the sun, the rain, the entire living environment in which those grapes were grown. the ‘terroir’ if you will. not a manufactured product, but a product of nature, a thing of beauty with a unique personality that should be embraced and never censored.
Our vineyards are farmed sustainably without the use of fungicides and pesticides, our fruit is handpicked to ensure the highest quality, and our work in the winery is undertaken with no chemical additions, flavour adjustments, filtration or fining. the wines are bottled with no added sulphites, in some cases with just a small sulphur addition. Through this minimalist approach to winemaking we are able to achieve wines that are pure and honest; true representations of nature. wines that we hope you will enjoy as much as we do!
In 1951 the Harkham Family were amongst the first pioneers of Israel’s renowned wine region, Zichron Yackov, where they lived for 16 years. Aziza Harkham, matriarch of the Harkham family, with no electricity and scarce running water used to make natural food and wine for the family from fresh produce and grapes that she had grown. In 2005 Terry, Efrem and Richard Harkham decided to buy Windarra Estate and winery in the Hunter Valley in a move to get back to their roots.
As we are a family run and owned business, we generally only crush between 20-25 tonnes a year. We focus on very small batches with extremely high quality. Our own vineyard is farmed using organic methods and we source fruit from a couple of other vineyard partners who we work closely with to ensure they meet our standards.
Through minimal intervention in the winemaking process we are able to express most clearly the amazing terroir driven flavours that the Hunter Valley is renowned for. All our fruit is carefully handpicked and sorted to eliminate rot, unripe fruit and any other diseases, so we can make a style of wine from 100% naturally fermented grape juice.
https://harkhamwine.com.au/