Our story began in 1999 when James and Annabelle Tilbrook embarked on a remarkable journey to find the perfect location for their wine venture. After an extensive search across the Australian cool climate regions, they decided on Lenswood – a hidden gem nestled in the Adelaide Hills and renowned for being one of the coolest wine grape growing areas in Australia.
With a deep-rooted passion for winemaking and an unwavering commitment to quality, James and Annabelle established Tilbrook Estate. From the very beginning, they set forth a simple but powerful philosophy: “Hand made by our hands.” This philosophy meant that they were involved in every step of the winemaking process, from nurturing the grapes on the vine to crafting the wine and meticulously bottling it themselves. This level of hands-on care and attention to detail sets Tilbrook Estate apart as one of the few Adelaide Hills wineries offering a truly unique and authentic experience.
The vineyard is close planted at double the norm of other Adelaide Hills vineyards. The vine rows were also planted across the slope with some blocks terraced. This lets water soak into the ground instead of running off when it rains. This also means that we have uniform ripeness along the whole length of a row instead of different levels of ripeness which you get when the rows go up and down the slope.
We pride ourselves on growing the best possible grapes with the least impact on the environment; we think that our vineyard should coexist with native birdlife and animals. Often a mob of kangaroos can be seen in the back paddock at dusk or you can be startled by the “thump” of a ‘roo passing in a nearby vine row. The front Chardonnay block known as “The Hill” has a couple of ‘roos who visit most evenings as well as various parrots and lorikeets who swoop in amongst the vines on their way to their roosting sites. Occasionally Black Cockatoos, Kites, Hawks and Wedge-Tailed Eagles can be seen overhead. It’s a joy to see “nature” carrying on oblivious to Man’s presence.