Established in 1997 the Galli Estate Rockbank vineyard occupies 50 hectares just 40 minutes northwest of Melbourne CBD. Along with the vineyard, there is a state of the art winery, cellar door and restaurant.
The region offers a generally cool climate with a relatively cool and dry growing season. Vintage takes place from late March through April to early May.
Galli Estate at Rockbank features rich red volcanic soil over clay loam, interspersed with rocky outcrops. The vineyard is on a north-south axis and the vine trellising uses vertical shoot positioning to increase exposure to sunlight.
The Rockbank area is best known for its Shiraz, and Galli Estate Sunbury Shiraz shows the hallmark regional characters of spicy minerally blackberry fruit, cracked black pepper, and bitter chocolate
Other grapes such as Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, and Sauvignon Blanc grow beautifully here, along with elegant Cabernet Sauvignon. Further development is continuing with plantings of some exciting new Italian varietals.
Heathcote Wine Region
Vine planting commenced in 2000 at Galli Estate's Heathcote vineyard, known as Camelback after the nearby Camel Ranges. The vineyard now comprises some 110 hectares.
Located in Central Victoria about 100 kms north of Melbourne, the Heathcote wine region is classified as warm and rainfall is limited. The growing season is warm and dry with relatively even temperature ranges during the ripening season. The harvest occurs from mid-March.
The Camelback vineyard features Shiraz, a variety now recognised as producing exceptional wines in Heathcote, along with smaller plantings of two other “Rhone” varieties; Viognier and Grenache. In keeping with Lorenzo’s innovative nature, the balance is planted with less common grapes such as Sangiovese, Tempranillo and Nebbiolo, which all show exciting potential.
The Camelback vineyard has a cellar door facility which is open by appointment.
