In the mid 1970's Brian Croser, an Australian farmer's son, left his position as Chief Winemaker at Hardys to begin a Wine Science course at Riverina College and in 1976 founded Petaluma in the Adelaide Hills where he pioneered vine cultivation. The name came from a Californian town where Brian had spent some time when he was studying at UC Davis in the early 1970's. Petaluma was taken over by Lion Nathan in 2001, but the Petaluma brand is now in the hands of Accolade Wines. Petaluma operate what they call a “distinguished vineyards” philosophy. This is crafting ultra-premium wines by specially selecting the best sites within a particular area suited to a chosen grape variety, built on the old world belief of planting the right varieties for individual vineyards in a specific wine region. The wines of Petaluma are a singular exploration of this founding belief. Petaluma have carefully selected vineyard sites in the Adelaide Hills (mainly Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Shiraz), Clare Valley (mainly Riesling, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon) and Coonawarra (mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz and Chardonnay) in South Australia. Always at the heart of Petaluma’s winemaking is attention to detail and stringent quality focus, with constant evolution and refinement, driven by a team of experienced winemakers and viticulturists who maintain the rigour and excitement that encapsulates the Petaluma spirit. They have a solid reputation for premium cool climate terroir-driven wines and are considered a crusader of modern Australian wines.
www.petaluma.com.au