Grant Burge buys in the Adelaide Hills

Renowned winemaker Grant Burge has bought Lorndan Vineyard in the Adelaide Hills from the Pinchbeck family.

The 25-hectare boutique property at Gumeracha includes 20 hectares of vines planted in 1995 and supplies fruit to Penfolds Yattarna, Bin A and Cellar Reserve wines with a contract continuing until 2019.

About 15 hectares is planted to Chardonnay, with yields averaging between 10-12 tonnes per hectare.

The vineyard is 37km from the Adelaide CBD and close to the Barossa Valley, where the Burge family operates the Illaparra Winery and cellar door at Tanunda and whose involvement in the wine industry dates back to 1855. 

Mr Burge and his wife Helen sold the Grant Burge wine business along with the historic Krondorf Winery, to Accolade Wines, in December 2014 with speculation the price paid was about $50 million.

The couple founded Grant Burge Wines in 1988. At the time of its sale to Accolade Wines it sold around 450,000 cases of wine in the domestic market each year, and 150,000 cases overseas.

The Australian Financial Review subsequently revealed that Grant Burge Wines tumbled to a loss of $9.4 million after generating sales of $40.4 million in its last 12 months as an independent company. It had been seeking an equity investor as nervous bankers worried about its future, before Accolade stepped in with a full buyout offer in late 2014. 

"The Lorndan Vineyard is a standout Adelaide Hills vineyard providing a unique combination of healthy yields and very good grape prices, particularly for Chardonnay," said selling agent Toby Langley, managing director of winebrokers Gaetjens Langley.