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Gil1
1982
Wine Producers New South Wales
Hill of Gold Henry Lawson Drive Mudgee 28502
1985
17 November 1985
When Peter and Rosemary Edwards started Hill of Gold in 1974 they planted only pinot noir grapes. Since then they have added cabernet grapes to their 12-hectare vineyard. Other red and white grape varieties are purchased as required. Hill of Gold, 12 kilometres from Mudgee on Henry Lawson Drive, is from open 8 am to 6 pm3
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1998
Wine Producers
Hill of Gold Henry Lawson Drive Mudgee 28504
2000
12 April 2000
Mudgee's golden hill
HOW judges' deliberations can make a big difference to a wine's market impact, but the recent launch of a new Rosemount brand called Hill of Gold happened because of the decision of a Federal Court judge.
Last year Rosemount's planned release of the Hill of Gold range of wines from Mudgee was challenged by Henschke Wines Pty Ltd. Henschke, based in South Australia's Eden Valley, alleged that its Hill of Grace trademark would be infringed by Rosemount.
Given that the Hill of Grace shiraz wines rank just below Penfolds Grange among Australia's top reds, the protective attitude of the Henschke company was not surprising. Previously it had used the threat of legal action to force Michael Hope to drop the Hill of Hope name from his Fordwich wine operation. Not wanting to be embroiled in a costly court battle, Michael Hope opted for Hope Estate as the name for the former Saxonvale winery he had purchased in 1996.
The powerful Rosemount company wasn't going to give way so easily and late last year won the Federal Court case brought by Henschke. Justice Finn ruled that the word `Grace', not `Hill of', was the distinguishing element of the Henschke trademark.
And so the crowded shelves of our bottle shops have now squeezed in a new batch of three smart wines selling for around $20 under the Rosemount Hill of Gold label.
Not unexpectedly, given Rosemount's track record, the wine and the presentation is admirable and the Hill of Gold 1998 Mudgee Shiraz is today's Bottler wine. The other wines in the inaugural release are the Hill of Gold 1998 Mudgee Cabernet Sauvignon and the Hill of Gold 1999 Mudgee Chardonnay.
Rosemount's resistance to the Henschke court challenge was stiffened by the knowledge that the Hill of Gold winemaking operation dated back to 1973. It was then that former engineer Peter Edwards began planting 40ha of vines on land in Henry Lawson Drive, north of Mudgee.
Being a great fan of French wines from Burgundy's Cote d'Or, and remembering Mudgee's gold mining past, Peter Edwards called his vineyard and small winery Hill of Gold and sold his wines under that label during the 1970s and 1980s.
Hill of Gold was subsequently bought by Mudgee vigneron David Davenport, who in the 1950s had established the Mountain Blue vineyard further south along Henry Lawson Drive. Davenport operated purely as a grape grower and from 1978 on had found Rosemount an eager buyer of his Mountain Blue fruit.
In 1995 he sold the vineyard to the Denman-based Oatley family company. The following year he also sold Hill of Gold to Rosemount.
Rosemount's enthusiasm for its Mudgee buys was justified after it released its first Mountain View shiraz-cabernet sauvignon the 1994 in 1996 and it took off like a rocket.
Later vintages were even better, with the 1996 Mountain Blue Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon winning the Leslie Kemeny Trophy for the best 1996 red wine of the 1998 Sydney Wine Show and the John Swann Trophy for the best current vintage premium dry red.
Many people, me included, regard the Mountain View reds as Rosemount's best and the company has responded by setting a target of 810ha of vineyard in the Mudgee area. As part of this program it has expanded the Mountain View plantings, boosted the Hill of Gold vineyard to 142ha and established a huge new vineyard on the Henry Lawson Drive at Cumbandry, near the historic town of Gulgong. It has spent $15million on doubling the capacity of its Denman winery to handle the increased Mudgee crush.
Rosemount, indeed, has a Hill of Gold at Mudgee5 .
2001
Rush on Mudgee gold
In January last year Mudgee took an important step in its transition from minor to major wine region when Rosemount Estate revived an old district name with the launch of its Hill of Gold label.
The three Hill of Gold wines - a cabernet sauvignon, shiraz and chardonnay - were released in Australia and in Rosemount's overseas markets with much fanfare, and to considerable industry acclaim.
They sold out within months.
Now Hill of Gold is back, with the release of 1999 vintages of the two reds, and a 2000 vintage chardonnay.
And the good news is that the quality evident in the first release has been maintained, while the quantities have been increased as Rosemount's extensive plantings in the Mudgee-Gulgong area have come on stream.
Rosemount chief executive Keith Lambert, who is moving on to a senior role at Southcorp with that group's acquisition of his company, admitted that the second vintage was always going to be a big test.
"The first (vintage) has the advantage of its newness. There is nothing to which it can be compared apart from regional peers," he said. "The second vintage, however, must stand up to the impressive record of its predecessor."
He believes winemaker Philip Shaw has achieved that, and it is hard to disagree with the assessment.
The shiraz is perhaps the most impressive - a deep, rich red with concentrated flavours, a nice touch of typical shiraz spiciness, velvety texture and a long, lingering finish.
The cabernet also has great depth of flavour and class. Both reds have long cellaring potential, while the chardonnay is a lovely, fresh, soft wine that is drinking well already.
The Hill of Gold range retails at around $206 .