Description
About Topper’s Mountain
Topper’s Mountain unique terroir arises from its high elevation location on the western edge of the Great Dividing Range and deep, volcanic soils.
Mark Kirkby established the vineyard between 1998 and 2002, with his family. The vineyard was planted with rare varieties, chosen to make the most of the unique terroir.
Our cellar door is open for tastings on Sundays between 11am – 4pm. Individual tastings are available from Tuesday to Saturday – by appointment only.
The New England area has a rich viticultural history, dating as far back as the first settlers. Vineyards in this region are unique as many sit over 1000m above sea level, accompanied by a cool climate and iron-rich soils. In the 1850’s vigneron, George Wyndham (of Wyndham Estate, located in the Hunter Valley) established a 100 000-acre property, named ‘Bukkulla’ near Inverell. By 1870, Wyndham had 10ha of vines bearing fruit, contributing to the 11 000 gallons of wine produced annually by the Estate.
Fast forward into the turn of the 20th century, around 1905, Inverell was producing approximately 227 000 litres of wine annually, totalling around 45ha of vines. Between 1870 and 1920, wines from the area won many awards in wine shows across the globe, from Amsterdam, London and France to across the pond in Chicago and San Francisco.
A prominent English wine judge at the time wrote of Bukkulla wines: “(They) have a character and quality above the average of most wine-producing countries. The lowest quality is better than a large proportion of the ordinary wines of Europe, while the best would not suffer in comparison to the finest known growths”.
