Edgehill Vineyards
History of Battle of Bosworth Wines
Located in Willunga, to the south of the McLaren Vale township, Edgehill Vineyard was established in the early 1970's by Peter and Anthea Bosworth. Willunga itself was settled in approximately 1837 and Bosworths have been growing grapes in the district from the late 1840's. Son Joch Bosworth took over the management and day to day running of the vineyards in 1995.
Traditionally a region of mixed agriculture from the earliest Pioneer days, Willunga grew wheat, sheep, stone fruits and barley, as well as dairy cattle and almonds. Almonds were an important part of the local economy in the 1950's and 1960's, but Willunga was unable to compete with the Riverland region's unrestricted access to water for irrigation and cheap land for almond growing, and the industry fell into decline. Many of the commercial almond groves became derelict as a result, and Edgehill Vineyard was established on one such property.
The Name
Our wine takes its name from the original Battle of Bosworth, fought on Bosworth Field , Leicestershire , England in 1485. Here the last of the Plantagenet Kings, Richard the III, was slain by Henry Tudor, becoming the last king of England to die in battle, ending the War of the Roses. The roots of my family's battle were planted in the early 1840's with the first Bosworth vineyard in McLaren Vale. Our modern day Battle of Bosworth saw us convert our ‘Edgehill' vineyard to organic viticulture nearly 10 years ago.
Organic Vineyards
Grown on their own roots, in some of the world's oldest soils, McLaren Vale's benign climate is ideal for growing grapes organically . Our ‘Battle of Bosworth' is symbolised on our label by the yellow Sour Sob ( oxalis pes caprae ) considered a weed worldwide, but encouraged in our vineyards to out-compete other weeds in winter and spring and form an under-vine mulch in summer which reduces moisture loss. Conversion to organic viticulture began in 1995. We now have some 50 acres of 20 years and older Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc and Mourvèdre vines which are fully certified ‘A’ grade organic by Australian Certified Organic (ACO), a process that takes four years.
McLaren Vale Wine Region
Situated in the foothills of the Southern Mount Lofty Ranges and bound to the west by the pristine waters of the Gulf St Vincent, Edgehill Vineyard is in the heart of the McLaren Vale wine region.
The McLaren Vale wine region is approximately 37k south of Adelaide , the capital of South Australia . McLaren Vale is almost unique in being situated so close to the sea (and some of the finest beaches in Australia ) and a significant sized population centre. McLaren Vale is the home of the small winemaker, as well as approximately 300 independent grape growers who tend some 5,000 hectares ( 12,000 acres ) of vines.
McLaren Vale was one of the earliest regions to be planted to vines in South Australia , with first recorded plantings in 1838 by John Reynell in Reynella, to the south of Adelaide.
With a Mediterranean-type climate characterised by warm summers and moderate winters tempered by the proximity to the ocean, winter dominant rainfall, low relative humidity and high relative evaporation, McLaren Vale's benign climate is ideal for organic viticulture. Rain during vintage and frost in winter or spring are both rare.
Annual average rainfall for Edgehill Vineyard is approximately 660mm, of which only about 180mm falls within the growing season. Harvest dates for Battle of Bosworth wines are usually from mid February to late April.
McLaren Vale's vineyards benefit from cooling breezes which come off the ocean during the afternoon that help moderate summer temperatures. Edgehill Vineyard's foothills location also enables it to benefit from the strong 'Gully' winds that come down from the hills in the late afternoon/ early evenings during the summer months. McLaren Vale is rightly considered one of the safest and most consistent premium grape growing regions in the country.
Joch Bosworth
Manager and instigator of the Battle of Bosworth wines. Raised in the clean fresh air of McLaren Vale, Joch spent his formative years helping in the vineyard and pestering local marine life in the crystal waters off the St Gulf St Vincent, 7km to the west of Edgehill Vineyard. No squid were safe from the young Bosworth's hunting and gathering tendencies, though the bivalves could breathe a sigh of relief once Joch had translated a couple of viewings of the movie ‘Jaws' into real live terror of the deep. This restricted his fishing activities to what he could achieve from the boat.
Following successful study at Charles Sturt University in New South Wales in viticulture (Associate Diploma 1988-1990) Joch embarked on the essential Australian world tour. After spending a season working for Robert Mondavi in the Napa , he then went on to do a vintage or harvest in Oregon , at Willamette Valley Vineyards.
After returning home, Joch was drawn east of the border to Goona Warra, a small Victorian winery in the Sunbury wine region, where he worked for several years. After three years as resident viticulturist and winemaker (including some practice at making Grappa in the lab) Joch returned home to Edgehill Vineyard in 1995 to take over the reins from father and founder, Peter.
Peter Bosworth
Founder of Edgehill Vineyards
Bosworths have been growing grapes on and off in the region since the 1840's, so in the early 1970's it was only natural that Peter and Anthea should find themselves back in the family business, after a stint growing almonds, and owning the local Holden dealership in McLaren Vale.
Peter has various other projects that keep him busy now that Joch manages the vineyards full time. Peter drives the truck at vintage time, delivering grapes to the couple of local wineries which buy Bosworth fruit which has not made it into the Battle of Bosworth wines. This allows Peter to keep an eye on what the neighbours are up to, and keeps him out and about driving his favourite late 1970's Leyland Harrier flatbed truck.
He still finds time to enjoy a little recreational ploughing, and cold winter weekend days will often find Peter hand pruning the Chardonnay on the home block, wrapped up warmly in his Elmer Fudd hat, listening to the ‘footie' (Australian Rules Football) on the radio.
Battle of Bosworth Wines
Battle of Bosorth Chardonnay Viognier
War of the Rose
Battle of Bosworth Shiraz Viognier
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