Taltarni

Established in 1969, Taltarni is one of the founding wineries of Victoria's Pyrenees wine region. Owner John Goelet, a direct descendant of the Guestier wine merchant family of Bordeaux, discovered and purchased Taltarni Vineyard in 1972 after conducting a worldwide search for a site comparable to the great vineyards of Bordeaux.

Today, Taltarni combines old-world traditions with innovative new-world techniques to produce a diverse range of high-calibre still wines and méthode traditionnelle-crafted sparklings. The diversity of our folio ensures that there's a perfect Taltarni wine for all your key moments in life. So, whether it's Taché at your wedding, the Fumé Blanc at a BBQ with your nearest and dearest, the Reserve to commemorate an anniversary or T Series to toast the everyday enjoyable moments that comprise our lives, there is always a perfect Taltarni accompaniment.

Independently owned by the Goelet family, Taltarni has had a strong French influence from the outset, with initial plantings of Bordeaux varieties, including cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and merlot. Shortly thereafter, Taltarni extended its plantings to encompass sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, shiraz (sourced from vines planted in 1868 in Great Western) as well as pinot noir and pinot meunier, allowing the winemakers to produce crisp sparkling and fresh white wines.

The first wine from the Moonambel vineyard was released in 1977; immediate success followed with the wine collecting gold at the Royal Melbourne Show – an early acknowledgment of the potential of the vineyard. In 1979, Taltarni's Cabernet Sauvignon was awarded the Los Angeles Times International Best Red Wine ahead of world greats. 

Located at the western reach of the Great Dividing Range, the Pyrenees is one of the most naturally beautiful wine regions in Australia. Early settlers called it "the natural garden of Victoria" because of the sub-valleys and lush green rolling hills. These valleys teemed with gold miners in the 19th century, and as gold became scarce, vineyards were developed. Taltarni led the revitalisation of wine growing in the Pyrenees in the 1960s.

At a latitude of 37º, with soils of red clay, quartz and sandy loam, the Pyrenees region lies in a perfect climatic band for growing grapes. The cool nights and warm days allow for slow ripening and create ideal conditions for crisp sparkling wines.

Taltarni is a picturesque property, with around 97 hectares of vineyards. Described by wine writer Robert Joseph as "one of the most beautiful vineyards on the planet", the rolling hills, sweeping vistas, bluffs and stands of gum trees create a magnificent setting for the production of outstanding wines.

Our winemaking philosophy can be summed up in one word: hedonistic. Our wines must taste good. The old adage couldn't be truer: you can make bad wine from good grapes but you can't make good wine from bad grapes. To us, wine is about celebrating and sharing, so first and foremost it must be food-friendly.

This is how European people have enjoyed wine throughout the ages. To achieve this, and the the holy grail of "quality wine", wine must be about balance, texture, intensity, complexity and length. This applies for every wine from sparkling to fortified, although for wines that are about purity, such as riesling, complexity can be substituted with concentration.

Robert 'Roo' Heywood - Senior Winemaker, Taltarni Vineyards. Roo grew up in Victoria's Western District, in Hamilton, developing a love for agriculture while working on farms around the district during his school holidays. After completing secondary school, he took twelve months off to do a GAP year in the UK. During his European travels, Roo found a new love in wine and viticulture and decided to follow this newfound passion upon his return back to Oz.  He completed a Diploma in Horticulture at Melbourne University but wanted to focus more on viticulture so it was off to La Trobe University to study viticulture science and winemaking. 

Upon completion of his studies, Roo worked as a winemaker in South Australia's Barossa Valley. Whilst working with some of the country's best fruit, as well as some of the best winemakers in the Valley, Roo found he had a real passion for red wine making, especially shiraz. During this stint in SA, he traveled to the Northern Hemisphere to do vintages in Bordeaux's St-Émilion at Château Teyssier in 2004 and 2006. It was while working with the French that he came to fully appreciate and understand the importance of producing the best possible fruit in addition to crafting the best possible wine. With this newfound knowledge, it was time to return to Australia to apply these skills to Australia’s distinctive fruit styles.

In 2008, it was back to the Northern Hemisphere, this time to World's End Winery in California's Napa Valley. Roo found an old friend in cabernet while in the Napa, and his love for the variety was reignited.

Upon his return to Australia, Roo moved 'home' to Victoria. He found a fantastic opportunity in 2009 at Taltarni Vineyards and has not looked back since, enjoying the huge variety at Taltarni, not only working with great red fruit but also magnificent sparkling and white varieties. The variety of Roo's work extends beyond winemaking; he and wife Catherine welcomed their second baby daughter in 2013.