Brothers in Arms

At Brothers in Arms we put our heart into full-bodied wine that is true to the estate and true to the region. Our wines showcase our quality fruit and reflect the spirit of our family tradition. Since being established in 1998 we have achieved national & international recognition for our Brothers in Arms bottled beauties.

Without doubt our greatest strength is being such an integrated business. We are in control of the management of our soils, pruning regimes, canopies and irrigation in the vineyard right through to deciding when best to bring the fruit into the winery. We don't feel the pressure to work to anyone else's requirements at vintage and can therefore coax and nurture our ferments how we choose, allowing our Viticulture and winery teams to work closely together building skill sharing and teamwork.

This integration hasn't happened by accident or just good fortune. Guy has always had a very clear vision about where he wants the businesses to go and is an exceptionally good strategic planner. He has been through too many "bad" years with primary production to rely on one income stream alone. He is also an unbelievably hard worker and with Liz supporting him has been able to achieve some really marvellous outcomes.

The first vintage saw only 5 tonnes of Shiraz produced, a volume which has now grown to over 700 tonne per year. In all 212 hectares are planted to vines with the balance of the 1000 Ha (2,500 acres) property given over to Merino sheep and cropping.

Guy and his wife Liz have a clear vision for Brothers in Arms—to showcase what they believe the vineyards are capable of. With the construction of the winery in time for the 2002 vintage, the focus of the winemaking discipline is simple: balance, structure and texture. “by concentrating on these three key elements we find that all the other attributes revolving around fruit, oak, tannins, length of flavour, etc. fall into place” explains Guy.

With two children Myles and Emily (the 6th Generation—hence the No 6 range of wines) Guy & Liz head up a dedicated team that are proud to produce wines that are true to the estate and true to the Langhorne Creek region.

Although our original focus was on Shiraz the wines in our portfolio have evolved over the past decade and we now produce all estate grown Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, and blends thereof which showcase Langhorne Creek's ability to offer elegant wines with balance, structure and texture. Very soon we will be releasing our first estate grown Malbec which is truly exciting.

The most notable thing about Langhorne Creek is the ability to grow premium quality grapes with a minimal amount of fuss. The climate is warm enough that we don’t have to endure some of the cool climate headaches such as devastating frosts, labour intensive canopy management or inclement weather associated with late harvest dates. Instead we avoid the risk of frost damage in the spring and are able to grow our vines as a hassle free sprawl, and enjoy a relatively early harvest time while still producing the same quality fruit found in cool climates.

The secret to the success of growing cool climate grapes in a warm region is the presence of a large body of water only 5 km from the vineyard known as Lake Alexandrina which is about 3 times the size of Sydney Harbour.

During the summer months, the convection currents created from the hot air movement over the cooler water body result in a cooling breeze known affectionately as “the Lake Doctor”. The Lake Doctor moves through the vineyard in the afternoons, aerating the canopy and lowering the temperature of the fruit. This ensures slower ripening of the berries which gives them enough time to develop the more desirable complex flavour compounds. The Lake Doctor also reduces the relative humidity in the canopy lowering the incidence of disease, and reduces the need for excessive use of fungicide sprays.

The soils are also excellent for grape production; with much of the Metala vineyard growing on free draining, deep sandy loam. This is an ideal soil type for grapes as it allows us to manipulate the vines through our nutrient and water inputs. We regularly monitor soil moisture during the growing season which allows us to control vine growth and berry development by applying water in a regulated manner.

The outcome of all this is that we are able to produce super premium quality grapes without all the bother!

Another very positive part of our job is having the opportunity to be involved with classification of the wines when they are ready and also following through to the blending of parcels as the wines are “built”. It’s such a wonderfully creative process and it builds my knowledge of the impact our viticulture can have on the final wines.

A state of the art winery was built just in time for the 2002 vintage as we outgrew the facilities of outside wineries.  Having control of the wines from the soil to the bottle gives us great satisfaction. We understand how each parcel of fruit came to be and where certain distinct characteristics may be found. This is invaluable when it comes to blending the wines, building each layer of texture and flavour to create styles which we believe best showcase our estate and the Langhorne Creek region.

The winery itself is a unique facility designed and built based on our philosophy that whatever we do, we do it well from the start. The initial stage of the winery can be expanded at any time but we’re in no hurry. Our focus is on quality rather than quantity, being effective and efficient.

A key feature of the winery includes the set up for small batch treatment to express the personality of the vineyard. We have computer-controlled fermentation and everything post fermentation where possible is gravity transferred by a lifting tank - so there is minimal pumping after fermentation which is gentler on the blend. The fermenters were also tailor made and there is capacity to ferment 200 tonne at any one time. This efficiency which gives us more time for quality control.

Located less than an hour drive from Adelaide on South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, Langhorne Creek is a picturesque, ancient gum studded region with an expanse of vineyards and farming and an intimate country town.  You can discover our region and home in the comfort of your own home through the enjoyment of our wines. 

Regarded as one of the best-kept secrets in Australian Viticulture, Langhorne Creek is one of Australia's oldest and most significant wine regions. The area was founded on the broad flood plain influenced by the local Bremer and Angas Rivers and dominated by magnificent River Red Gums.

Alfred Langhorne, a cattle drover, brought animals overland to a property known as Langhorne Station during the 1840s. The place where Alfred Langhorne traversed the Bremer River was referred to as Langhorne's Crossing and from this the current name Langhorne Creek evolved.

The vineyards of the Langhorne Creek Region total approximately 6,500 hectares, making it Australia's largest cool Climate premium wine grape growing region.

For over 100 years Langhorne Creek has been the ‘workhorse’ of the industry renowned for consistently supplying quality fruit to many leading labels. In the past few years "The Creek" has emerged as an incredibly strong premium wine producing region in it’s own right - there are now a number of smart wineries making some amazing wines. The blood that flows through the veins here is red. Strong in full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, this is red wine country!

The history of the flood plains adds to the quality of the fruit grown in this region. When the Bremer and Angas rivers flood rich river silt is deposited onto the vineyards enriching the sandy alluvial soil. At Brothers in Arms our wine is produced with state of the art technology but remains linked to the natural attributes the region offers. Brothers in Arms showcases the essence of Langhorne Creek where natural processes are melded with innovation.