The Site
The top soils of our 'Polish Hill River Estate' are moderately fertile, red brown clay loams. The subsoil of the Polish Hill River sub region is predominately slate and the only sub region in the Clare Valley with a uniform slate subsoil. These ancient soils are over 650 million years old and are low to moderate in nutrients and rich in minerals, which contributes to the minerality of our wines.
This soil profile also provides good drainage during the cool, wet winters and provides low to moderate nutrient level in the soils. This has the effect of keeping vine vigour and resultant yields moderately low, which in turn increases the concentration of flavour and aroma and tannin compounds within the juice.
Pike’s Polish Hill River Estate is 450 metres above sea level, which is higher than both the Clare Valley and Barossa Valley floors. This altitude results in a cooler night time temperature and a slightly reduced day time temperature, which helps retain natural acidity in the wines.
Whilst they are best known for Riesling, they have been growing other varieties including Shiraz and Cabernet for 35 years. They now have 20 different varieties planted on our estate, including Chardonnay, Semillon, Grenache, Mourvedre, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese. Over recent years they have been developing alternative varieties like Savagnin, Albarino, Nero d’Avola, Fiano, Montepulciano and Tempranillo.
