Vineyards in Adelaide Hills, Australia
Vineyards in Adelaide Hills, South Australia.
(Image credit: Russell Mountford / Alamy Stock Photo (2013))

Simon Tolley Wines in Adelaide Hills has joined a research project created to look at how smoke tainted grapes may still be used to make spirits.

It’s part of a larger investigation into the effects of climate change on brandy production in Australia, led by PhD candidate Hugh Holds at the University of Adelaide.

The first spirits ‘are maturing slowly away at the University’s winery’ and will be ready for sampling in early 2022, said Hold.

Simon Tolley Wines, which rebuilt its winery after suffering wildfire damage in December 2019, has donated all of its heavily smoke tainted grapes to the research.

If the first samples work out as planned, the winery could also have spirits to sell next year.

‘Hopefully we can roll out a smoke-flavoured brandy or gin in our cellar door in about 12 months’ time,’ said Simon Tolley, a fifth-generation grape grower and winemaker who runs his namesake winery with his wife, Narelle.

‘The project will hopefully assist other smoke-affected growers in the future, and give them more options with the rejected wine fruit rather than putting it on the ground,’ said Tolley, who lost his entire crop in the 2019 wildfire that damaged several other vineyards and winery properties in Adelaide Hills.

Another producer, ‘Vntlpr’, has also donated grapes to the research project.

Other regions have also seen experimentation with turning smoke tainted wine grapes into spirits.

Archie Rose Distilling Co launched ‘Hunter Valley Shiraz Spirit’ in May 2020, an eau de vie made using smoke tainted grapes recovered from Hunter Valley vineyards.

The distiller worked with Tulloch Wines and First Creek Wines to devise a way to create spirits from grapes no longer fit for wine.

In California, family-owned Hoopes Vineyard in Napa Valley has collaborated with Kentucky-based master distiller Marianne Barnes to create brandy from smoke tainted grapes.

What is smoke taint in wine? 

Napa Valley 2020 harvest ‘not lost’ despite smoke taint concerns

Adelaide Hills: Regional overview and top-scoring wines

Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer

Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.

He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.

Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.

Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.