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The following article formed the basis of a recent talk to North
Richmond Rotary and may appeal to a wider audience as the local statistics
have hitherto not been reported:
When asked to speak to you tonight, the subject which came to mind
which is most familiar to myself and of interest to almost all of us that
enjoy drinking and eating is the subject of wine.
History of Wine in the Hawkesbury
Unlike some other areas of Australia, we do not have a written
history of wine in our Local Government Region , and for the very early
history we have to rely on some incomplete records and reading between the
lines of our local history books to discover that history.
We do know that grape vine cuttings were brought to the settlement
at Sydney Cove by the first fleet. The last port of call for the fleet
before heading for New South Wales was in the Dutch settlement of Cooktown
on the Cape of Good Hope. Many vines of various types were put on board
and these vines were planted out in the Governor's garden and various
entries on the plantings :
"The orange trees flourish, and the fig trees and vines are
improving still more rapidly. In a climate so favourable, the cultivation
of the vine may doubtless be carried to any degree of perfection; and
should no other articles of commerce divert the attention of the settlers
from this part, the wines of New South Wales may perhaps, here after be
sought with civility and become an indispensable part of the luxury of
European tables."
As the colony grew, so did the grape vine spread, and cuttings were
taken to Norfolk Island (1790), and by February 1791 it was reported that "the
grape vines which came from Sydney last August were immediately
planted..............amount now to between 700 and 800 vines, which are
all in high perfection, and two or three of the oldest are now
bearing."
Later other vines were imported and we have various records of their
spread, vis :
In May, 1803, Governor King reported that a few gallons of wine had
been made from those in the Governor's garden and talk of a very large
vineyard being planted at Castle Hill.
In 1816, Mrs Macarthur reported grapes in her garden at Parramatta
and a little later, on Captain Macarthur's return from overseas, he
brought with him fresh stocks of vines which he later planted in his
property (at Camden).
Gregory Blaxland, at his vineyard at Parramatta won prizes in London
(Silver medal 1823, Gold Medal in 1828) for wines from his vineyards.
It is most unlikely if the vine did not follow the early colonists
into the Hawkesbury region. Doug Bowd in his book "Macquarie
Country" indicates that the name of Vineyard was given to that area
just up the Windsor Road because it had many vineyards growing there
between 1860 and 1890.
An extremely old vine is still growing beside the Ebenezer Church,
and it is quite likely it has it's roots going back to those early
settlers of the region.
Still more anecdotal evidence exists with several Hawkesbury
families being involved in the early wine business. William Cox was made a
Magistrate by Governor Macquarie and engaged him to build gaols, schools
and other public buildings in Windsor, as well as building ten miles of
road over the Blue Mountains. William lived at Clarendon and three of his
sons lived on properties fronting the Nepean River at Mulgoa. Each of
these properties had vineyards, and it is likely that William also had
vines growing at Windsor ("Fairfield" and
"Clarendon").
The Anschau family for years ran a tannery near South Creek. They
also had a vineyard near Luddenham in the mid 1850's. The Anschau were
German vineyard workers who were originally brought to Australia as vine
dressers for the Macarthur and Cox families.
Early Wine Statistics
By 1843, the Colonial Secretary department showed that 28.2 acres
of grapes producing 104 gallons of wine were grown in the police district
of Windsor. This compares to some 183 acres and 12,315 gallons of wine
recorded in the Sydney region. It is difficult to track the growth through
the years as they are compiled by various authorities using Police
districts, then old settled Counties and Pastoral districts. However the
production remained small in relative terms, increasing to 35 acres in
1876, and 114 acres in 1886 (1430 gallons of wine being reported in that
year).
In 1893, the Department of Agriculture recorded that in the
Hawkesbury, there were 100 registered growers producing 17,520 gallons of
wine from 69 acres of grapes, and an additional 220 acres of grapes
producing 164 tons of fresh fruit.
This compares with 157 growers in the Hunter area and 108 at Patrick
Plains (now known as Singleton), and 2134 growers across the State of New
South Wales. In terms of wine produced, the Hunter and Patrick Plains
produced a combined 365,930 gallons of wine from 1187 acres, and an
additional 391 tons of fresh fruit.
It is without doubt, that the Hawkesbury's contribution to the wine
industry came with the planting of Dr Thomas Fiaschi's vineyard
"Tizzana" at Sackville Reach. Impressed with the geography and
soil of the area, which he likened to his native Tuscany (Fiaschi was born
in the village of Tizzana on the outskirts of Florence) Fiaschi purchased
250 acres of land and proceeded to plant 5 acres under vines in 1885. He
later planted 55 acres and built an imposing two storied sandstone
building "Tizzana" with residence above and cellars below, in
which to cellar his crop. By 1889 "Tizzana" was producing 9,600
gallons of wine, and employing up to 100 people at it's peak production.
The vineyards flourished and quickly gained a reputation for producing
very fine, award winning wines.
The full story of Fiaschi's contribution to viticulture in Australia
remains untold at this stage, but his contribution to the wine industry
was immense, with pioneering work in all aspects of viticulture including
trellis management, experimentation with new varieties imported from
overseas, including the introduction of Charddonay grapes for the
production of Champagne wines at Tizzana well ahead of Mr Angus at Rooty
Hill (the famous Minchinbury Estate). Fiaschi also was instrumental in the
use of aseptic conditions in the winemaking process following his
successful pioneering use of the technique in his surgery work at the
Hawkesbury District Hospital. Fiaschi was elected by his peers in the
industry as the President of the NSW Winegrowers Association for some 26
years.
Fiaschi's red wines were exhibited in the Centennial International
Exhibition held in Melbourne in 1888, and these wines were advertised at
that time as selling for twenty five shillings per dozen. The 1891 vintage
red (made from Verdot variety grapes) was exported to England and
described by critics as : "clean, sound wine of a light Burgundy
character........ the Hawkesbury wine compares favourably with French
wines of a similar character."
Some years later, the Richmond and Windsor Gazette of March 25, 1921
noted that the wine exhibits at the Royal Show had just been judged : "
The Hawkesbury Valley, though only represented by one exhibitor, was well
to the fore. Dr Thomas Fiaschi of Tizzana Vineyards taking several prizes
and winning the Champion Prize for Claret type."
Another successful winery was begun in the early 1970's by a Dr Barry
Bracken in the hilly area of Kurmond. Both the Richmond Estate winery and
Tizzana Winery are still operating.
Tizzana Winery is still producing small quantities of its own wines,
several of which several new styles have just been released.
Reproduced courtesy of Hawkesbury Times. Original story appeared in
the Hawkesbury Times - Volume 2, Number 2 June/July 1995 edition.
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