Tellurian
"100% Heathcote wines that reflect our love for these ancient Australian lands"
Heathcote, Australia
About Tellurian
Tellurian’s winery and organic vineyards are situated in the centre of the Heathcote region of Victoria, Australia. Established in 2002, Tellurian produces world class expressions of Australian Shiraz and other classic Rhône, Italian and Meditteranean varietals. Certified organic since 2018, Tellurian has repeatedly been ranked as a Five Star winery by James Halliday, Australia’s foremost wine critic.
The name Tellurian means “of the earth” and reflects their love for the land; for its spectacular raw Australianness, for the characteristics in their wines that show the personality of grapes thriving on the ancient red Cambrian soils. Tellurian’s reason for being is driven by their deep connection with this place.
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Family-owned
Tellurian was born of our founder Ian Hopkins' passion for Heathcote Shiraz. Offered the opportunity at a work lunch to partner in establishing a new vineyard in 2002, Ian’s caution was overcome by the idea of crafting something fine and beautiful from Heathcote’s 550 million-year-old Cambrian soils.
Ian’s son, Daniel Hopkins, joined the business a few years later with his wife, Tash. The dynamic duo had both worked for Nike in locations across the world and were able to bring their vast experience from one of the world’s most influential brands to the foundations of the Tellurian story. Daniel and Tash handle the day-to-day operations of the winery together with an incredibly talented team.
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We are only a small team at Tellurian but we share a common passion to make quality wines that showcase our region. Our greatest thrill is seeing our wines on restaurant wine lists, large and small and on the shelves of fine wine retailers around the country.
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I am the Tash of all trades, mother of three, and manager of the many strands that must be woven together behind the scenes of our business.
Winemaking
Led by winemaker Tobias Ansted, Tellurian’s organic winemaking is minimalistic and gentle. When you drink the wines, they want you to smell and taste the beauty of each variety as they grow in the individual vineyards; to recognise Heathcote in your glass.
Heathcote’s Cambrian soils formed over 500 million-years are ideal for viticulture. Deep, rich, decomposed greenstone rock with soil depths up to seven feet allow vine roots to reach deep into the subsoil where moisture is more consistent, protecting the plants against extremes of drought and temperature. The move to organic farming allows the wines to naturally reflect the influence of these incredible soils in every wine they make.
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Sustainability
The inspiration for the move to organics was sparked by a trip to northern Rhone in 2014, when Ian and viticulturist Tim Brown toured the region to research close planting and saw that a few of the best high-density growers in St Joseph and Hermitage were also applying organic principals.
This confirmed the notion that high density planting combined with organic farming had the potential to create a very special expression of the Heathcote terroir. Within a year the application for organic certification was also submitted and the transition to organics commenced.
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Tellurian Wines
View WinesShiraz is their beating heart but Tellurian also produces small batches of Grenache, Mourvèdre, Marsanne, Viognier, Fiano and Nero d’Avola which are so well suited to the region, expressing wonderful natural varietal flavour. These warm climate varietals express wonderful vibrant flavours and are perfect for the climate and varied cuisine styles.
Acclaim for Tellurian
