Best's Wines
	111 Best's Road, Great Western, Vic 3377
	Grampians
	(03) 5356 2250
	www.bestswines.com
	Mon-Sat 10-5, Sun 11-4
	Adam Wadewitz
	1866
	24 000
	60 ha

Best's winery and vineyards are among Australia's best-kept secrets. Indeed the vineyards, with vines dating back to 1867, have secrets that may never be revealed: for example, one of the vines planted in the Nursery Block has defied identification and is thought to exist nowhere else in the world. Part of the cellars, too, go back to the same era, constructed by butcher- turned-winemaker Henry Best and his family. Since 1920, the Thomson family has owned the property, with Ben, the fifth-generation, having taken over management from father Viv. Best's consistently produces elegant, supple wines; the Bin No. 0 is a classic, the Thomson Family Shiraz (from vines planted in 1868) magnificent. Very occasionally a Pinot Noir (with 15% Pinot Meunier) is made solely from the 1868 plantings of those two varieties; there is no other pinot of this vine age made anywhere else in the world; the 2008 vintage will be released in March '11. Exports to the UK and other major markets.