Sorrenberg

Barry and Jan Morey saw the potential of the Beechworth wine region very early, establishing the 2.5ha Sorrenberg vineyard on the outskirts of the town in 1985. Their first vintage was in 1989. Barry, a quiet and unassuming man, is also one of the industry’s leaders in sustainability, employing previously used oils to run tractors, natural cork (which sequestered 5.4t of carbon in 2022), wet glue labels and moving into biodynamic viticulture in the 1990s. Sorrenberg became a certified biodynamic grower/producer in 2008. He also championed the gamay grape long before its current fashionable status, together with chardonnay, sauvignon blanc/semillon and a cabernet blend. The next phase for Sorrenberg is exploring new grape varieties with grenache, mourvèdre, carignan, cinsault and shiraz planted between 2019 and ’20, taking the winemaker’s total acreage to 4ha. Barry and Jan’s children are now part of the business.
-JENI PORT