Once upon a vine...
Our family's history of grape growing stretches back five generations to Brian Mullany's great-great-grandfather, Samuel Perrottet, who planted vines in Geelong in 1854 at the request of Charles La Trobe, the first Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria.
In 1886, Croatian settlers planted vines on the land that would one day become Grove Estate, beginning a long relationship between our property and grape growing.
In 1957, Irish doctor and farmer Mike Mullany settled in Young, NSW, with his Australian wife, Bernadette, establishing the family's roots in the region that would eventually become home to Grove Estate.
Together, Mike and Bernadette raised an extraordinary family of 11 children, including Brian Mullany and Michelle Fernon, two of Grove Estate's current owners and directors. Mike and Bernadette became influential figures in the Young community, dedicating much of their lives to supporting and fostering the town they called home.
In 1988, three families came together with a shared vision. The Mullany, Flanders and Kirkwood families purchased land in the Hilltops region, laying the foundations for Grove Estate with an ambition to grow and supply quality grapes to Australia's flourishing wine industry.
The Fernon family was also involved in the vineyards from the early days, owning part of the vineyard land before later becoming partners in the Grove Estate wine business. While the Flanders and Kirkwood families have since moved on, Grove Estate remains a proudly family-owned business, carried forward by the Mullany and Fernon families.
In the spring of 1989, on the very day he married Suellen Patterson, Brian Mullany planted the first vines at Grove Estate, continuing a family tradition more than a century in the making.
Brian often jokes that, in his early days as a viticulturist, many of those first vines didn't survive, and it wasn't until the following year that things really began to take off. Fortunately, the marriage proved considerably more resilient than those first plantings, and we're all very glad it did!
Those early beginnings have since grown into approximately 100 hectares of vineyards.
As Australia's wine industry flourished, grape sales to major customers such as Penfolds became an important driving force behind Grove Estate's early growth. With strong demand and ideal growing conditions in the Hilltops, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz became the dominant varieties planted throughout the region.
Cabernet Sauvignon, in particular, thrives in the Hilltops, where warm days, cool nights and a long, steady ripening season allow the grapes to develop flavour, mature tannins and optimal Baumé levels.
Over the years, Brian Mullany became an expert viticulturist, planting a diverse range of grape varieties particularly well suited to the Hilltops climate and soils.
Alongside the more familiar French varieties, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, Grove Estate embraced Italian varieties at a time when they were still relatively uncommon in Australian vineyards. Brian experimented with Sangiovese, Barbera, Primitivo (Zinfandel), Nebbiolo, Fiano, Montepulciano and Sagrantino, alongside Spanish Tempranillo and Muscat of Alexandria, the variety used to produce our Moscato.
One of the most significant milestones in Grove Estate's history was planting the first Nebbiolo vines in the Hilltops region, using a clone supplied by Charles Sturt University. Much like Cabernet Sauvignon, Nebbiolo proved exceptionally well suited to the Hilltops, where warm days, cool nights and a long ripening season allow the grapes to develop beautiful complexity and character.
For Brian, Nebbiolo was a revelation. Not only was it a pleasure to grow, but the quality and flavour of the resulting wines were extraordinary. It quickly became his favourite variety, a passion that continues to shape Grove Estate's identity and its reputation for producing exceptional Italian-style wines.
In 1998, Brian met acclaimed Clonakilla winemaker Tim Kirk, who was eager to use Grove Estate's Hilltops Shiraz grapes in his wines. Tim was already building a remarkable reputation for his work with Shiraz Viognier, a style that would become synonymous with Clonakilla and one of Australia's most celebrated examples of the blend.
Through this longstanding relationship, Grove Estate also became recognised for its high-quality Shiraz fruit and its own expression of Shiraz Viognier, The Cellar Block Shiraz, a wine we have been producing for nearly three decades.
To this day, Clonakilla continues to use Grove Estate Shiraz, alongside fruit from other Hilltops growers, to produce its exceptional Hilltops Shiraz. It's a wonderful reflection of the quality of our region's fruit and the relationships, cooperation and shared passion that make the wine industry so special.
Through this connection, Grove Estate was also introduced to Bryan Martin, then a winemaker at Clonakilla and now widely known for his own highly regarded winery, Ravensworth.
Bryan is an extraordinarily talented and knowledgeable winemaker, and the longstanding relationship between B1 & B2 (an irresistible joke) - Brian Mullany and Bryan Martin - has played an important role in shaping many of Grove Estate's wines.
Bryan's winemaking philosophy embraces low-intervention techniques and natural fermentation using the yeasts found on grape skins. His white wines, in particular, often display a generous amount of body and texture. This approach allows the character of our grapes and terroir to shine through, producing wines with depth, complexity and a genuine expression of the Hilltops and each individual vintage.
Within the first decade of planting the vineyard, Grove Estate was already beginning to attract recognition both nationally and internationally, establishing a reputation for producing outstanding wines from the Hilltops region.
In 1998, James Halliday, one of Australia's most respected wine critics, writers and judges, along with Bruce Brown, visited the Grove Estate vineyards. Already familiar with our wines, Halliday recognised the potential of the vineyard and the quality of the fruit being grown. Over the years, Grove Estate wines have continued to receive outstanding reviews and high scores in the Halliday Wine Companion.
In 1999, Grove Estate opened its Cellar Door in a former cherry pickers' shed on a property once known as Cherry Grove. A fitting beginning in Young, of course, the Cherry Capital of Australia!
What began as a humble space to share our wines with visitors has since grown into an important part of Grove Estate, welcoming guests from near and far to experience the wines, people and beautiful surroundings of the Hilltops. The Cellar Door is now approaching three decades of operation, while Grove Estate itself is nearing its 40th anniversary.
National and international recognition has continued to grow, with highlights including coverage in the UK's Financial Times, Grove Estate wines being selected for Qantas' international and domestic Business Class wine lists, and our Cellar Door being recognised among the best in the Hilltops by various publications.
Our 2020 Hilltops Shiraz attracted acclaim, being recognised for its exceptional quality and value. Over the years, our wines have also received numerous prestigious awards, including gold medals at the National Wine Show of Australia and the London Wine Competition.
Today, Grove Estate wines are enjoyed throughout Australia and exported to international markets, carrying a little piece of the Hilltops to wine lovers around the world.
And the story is far from finished.
In the vineyards, we're still experimenting, learning and planting new varieties. In 2025, we harvested our first vintage of Pecorino, another history-making moment for Grove Estate, having been the first to plant this crisp Italian variety in the Hilltops region. Alongside our many established varieties, there's always something new on the horizon. Riesling is one of our more recent plantings, and we're just as eager as our customers to see what it will bring.
Today, Grove Estate offers more than 40 different wines through our Cellar Door and online store. With access to extensive vineyards and the expertise of some incredible winemakers, we're in a unique position to produce a wonderfully diverse range of wines at genuinely exceptional value.
As the business approaches its fourth decade, longtime owners and operators Brian and Suellen Mullany are gradually taking a step back from day-to-day operations, with the support of their family and the next generation helping to carry the business forward.
More recently, Brian and Sue's daughter, Lavinia Mullany, and her husband, Adam Matthews, have become an integral part of Grove Estate, bringing fresh ideas, a shared passion for hospitality and an exciting vision for the future of the family business.
With their backgrounds in hospitality and the continued support of the Directors, Lavinia and Adam have worked to transform the Cellar Door experience, building on Grove Estate's rich history while helping to shape an exciting new chapter.
From thoughtfully curated wine tastings and an evolving food offering of small plates, wood-fired pizzas and canapés, to wine dinners and an impressive cocktail menu showcasing Grove Estate wines and local produce, the Cellar Door has grown into much more than a place to taste wine.
This evolution has also seen the development of a thriving Wine Club community with exclusive benefits for loyal members, more refined wedding and private event experiences, tailored packages and planning, and memorable public celebrations such as our annual Grape Stomping Festival.
Through it all, the ambition remains the same: to honour the foundations on which Grove Estate was built while continuing to evolve, innovate and create memorable experiences that bring people together over great wine, food and hospitality.
A NOTE FROM ADAM & LAVINIA
The Next Chapter
We are incredibly proud to stand on the shoulders of those who built Grove Estate and to be part of the next chapter of something that has taken decades of hard work, passion and dedication to create.
Seeing the business continue to grow and evolve is something truly special, not just for our family, but for the wonderful community that has supported Grove Estate and helped make it what it is today.
As we write this, we're eagerly anticipating the arrival of our first child, and perhaps the fourth generation of our family to become part of this ever-evolving labour of love.
There is something incredibly special about being part of a family business with so much history, yet still feeling as though we're only just getting started.
With love to all,
Adam & Lavinia
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"Made with love and tiny footprints upon the Earth, from the Hilltops precinct.” – Brian Mullany, Founder.