The story begins in 1973 when Graeme Leith and Sue Mackinnon wanted to brave the elements, face the challenges of the land, and like so many before them pursue the holy grail of ‘the best wine in the world.’ They didn’t want it to be dependent on pesticides or insecticides so they chose a site in a dry area north west of Bendigo on old gold diggings, where the soil had been dug over a hundred and twenty years before by goldminers. They were successful, and the first wine they showed at the Melbourne Wine Show, the 1982 shiraz cabernet won gold. Since then the vineyards produce has won numerous medals for magnificent wines.