Ian Hongell
RARE WINES FROM RARE VINES
Ian Hongell is a Barossa Valley winemaker through and through. At one of the region’s most prestigious wineries, he crafts collectible wines from some of the world’s oldest vines.
After spending almost two decades at the Barossa Valley’s renowned Peter Lehmann Wines, where he rose to chief winemaker, Ian joined Torbreck Vintners in early 2017. Here he makes full-flavoured, powerful wines that age gracefully for years. It all starts with the best grapes he can get his hands on and a gentle approach in the winery.
Enjoying the ride in a famous region
Barossa-born and bred, with a father who grows grapes, all Ian ever wanted to do was make wine. Since graduating from his winemaking degree in the 1990s, he’s built an impressive career working in wineries around the world and judging at wine shows. But he always comes home to the Barossa Valley.
“I’ve worked in three different countries and when I come back, I know I’m in the place I want to be,” says Ian. “When people arrive here from overseas, I think they’re just overwhelmed with the beauty. They come to our cellar door and they look over the hills and the vineyards ... and they’ll say, ‘I’ve been waiting all my life to come here’.”
Ian Hongell is a Barossa Valley winemaker through and through. At one of the region’s most prestigious wineries, he crafts collectible wines from some of the world’s oldest vines.
In the winery, a cricket match unfolding on the radio, Ian uses old-school, hands-on techniques and the best oak barrels he can source to produce refined, intensely flavoured wines.
“To take fruit from vineyards that were planted in the 1850s, it’s a privilege,” he says. “These wines from these very old vines are different. That is one of the things that makes our region and Torbreck special. We have something that isn’t available anywhere else in the world.
“We’re trying to create something that really reflects the Barossa … When people have them in the glass, they’re almost overwhelmed by the flavours and aromas they can get in that wine.”
Now it looks like Ian’s wine story will get another chapter, with his son, who recently finished high school, keen to become a winemaker.
“I watched him do his final exams and I can remember myself at that point…” says Ian. “And then I think about everything that’s unfolded in the 30 years after that and all the things we’ve done. It’s just amazing … And it’s one hell of a ride.”
“To take fruit from vineyards that were planted in the 1850s, it’s a privilege. We have something that isn’t available anywhere else in the world.”
– Ian Hongell
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