Arfion
Yarra Valley (Vic)
The Story
Arfion simply means “our wine” in Scottish Gaelic. Winemaker Dave Mackintosh grew up in New Zealand with Scottish heritage. He moved to Australia in 2006 and fell in love with the styles and potential of the Yarra Valley. With the help of his brother Jimmy and father Brian, they established Arfion in 2011.
Dave describes Arfion as “a small independent wine company that has the freedom to take some risks and do things differently”. His aim is to extend the limitations of style, be considerate to the grapes and land, and to be a strong part of the local wine community.
The Approach
Arfion creates thoughtful wines with minimal winemaking interference under the Arfion and Smokestack Lightning labels. They source fruit from highly skilled growers across the Yarra Valley where the site and variety are in harmony. They want to make Arfion wines attractive and true to their sites, so they employ a range of low impact winemaking practices to create interest without allowing any one element to dominate. Not necessarily conforming to an existing style, they produce intuitive, evolving wine styles that reflect their interpretations of each vineyard’s soil. Single sites and small volumes. Fresh, textured and delicious.