Golden Child
The Golden Child story really began when David Hamilton planted vines in the Kuitpo sub-region of the Adelaide Hills in 1997, with the help of viticultural guru Geoff Hardy. David grew grapes and sold them to local wineries. He dabbled in making wine for himself but never really released anything commercially.
Fast forward almost twenty years and David’s son James (and James’wife Alanna) use some grapes to produce Golden Child’s first ever vintage in 2016. The name references banter between James and his sister as to who was the golden child of the family.
The wines were well received and the brand has been growing ever since. James is becoming more involved in the grape growing side of the business and is implementing changes including more sustainable farming (largely organic practices) and planting new varieties that suit the climate of the vineyard (Gamay, Fiano and hopefully one day Nebbiolo and Nerello Mascalese).
They use largely organic practices in the vineyard (although not certified.. yet) and they use pretty lo-fi winemaking in the winery. James says this means usually hand picking fruit, being gentle and precise in the winery, then getting the wine into bottle without filtration or too much other manipulation. He aims to make fresh, bright, interesting wines that are easy to drink but also sometimes make you think.