Brad’s Blog
Organic Certificate for Brash’s Omensetter Vnyd
Brash Higgins‘ Omensetter Vineyard has been certified compliant for Australian Certified Organic, a big transformation and accomplishment for the viticulture program in McLaren Vale. The fruit for the Brash Higgins NDV, SHZ, CBSV and Omensetter Shiraz is 100% sourced from Brash and Nicole’s “Omensetter Vineyard”. Planted in 1997, the vineyard sits on a great patch of dirt on…
Read MoreRootstock Sydney 2015 A Success
Big weekend was had in Sydney Nov 28-29, as Brash Higgins and other wine artisans held the fort at the 3rd annual Rootstock Sydney Wine Fair. A great international event that focuses on sustainable and organic practices in food and drinks organised by Mike Bennie, Giorgio di Maria and James Hird plus many more. Visit the…
Read MoreTeam Brash runs NYC Marathon
Nov 1, Brash Higgins and two mates from overseas are joining together to form Team BRASH to run the NYC Marathon, raising heaps of charity funds for The Childhood Cancer Association (CCA) of South Australia in the process. Recently a wine industry colleague of mine’s son was diagnosed with a rare cancerous tumour. As I was running…
Read MoreLondon-21st Century Vino
Join Brash Higgins and other exciting Aussie producers in London Sept 29 for 21st Century Vino, a tasting of wines made with Italian varietals imported into Oz by the Chalmers family; 21stCenturyVino 21st Century Vino is all about celebrating the quality and diversity of Australian wine. The 21st Century Vino concept tracks and encourages Australian wine’s evolution beyond an homogeneous approach, one focused…
Read MoreNew Day Rising for 2015
I’ve come back to the blog-o-sphere after a hiatus. I’d like to rethink this platform as a place to write out ideas, works in progress and to keep notes on the goings on here at BH HQ and the greater world of wine at large. Â As we approach vintage 2015, my fifth at Brash Higgins,…
Read MoreBrash World Tour 2014
Brash Higgins was overseas the last 5 weeks, paving the way for exports to the USA with Hudson Wine Brokers www.hudsonwine.us and planting seeds in London. Here BH enjoys a cold wheat beer in Berlin’s glorious Tiergarten on a warm summers day. Good to be back home now.
Read MoreWarming Winter Bones
It’s always sweet relief when I get the nero d’Avola we make at Brash Higgins out of the clay pots and into a settling tank. Until this happens, everything is a little tense around HQ. This condition was heightened even more in 2013, since we had the wine stored in our carport. Nobody likes the…
Read MoreUntangling Field Blends
We made our first white wine this year at Brash Higgins, which is very exciting news, because it’s not as easy as it sounds. 2012 was a good year for whites in McLaren Vale, and many passes thru white varietal vineyards had me thinking this could be the year. For a long time I’ve been…
Read MoreVale Cru on the Road to Adelaide; Sydney
McLaren Vale’s rollicking collective of indie wine labels, Vale Cru, is on the road this June. On June 8 from 430pm a small contingency of the “Cru”, including Brash Higgins, will be showcasing their wines and speaking at the National Wine Centre in Adelaide. Following this event the mob, w/ Brash along for the ride,…
Read MoreReflections on 2011 and Ted Nugent
2011 has been a massive year for me. However, in many ways, each one of the years that preceeded it has led me to where I am right now, sitting at a desk in a hot office in McLaren Vale, South Australia enjoying one too many zooper dooper frozen ice treats. Brash Higgins Wine Co.…
Read MoreA Nero d’Avola whirlwind in Sicily
I went to Sicily this Summer to explore the origins of the grape nero d’avola and how to best cultivate it. As mentioned before, this red wine grape was harvested in May last year on our McLaren Vale vineyard and is poised to make a smart little wine. We went over in August, with my viticulturist…
Read MoreVintage 2011 and Getting the Nero Over the Line
The storm clouds they gathered and as a grape grower, it was white knuckle time again for Brash Higgins Wine Co. So much of the harvest is out of the grower’s control; the weather, disease, insects and birds clearly have a mind of their own. On the heels of a healthy, dry 2010 harvest, disease…
Read MoreThe Nero d’Avola Chronicles
We’ve been preparing our vineyard to harvest our very first crop of the red wine grape Nero d’Avola. It’s a new variety to Australia and I’m going to put it under a new label I’ve been working on, which shall remain a secret for a little while longer. As a relative newcomer to this district,…
Read MorePlumbing Arno Bay for Snapper
I had the pleasure to spend a day out on the Spencer Gulf for the first time fishing for Pagrus auratus, or Australasian Red Snapper. Aussie Red Snapper is not related to the Red Snapper fished in the Gulf of Mexico (Lutjanus campechanus), but it is a highly prized fish for eating and for sportsman…
Read MoreOn the Fast Track from Melbourne to the Mornington
At this time of the year things once again get confusing. It’s harvest time for the grapes in McLaren Vale, and the Northern Hemisphere is buried in snow. The Winter Olympics are underway and rather than jumping over slushy puddles in NYC, as I would normally be doing, I’m enjoying the cooling breeze of jumbo…
Read MoreFlyin’ the Flannel in the Pacific Northwest
Driving a car up from San Francisco to Vancouver, BC is a chance to see and eat some amazing things. Recently on a Thorpe Wine sales blitz thru the Pacific Northwest, I had a chance to revisit some favorite places and friends. “Flyin’ the Flannel“, an album and song from the 90’s US alternative band…
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