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Miller’s Dixons Creek Vineyard:
Viticultural Team: Graeme Miller, Michael Pitcher
Choosing a site within a kilometre of his original Yarra Valley vineyard, Graeme began planting
Miller's Dixons Creek vineyard in 1988. The site, with Dixons Creek running through the property, was chosen by Graeme for its excellent north
and north easterly aspects. The property lies at approx
37.32°south latitude, 109 metres above sea level at the lowest point and 165 metres at the highest, and is a generally hilly and undulating property with few flat blocks.
Today it covers 58 hectares, with 30.5 hectares under vines. Varieties include Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Petit Verdot, Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris. Sixty percent of the vineyard is under red grape varieties and forty percent under white grape varieties. Cane pruning with low bud numbers to produce low yields (5-7.5 tonne/hectare), and careful trellising on a VSP
(vertical shoot positioning) system to maximise canopy exposure, contribute to the intensity of the fruit flavours being achieved. Vineyard practices reflect a strong environmental focus throughout. The vineyard has an integrated pest management system where sprays are used conservatively to support natural predators. Herbicide use is minimised by undervine weeding and cultivation between rows, and prunings are mulched
mid row to return nutrients to the soil.
Miller's Dixons Creek vineyard is located at the north of the Yarra Valley wine region, which lies at the base of the Great Dividing Range. It is in a valley formed by the Dixons Creek, a tributary of the Yarra River. With the main Range (State Forest and National Park) to the west and north, and the Paul’s Range to the east, the mesoclimate of this unique area is drier and slightly warmer than the wetter areas of the upper Yarra Valley to the south east. Mean January temperature is 19.4 degrees Celsius (11.7 min – 27.9 max), sunshine hours per day are 7.4 and heat degree days 1300. The average annual rainfall is 720mm (28 inches) with 50% of rain falling in the growing season, between October and March.
The soil is a grey duplex mud stone
soil overlaying clay and
weathered rock. Top soil is of a moderate depth and,
with a conservative irrigation regime throughout the
vineyard and one dry land block, there is little problem
with vigour. With early, mid and late varieties in the
vineyard, harvest is well spread across two months,
beginning usually in late February with Pinot Noir and
Chardonnay and is usually completed by the end of April, with Petit Verdot as the last variety. Approximately half the harvest yield is used for Miller’s Dixons Creek Estate wines and the balance is sold to
other wineries in the Valley for sparkling and still wine.
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