The core of the now phenomenal reputation of The Gravel Hill Syrah is locked into the site’s unique geology. On the surface, there appears to be very little soil. Instead a 40 cm thick covering of brown, ferrous stone is undermined by a fine clay layer, stretching down a few metres.

As the winter rains dissipate and the soil dries out, the subsoil clay cracks, and water filters through the gravel and collects in the clay fissures, serving as the vines’ water reservoir. As the summer heat wanes and the winter rain arrives, the clay swells, pruning the roots buried inside it, thereby limiting the vigour of the vines.