Balgownie Estate was one of the pioneers of commercial winemaking in the Bendigo Region, first planting vines in 1969. Established by the now legendary winemaker Stuart Anderson in 1969, Balgownie Estate was the first vineyard planted in the Bendigo district in more than 80 years. The emergence of Balgownie Estate as a serious red wine producer in the 1970's led to the rapid expansion of the central goldfields wine growing region and was a significant player in the rebirth of the Victorian wine industry. The 33 hectare vineyard is situated on a gentle slope overlooking Myer's Creek at Maiden Gully. This superb site of alluvial soil has major plantings of cabernet sauvignon and shiraz with smaller amounts of pinot noir, chardonnay, merlot, cabernet franc, petit verdot and viognier. The conditions for premium wine grape growing are ideal with long hot summer days ameliorated by very cool overnight temperatures. This allows optimum ripeness while retaining that vital core of acidity.