Lakeside Chardonnay by Pertaringa 2021

Established in 2015, Bec Hardy Wines is the namesake estate owned by 6th generation, Bec Hardy, of the historic Hardy family of Southern Australia. Bec’s great-great-grandfather, Thomas Hardy, arrived from the UK in 1850 and is largely credited for establishing the wine industry in South Australia (Adelaide, McLaren Vale, Clare, and Barossa Valleys). Today, Bec is the first female vigneron to carry on her family’s tradition.

Bec’s heritage dates back to the founding years of Australian wine history and is part of her ethos in farming the land, which lies just 2km from Thomas Hardy’s first vineyard acquisition in McLaren Vale. In 2020, she also took the reins on her father’s winery, Pertaringa, which he established in McLaren Vale in 1980.

Today, Bec produces about 40,000 cases annually between both brands, embracing sustainability through all of the wines’ production and showcasing her connection to the land. South Australia’s wine regions offer some of the world’s most ancient soils. Bec pays respect to this land by using predominantly organic products, regular vineyard and weather monitoring, and adopting integrated pest management practices in the vineyard.

All blocks are picked, crushed and fermented separately with gentle handling to prevent harsh extraction of phenolics before being matured in small batches. Each batch is treated individually with techniques such as whole bunch, cold soak, separation of pressings and varying oak treatments, resulting in hundreds of different wine parcels that allow us to produce the best blends possible for the final wine. Our aim is to produce wines that display their true varietal characters, with good palate weight and complexity, as well as being food friendly.

We believe that excellence should not be confined to our viticulture and winemaking and should be applied across the whole of our business. In 2021, Bec Hardy was named as one of South Australia’s ‘Top 40 under 40’ – recognizing South Australia’s best entrepreneurs under 40 years of age. In late 2020, Bec Hardy Wines also won an Australian Export & Investment Award for Resilience in Exporting in 2020, recognizing the very pinnacle of excellence in exporting. Consolidating that success in 2021, the South Australian Government named us as one of 25 inaugural recipients of their Global Expansion Program.

Together, Bec and Richard present Bec Hardy Wines and Pertaringa with a modern twist on 170 years of wine heritage.