Pikes Vintners

By Ricki-Lee Podolecki, DipWSET

The Pike family legacy started in Australia 136 years ago, when Henry and Emma Pike brought their family from Dorsetshire, England, to settle in the Adelaide Hills in Southern Australia. Henry began working as a builder at Johnston’s Brewery and made his own ales on the side. His beers became popular and eventually marked the dawn of the family business, H. Pike & Son. As an homage to his name, his country, and his favourite hobby, Henry used a northern pike as the logo for his beers. That logo is used to this day.

The family business evolved through generations: the Pikes went from brewing beer to creating craft tonic and cordials to running vineyards—and eventually, they moved into wine production. From generation to generation, Pikes have shown a talent for producing quality, thirst-quenching beverages.

Edgar Walter Pike (Henry’s great-grandson and Andrew and Neil’s father) was the first in the family to grow and sell grapes. After some difficult times following World War II, Edgar became the manager of a corporate vineyard, and he eventually purchased a vineyard of his own. Like his great-grandfather, he worked hard to make a name for himself in the industry and continued the tradition of keeping the business in the family.

Brothers Andrew and Neil Pike opened the first family winery in the 1990s. In December 2022, Andrew and his wife Cathy retired, handing the reins over to their son Jamie, who is the new Managing Director of the winery (their other son, Alister, manages the Pikes Beer Company). The family continues to innovate: in one successful experiment, the winery introduced Italian grapes in their vineyards. “The winemakers were getting bored and wanted a challenge,” explains Pete Bentley, Pikes Sales & Export Manager. “They were inspired by the landscapes of Italy, which are very similar to the landscapes in the Clare Valley. The team was excited to see how native Italian grapes would perform in Australia.” It turns out that they perform very well: Jones & Company is excited to stock Pikes Luccio Rosé ($24.99), made with Sangiovese, and Luccio Pinot Grigio ($24.99), both the result of this venture.

Beyond their innovations in grape varieties, the family is looking for the quality factor in higher-altitude vineyards. Pete shared that the family is always looking for vineyards at higher altitudes. Their focus is the Clare Valley, where altitudes range from 300 m to 500 m above sea level. While this may not seem as remarkable as Argentina’s elevations, it still makes a considerable difference in this part of the world. Greater temperature variations occur at higher altitudes, making days intensely hot, while at night the temperature plummets. This dramatic shift helps to build the complexity of the wines and preserve acidity. Differences in soil types matter as well: poor soils in higher-altitude vineyards promote the growth of grapes that produce complex wines. Pikes Polish Hill River Estate is located at an altitude of 450 m above sea level—higher than both the Clare Valley and Barossa Valley floors. It’s a fantastic place to grow outstanding Rieslings—like the Pikes Traditionale Riesling ($28.99).

Pikes grows over 20 different grape varieties in its vineyards. This wide range of wines is represented by 11 Pikes wines on the Jones & Company shelves. These wines show what is possible when you start at the valley floor and move up the hill to higheraltitude vineyards.

Join Us For A Wine Pairing Dinner With Pikes

On March 8, Pete Bentley of Pikes Vintners will be visiting Jones & Company Wine Merchants to share our collection of Pikes wines at an in-store tasting. He will also host a Wine Pairing Dinner on Thursday, March 9 at Preservation Hall. Watch our social media pages for ticket details: @joneswinemerchants

BUSINESS IS GROWING IN WINNIPEG’S SOUTHWEST.