The Kaesler family arrived in the Barossa Valley from Silesia in the 1840s and in 1891 purchased land in the Barossa, spending two years furiously planting. They planted 96 acres of Grenache, Shiraz and Mataro, along with a few white varieties. Some of the original Shiraz vines are still producing grapes which provide great intensity and depth to many of Kaesler’s wines.
In the 1930s more Grenache was planted for fortified wines and later, in the 1960s and 70s they planted more Shiraz. During Kaesler’s tough times, vines were pulled, making way for alternative income sources in the form of fruit trees, horses and cows.
In the 1980s they were hit hard and at a time when reds were soft, the Government paid growers to remove vines. There were times when they struggled to even sell fruit from their 1893 plantings of Shiraz. Nevertheless, the Kaesler’s preserved their old vines and the 1893 plantings remain in production today, thanks in no small part Arthur Kaesler’s determination.
The Kaesler’s were eventually forced to sell and Reid Bosward is the current winemaker. Prior to Kaesler Wines, Reid completed a Roseworthy winemaking course, and holds over 25 years of experience working for Tyrrells Wines, Jacques Lurton in France as well as completing vintages in South Africa, Moldova and the Hunter Valley, eventually moving to the Barossa to make wine for Cellarmasters. It wasn’t long before he bought a couple of vineyard parcels, comprising of 60 acres off the original Kaesler farm. A few years later he bought another 28.5 acres. Kaesler Wines are produced entirely from these Estate grown vines. Reid firmly believes that nowhere can produce wines with the intensity of fruit the Barossa is capable of.
He’s put his money where his mouth is by reducing yields by 40% with careful pruning and reduced watering. The Fruit is hand-picked and hand pruned, with irrigation kept to a minimum. Crop thinning is done most years to reduce yields and maximise flavour, with blocks kept separate until final blending. The end result being fruit driven wines of character and intensity.
Reid and Co also own wineries and brands elsewhere in Australia including Clare and McLaren Vale, and the legendary Yarra Yering winery. Kaesler is an exceptional winery, unsurprisingly rated 5 red stars by James Halliday, which is his highest possible rating. In 2014 Reid was made a ‘Baron of The Barossa’ for his outstanding contribution to the Barossa.