Houghton Wines is an Australian winery originating in Middle Swan, in the Swan Valleywine region of Western Australia. A subsidiary of Accolade Wines, the company operates one of Western Australia's earliest established vineyards and wineries. The 50 hectares of vineyards surrounding the Swan Valley winery consist of plantings of Verdelho, Chardonnay, Sémillon and Chenin blanc. Early documentation and current research suggests the first vines were planted between 1830 and 1836. In addition Houghton operates four of Western Australia's largest vineyards at Moondah Brook, Pemberton, Mount Barker and Frankland River, and sources fruit from Margaret River, Harvey and the Ferguson Valley. Expansion into the Western Australian South West and the Great Southern wine region led to the establishment of a second winery, located at Nannup in the Blackwood Valley. The Houghton portfolio includes the brands of Houghton Line Range, Houghton Crofters, Moondah Brook, Houghton Regional Range, Houghton Gladstone and Jack Mann.
History
The land of which Houghton was part was originally assigned by Governor James Stirling to Rivett Henry Bland in 1829. In 1836, a syndicate of three British Army Officers, Houghton, Lowie and Yule purchased the northern half of Swan location II. The syndicate named the property Houghton after the senior ranking officer of their group, Lieutenant Colonel Richmond Houghton. Houghton himself did not come to Western Australia and for the next 23 years the property was managed and developed by one of the members of the syndicate, Thomas Newte Yule. In 1859, Dr John Ferguson purchased the Houghton property for the sum of 350 pounds and in that same year produced the first commercial vintage of wine from the vineyard a total of. Moondyne Joe, Western Australia's most famous bushranger, was captured on the Houghton property in the act of stealing wine from the cellars on 25 February 1869. By chance, the owner, Charles William Ferguson had been helping with a police search, and afterwards invited a group of police back to the vineyard for refreshments. When Ferguson entered the cellar, Joe assumed that he was discovered, and made a dash for the door into the arms of the police. In 1950, Valencia Vineyards, a subsidiary of the Emu Wine Company of Morphett Vale, South Australia, purchased the Houghton vineyards, winery and distillery from the Ferguson family. In April 1976, the South Australian winemaking Hardy family acquired the stock of the Emu Wine Company and with that purchase, became owners of Houghton.
Jack Mann
Jack Mann was considered a pioneer of Western Australia's wine industry. and served a total of 51 consecutive vintages at Houghton. His awards included being awarded an MBE in 1964. The West Australian newspaper included him in their list of Western Australia's 100 most influential people. One of Mann's most significant accomplishments was the creation of the Houghton White Burgundy in 1937, a full bodied chenin blanc wine. The Houghton White Burgundy was so named because the judges and winemakers at the 1937 Melbourne Wine Show likened it to the style of wines from Burgundy, France. The Houghton White Burgundy has become one of Australia's most popular white wines. Houghton White Burgundy was renamed Houghton White Classic in 2005 to comply with an international trade agreement between Australia and the EU.
