EST. 2017 · CANYONLEIGH, NSW
Our Story
A retired doctor, a cool-climate hillside, and a word from the Northern Territory.
EST. 2017 · CANYONLEIGH, NSW
A retired doctor, a cool-climate hillside, and a word from the Northern Territory.
After decades in specialist and academic medicine, Richard Walsh retired into a second life as a hobby farmer. In 2017, he and Vivienne acquired Piru Vineyard at Canyonleigh — inheriting more than two thousand trellised vines and the steep learning curve that came with them.
The first vintage in 2019 was a quiet triumph: excellent cool-climate Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. Then floods in 2020 and bushfires in 2021 cut deeply into the next two harvests. Since 2022, every year has been a good one — careful viticulture, patient winemaking, and a slowly growing confidence that we can make wines we're proud to put our name on.
Explore Our Wines →The vineyard is named for the giant Stringybark trees that surround it. “Piru” is the Murrinh-Patha word for them — an Aboriginal language spoken in parts of the Northern Territory.
The word came to us through one of our daughters, who spent several years working in an Indigenous community in the NT. The trees still watch over the vineyard, and the name keeps the connection close.
Richard and Vivienne tend the vines through the year, but Piru is not a one-couple operation. We work with two specialists whose advice and craft shape every bottle: viticulturist Ben Brazenor, who advises on soil, canopy, and timing through the growing season, and winemaker Thomas Evans, who takes our hand-picked fruit and turns it into the wine that goes into our bottles.
It's a small team. Everyone knows what every other person is doing, and that's how we like it.
Shop the Range →
“Two grapes, one hillside, and the patience to let the seasons do their work.”RICHARD & VIVIENNE WALSH, PIRU VINEYARD
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Piru sits on a quiet ridge at Canyonleigh, in the western reaches of the NSW Southern Highlands. It's a less-known cool-climate sub-region than nearby Bowral or Moss vale — and that suits us. The vineyard faces north, catching morning light without harsh afternoon heat, and the cool nights here give our Pinot Grigio its crisp lift and our Pinot Noir its elegant frame.
Two thousand trellised vines, irrigated by bore water from beneath the property, produce up to five tonnes of fruit each year — enough for around three hundred dozen bottles. The estate isn't open to the public; our wines are sold online and through select local partners. But every bottle carries the place with it.
Visit the Estate →We're a small operation, and that lets us care for every vine personally. Organic practices, hand maintenance, and a light touch — because the best wine starts with healthy fruit.
