Lake Breeze Wines

The Lake Breeze winery is located in the picturesque Langhorne Creek wine region in South Australia. Its 225-acre vineyards along the banks of the Bremer River are just an hour’s drive from Adelaide. Stretching along the Bremer River’s fertile floodplains, Langhorne Creek is one of the country’s oldest wine regions. The first vines were planted here back in the 1860s. Nestled between Adelaide Hills (another premium wine region) and Lake Alexandrina, it’s a relatively flat area, with hot summer days softened by cool breezes. This stunning region is an excellent location for cultivating grapes. It boasts rich and fertile soils and plenty of sunshine, while the cool maritime influence allows the grapes to ripen evenly. As a result, the Lake Breeze vineyards produce well-balanced wines with intense fruitiness and soft tannins.

Although Lake Breeze’s first wine was produced in 1987, the Follett family has a long history of farming and grape growing in the region dating back to the mid-1800s. William Hill first secured the land in Langhorne Creek and built the Fairholme homestead. His granddaughter’s husband, Arthur Follett, planted the first vineyards in the late 1880s. In addition to successfully growing grapes, the Fairholme property was a successful dairy farm for over 100 years. Ken Follett, the third-generation vigneron on the property, continued the family legacy but decided to focus on grape growing. In the 1960s and 1970s, he replaced the old Palomino and Doradillo vines with more popular Aussie varieties – Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. The first Lake Breeze wine – a Cabernet Sauvignon – was unveiled in the 1980s after Ken and his wife Marlene set aside a small amount to produce wine under their own label. The family opened the cellar door to the public in 1991. Today’s Lake Breeze winemaker is Greg Follett, who works with Vineyard Manager Tim Follett and Managing Director Roger Follett. The winery has gone from strength to strength with Greg Follett heading the Lake Breeze winemaking team. Lake Breeze has been named Australia’s Champion Small Winery at the Australian Small Winemakers Show, and has won Champion Wine four times. Elsewhere it can boast well over 25 trophies and 125 Golds. In 2023 Lake Breeze won Best Value Winery of the Year in Halliday’s Wine Companion, and Greg Follett was shortlisted as Winemaker of the Year 2024.

The majority of Lake Breeze’s vineyards grow Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. There are also plantings of Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Nero d’Avola, Vermentino and Pecorino. Lake Breeze focuses on using old vine fruits for its wines, selecting from vines between 55 and 60 years old. The oldest vines are Grenache, planted in 1932. However, the winery selects only the best 40% of fruit from the older vines for its wines. Lake Breeze offers several approachable wine collections, from its vibrant Bull Ant range to its Chapel Road label, sold exclusively through Laithwaites. Over the last 30 years, the winery has developed a dedicated and well-deserved following, with its wines winning multiple awards, including 66 trophies and 192 gold medals. Lake Breeze Chapel Road Shiraz and Chapel Road Cabernet Sauvignon are consistent award winners and have been consistently highly rated for over ten vintages running. A new exclusive Chapel Road Malbec has now been added to the range, along with a Chapel Road Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon.

All Lake Breeze wines, including the vibrant Bull Ant range, are vegan and vegetarian. The winery follows a minimal intervention approach to winemaking, using little to no filtration. Any wines that are fined are done so without animal-based products. Lake Breeze is also part of EcoVineyards, a national program funded by Wine Australia. The programme aims to create a biodiverse ecosystem using native plants and grasses planted around vineyards. These plants become homes to insects that would otherwise damage the vines, reducing the need for insecticides overall.

Lake Breeze is open to the public, so you can explore the winery and learn more about the wines produced there. The vineyard is easy to find – it’s only 3km south of Langhorne Creek town. The cellar door is open daily for tastings and the winery features a restaurant with an outdoor terrace. Guests can enjoy delicious lunches featuring seasonal ingredients – all paired with a perfect selection of Lake Breeze wines. In addition, Lake Breeze offers bed and breakfast accommodation and a contemporary function centre that can be hired for weddings and events.

At Laithwaites, we aim to give our customers a premium experience. This means working directly with winemakers like Lake Breeze winery to ensure we provide the best of the best without inflated price tags. Our team of wine experts carefully curates our selection of wines and is always on the lookout for new and exciting premium bottles. Chapel Road is a collection of Lake Breeze wines exclusive to Laithwaites. The premium, award-winning reds are made from old vine Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and are aged in French and American barriques. You’ll love these rich, deep and full-bodied red wines, which warm the soul with notes of ripe black fruits, spice, chocolate and pepper.