Leaning Church Vineyard

20/07/2020

Pruning time at Leaning Church Vineyard!
Looking forward to reopening in the near future 🍇🍷

23/04/2020

Almost 11 years ago, I was on my back screaming when our lawyer rang to say we were the proud owners of a 45-acre property and vineyard near Lilydale. While this was very exciting news for us, we were actually in labour and little Gracie popped into the world shortly after, joining our 17-month-old son Lachie in our family. So, with no experience in running a vineyard, 6.3ha of grapes to prune, a baby and a toddler, we’d just moved house and had endless boxes to unpack, a w**e brand to create and a mammoth task to restore a church, convert a tractor shed into a cellardoor, put in a marquee site and landscape the grounds, our days ahead were looking some-what crazy. But we had taken a booking for a group of 30 only 4.5 months ahead so we had to deliver. And we did! This was the start of our amazing journey at Leaning Church Vineyard. And today, that journey has ended as we handed the keys to the new owners, took a deep breath and reminisced about so many incredible experiences. Firstly, we wish to thank all our wonderful team members that have worked alongside us both in the vineyard and in the hospitality space to deliver a unique cellardoor experience and so many weddings, functions and events, as well as grape harvests. From astronomy nights to blank canvas art days to live music to Sexy Sound of Music Shows – the memories are endless! And we couldn’t have done it without our team, many of whom were with us for eight plus years! A huge thankyou…. To all our loyal customers, w**e club members, restaurants, bottleshops and tourism businesses, we so very much appreciate all your support. To all our brides and grooms, we were so fortunate to share your special day and be apart of your wedding celebrations. Thank you for choosing Leaning Church to say I do! To our family and friends who have assisted across so many facets of our lives – we couldn’t have done it without you. And we are so fortunate to have so many friends who like to drink w**e as much as we do – we very much appreciate all your orders and shared bottles!!!! May there be many more glasses raised together… To our w**emakers and all our suppliers, it has been our pleasure to work with you. To the new owners, we are so excited about your plans for Leaning Church and we wish you every success and happiness. It is a truly beautiful place and we are truly honored to have been the owners of this vineyard for the past 11 years. And we can't wait to return as customers to enjoy the beautiful w**e, food and ambience...

22/03/2020

It's been an incredibly emotional morning calling our fabulous team members to inform them that Leaning Church Vineyard's cellardooor will be closed from noon today. We wish to thank our amazing employees who have gone above and beyond every day to offer our customers a unique and interactive experience. We also thank all our loyal customers who return time and time again to eat, drink, relax and rejuvenate in our patch of paradise. To all our Tasmanian suppliers, our apologies that we won't be placing any orders in the short term but thank you for sharing all your amazing products with us for so long. To our bride and groom who were marrying in our vineyard this Friday, thank you for being so understanding that we can no longer open our doors. We are delighted that you will still be saying I Do and our thoughts, love and best wishes are with you both... We will this morning be calling all bookings for the coming month to let them know that we will be closed for the foreseeable future. It is so important that we all do our bit to stop the spread of COVID-19 and protect the health and wellbeing of our employees and visitors. But it is also vital that we remain optimistic and already start planning for the future. When this virus is under control and borders re-open, millions of people will want to get out of their homes and travel. We will be ready for them! In the meantime, Leaning Church w**es are available for purchase online at www.leaningchurch.com.au and we have extended our free freight to purchases of six bottles or more anywhere in Australia. We wish all Australians the very best as we unite to fight COVID-19 and ensure we support our friends, families, local businesses and communities. Let's keep our spirits high, our glasses full and our dreams alive...

20/03/2020

Like everyone, we find ourselves in the most dreadful situation of having to make a decision regarding keeping our business’ doors open or closing them immediately. A decision to close would be definitely in the best interests of our bank balance, perhaps in the best health interests of our most wonderful team of employees, but definitely not in the best interest of our employees’ financial situation. If we analysed our current income purely on a business level, we would have closed our business many weeks ago. But as we sit each night to contemplate the current and likely future impacts of COVID-19 and the effective closing of our borders (which we whole heartedly support) on tourism in Tasmania, the only solution is to reach for another bottle of Pinot Noir! As small business owners, we are making decisions based on our emotive pull toward our employees well and truly over the financial implications of keeping our businesses open. We have informed our team that we need to make a decision very soon. This decision will largely be based on the Tasmanian community and their willingness to support local businesses. Take all precautions, venture out of your house or order online, support local businesses and help all business owners to stay open and employ locals. At Leaning Church Vineyard, our wonderful team will always provide an amazing service. Now they will do so to ensure groups are well separated when seated for lunch or for w**e and wh**ky tastings. People can order a scrumptious local grazing platter for lunch (sourced from local Tasmanian ingredients that support local businesses and Tasmanian farmers), matched to a glass of our w**e (all grown on site and made by Tasmanian w**e makers) or wh**ky (all Tasmanian single malt) in a beautiful location. You can eat and drink at cellardoor, or take your food and beverage for a picnic around the vineyard in your choice of isolated location. It’s not just about this weekend. This is about an ongoing commitment for the duration of the pandemic and the ongoing viability of Tasmanian small businesses. This decision is so emotional for us on endless levels. We have employed so many local hospitality professionals over the past 11 years and we view this business almost like our third child. We launched a new w**e label and brand in a crowded market, worked seven days a week for year after year, organised up to 35 weddings a year on site, delivered events and special functions to local, national and international customers, and loved every second of meeting the tens of thousands of visitors that enjoy the Leaning Church w**e, wh**ky, food and fun magic every year. On 21 April, this will come to an end as we leave Leaning Church and new owners take over. We are ever so excited that the purchasers have endless exciting plans to invest in the Tasmanian tourism industry and take Leaning Church to the next level. Whether long term investors in Tasmania’s tourism industry or those entering to help advance our industry to new benchmarks of excellence, we all need your support. Think local. Eat local. Drink local. Experience local. Because at the end of the day, no one delivers like passionate, committed, dedicated and focused Tasmanian businesses.

04/03/2020

Perfect long weekend ahead to explore the North East, browse the Lilydale Market and enjoy lunch and a w**e and wh**ky tasting at Leaning Church Vineyard. Cellardoor is open seven days a week from 10am - 5pm. **e

Have you tried any of the local w**es and brews from our licensed bar? Perfect to go with your lunch while you enjoy catching up with friends ... Sunday 8th March at Lilydale Village Market 🍷🍺🥂

18/02/2020

Leaning Church Vineyard's cellardoor will unfortunately be closed today due to a split power pole and fallen power lines on Brooks Road. Apologies for any inconvenience but we will-reopen with a big smile tomorrow...

13/02/2020

It's the week of Chardonnay at Leaning Church Vineyard. Join us for a glass or bottle as you stroll around our vines, gardens, cellardoor, church and lawns - and then match to our favorite ingredients on the Vineyard Grazing Platter for lunch. **etime

09/02/2020

Perfect week for sipping a little Pinot Noir, grazing on our favorite Tassie ingredients on the Vineyard Platter for lunch and slowly strolling around the vines at Leaning Church Vineyard. Join us for w**e, wh**ky, food and fun seven days a week....