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Woop Woop
http://www.woopwoop.com.au/
In 2005, the Galvanized Wine Group (GWG) was formed with the amalgamation of the wine businesses and brands of their founders and principals, Tony Parkinson and winemaker Ben Riggs.
The brands include Penny's Hill, Mr. Riggs, The Black Chook and Woop Woop, are all made since inception by Ben Riggs, and are all housed at the Penny’s Hill & Mr. Riggs Cellars on ‘Ingleburne’ Farm in McLaren Vale, South Australia.
Penny’s Hill was founded by advertising man Tony Parkinson in 1988, when vineyards at the base of ‘Penny’s Hill’ were purchased. Later vineyards on the land of ‘Ingleburne’ Farm were acquired in 1993 (Malpas Road) and planted in 1996 (Goss Corner). All three vineyards predominantly supply the fruit for the Penny’s Hill brand. The first cases of 1995 Penny’s Hill Shiraz went to the market in 1997 with the now infamous ‘red dot’ packaging. In 2001 ‘Ingleburne’ Farm was opened to the public as the home of Penny’s Hill and Mr. Riggs wines. Wines in the Penny’s Hill portfolio include Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Grenache, Cabernet, Shiraz, premium ‘Footprint’ Shiraz, ‘Vintage’ Fortified Shiraz, Veteran Very Old Fortified and Almond Liqueur (cellar door only product).
Winemaker Ben Riggs has been making wine under his own moniker since vintage 2001, when he released his first cases of the Mr. Riggs McLaren Vale Shiraz. The aim of all Mr. Riggs wines is a basic black and white philosophy: to express the essence of the vineyard and variety or varieties, in a style that he himself enjoys to drink; big, rich and complex, but also with finesse, texture and elegance. Under the Mr. Riggs label Ben’s plan is to produce icon wines from icon regions, that being the reason for sourcing Riesling from Watervale and the Adelaide Hills, Shiraz, including ‘The Gaffer’, from McLaren Vale, Cabernet from the Coonawarra and Tempranillo also from the Adelaide Hills. The Mr. Riggs brand also offers a Viognier, a dessert wine – Sticky End Viognier and ‘Piebald’ Shiraz Viognier.
Primarily an elegant merger of Shiraz and Viognier from the McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek regions, The Black Chook wines were launched in 2003. Inspiration for the brand came from the Rhode Island Red chooks that reside in the ramshackle coop on the grounds of ‘Ingleburne’, while the Shiraz Viognier, Grenache Shiraz Viognier, Viognier Marsanne Roussanne, Pinto Gris and Sparkling Shiraz wines are made to express the Rhônesque quality that the varieties harbor.
The Woop Woop brand was ready in time for the new millennium and the wines were created to reflect the very essence of Australian winemaking - big, rich, juicy wines, high quality and undeniable value for money. Fruit is sourced from selected vineyards across South Eastern Australia for the Woop Woop Shiraz, Cabernet, Chardonnay and Verdelho.