“Animals have a nice life in the Broke Fordwich wine region, a subregion of the lower Hunter Valley in NSW that has been planted with vines since the early 1820s.

Hens cluck and peck among the vines at the biodynamic winery Krinklewood, cows are set free in Mount Broke Estate’s vineyard after the harvest to fertilise the soil, and sheep get the same treatment at the organic outfit Ascella Wines, where they keep weeds at bay and clean up stray grapes. One year an unsuccessful season meant grapes were left on the vine and Ascella’s sheep ended up quite sozzled.

Such is life in Broke Fordwich, which is 15 minutes from Pokolbin at the heart of the Hunter. It is considered the tranquil side of the valley.”