Belarna Grove Olive Oil

For information about visiting the Hunter Valley in general try:

www.winecountry.com.au

For more specific information on my home area: the Broke Fordwich area of the Hunter:

www.brokefordwich.com.au

For information about olives in the Hunter Valley, the Hunter Olive Association site is a mine of useful information:

www.hunterolives.asn.au

My name is Mike Wilson. I have lived in the Hunter Valley since 1983, having arrived from the north of England in 1979. I have lived here most of my life. I created Belarna Grove 10 years ago when I found I just couldn't get access to really top notch produce this far from the Big City. So I decided to make my own, and discovered the local Hunter Valley has wonderful produce to work with.

II love the Hunter Valley: it lies a couple of hours north of Sydney and less than an hour inland from Newcastle in NSW. The Hunter is where many of the most famous household names in Australia started: Lindeman's wines, Arnott's biscuits and Steggles chickens are among many to make their mark initially in the Hunter Valley.

Today the Hunter is home to many boutique wine producers and a host of gourmet food producers. Most of the big producers have moved on leaving a culture of hard work and fine food.

 My brand of Belarna Grove is a small player in the overall scheme of things. Based in the picturesque village of Broke and surrounded by rolling fields, vineyards, olive grove, cattle properties and other like-minded people.

Many of these products are available at the cellar door of our local wineries and other outlets in the region. I do not supply the major chains (Woolworths, Coles, IGA, ALDI etc) and do not intend to do so. However, the best way to buy them is through this website - I can deliver to anywhere in Australia, and overseas if you can handle the cost of freight!

I have around 20 years experience in growing olive trees in the Hunter Valley - although I have now retired from active service I do still maintain an interest and consult to local growers. Here is the life-cycle of the olive trees and how the indigenous seasons relate to the cycle of the olive.