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My great great grandfather Thomas Hardy arrived on the shores of South Australia in
1850, from Devon England as a 20-year-old. He went to work for pioneer vigneron, also
from Devon, John Reynell at Reynella just south of Adelaide.
In 1851 he joined the gold rush to Victoria and although finding no gold his
entrepreneurial flair led him to drive herds of cattle from south of Adelaide to feed the
hungry miners. Over 18 months he made a small fortune and in 1853 bought land at
Bankside on the banks of the Torrens River near Adelaide, married his cousin Johanna
and began his own wine enterprise. By 1894 he was Australia's largest wine producer.
In the year 2000, following a 35 year career as a winemaker, wine merchant and wine
author, I founded Thomas Hardy Wines Pty. Ltd.. On the 6th May 2003 my grandson
Thomas J. Hardy the first of the 7th generation of the family was born to my son
Thomas W. Hardy.
Featured on the label are six generations of the Hardy family in Australia, left to right,
Thomas Hardy of Devon, Thomas Nathaniel Hardy, Tom Mayfield Hardy, Thomas
Walter Hardy, Thomas Keith Hardy and Thomas William Hardy.