Our Story
Get to know us!
Two Victorians with a passion for good food and wine, we chased our dream and moved from inner-city Melbourne to Barossa Valley, an area that we fell in love with many years prior. The wines we make come from the fruit that we grow and are made in the style that we enjoy drinking.
Our approach to both grape growing and winemaking is to ‘steer, not interfere’. We are fortunate to be in a good spot, in a great valley with the right climate for growing grapes, and through precise vineyard management we achieve consistent, high-grade fruit. We sell the majority of our fruit and in recent years have kept small volumes back to produce our own wine with a minimalist, hands-off approach. From vines to wines, we aim to have the lightest carbon footprint possible.
We manage two vineyards, our Home Block (Shiraz) and the Gipson Block next-door (Shiraz & Grenache). Lloyd has made three wines – a 2017 and 2018 Shiraz called ‘Taking the Mickie’ and a 2020 Grenache called ‘Duck, Duck, Cat‘. The Shiraz is named in recognition of Lloyd’s dad who has supported us each and every year, coming across from Melbourne to hand prune our vineyard blocks. 2020 was the first year we kept some Grenache fruit from our single acre of 1944 planted vines and Lloyd made his first Grenache.
We’re excited to share our wines with you and look forward to adding more to our range over the coming years.
Why Genista?
The ‘genista’ flower (Latin: ‘planta genista’) is commonly known as the ‘Broom’ plant because it was used to make brooms for sweeping. Broom is Lloyd’s family name.
Growing up, Lloyd and his family would discuss their heritage and background, and always felt a strong connection to ‘genista’. For a laugh they would refer to themselves as the Genista’s joking that it sounded fancier than the ‘Brooms‘.
In recent times we have also discovered linkage to the Plantagenets royal house who held the English throne from 1154 until 1485.
Meet the Genista Clan
Lloyd Broom
Vigneron • Winemaker
Buying, building and moving interstate with Sarah in 2015, Lloyd changed industry from selling wine in retail to making wine as a cellar hand. The first vintage and subsequent years have been exciting and challenging, with every day bringing something new.
You can hear the passion in Lloyd's voice when he talks about his vines and now, his wines. He looks forward to forging ahead with his own brand, Genista Wines, over the coming years.
Sarah Gregory
Marketing • Admin
Admittedly Sarah thought Lloyd was crazy when he first suggested moving to the Barossa Valley. Nowadays she could not imagine living anywhere else.
By day, Sarah is a Global Digital Marketing Manager at a large education technology company which takes her all around the world. She is more often behind the camera lens, capturing every moment of this adventure!
Ella
Vineyard Cat (Senior)
This little kitty can often be found prowling in the vineyard. She loves to walk through the vines with her humans and is often spotted climbing atop of the posts or practising her vine tightrope walking skills during winter.
Tabitha "Tabs"
VINEYARD CAT (Junior)
In October 2020 we welcomed a furry new addition to the Genista family. We adopted Tabitha from the local Barossa Wildlife Rescue (BWR). She is cheeky, squeaky and wants to be friends with everyone, humans and animals alike!
Willow & Poppy
THE DUCKS
For Lloyd's birthday, he said he wanted duck - Sarah thought he meant for dinner! Instead we returned home with two very alive Muscovy ducks from BWR. Our current crew enjoy swimming in their new pond, snacking on snails and mowing the grass.