In 1981, fifth-generation winemaker Stephen Henschke and his wife Prue purchased a property in the Adelaide Hills with the intention of planting varieties well suited to the cooler climate of the region. The vineyard was originally part of a beautiful valley of apple orchards and natural forest that were destroyed by the Ash Wednesday bushfires in 1983. Sitting at an altitude of 550m with an annual average rainfall of 1100mm, the Lenswood vineyard slopes offer not only beautiful views towards the older vine country, but also provide enough sunshine to fully ripen the grapes, together with cooler temperatures to retain natural acidity. The pinot noir vineyard has been named after Charles Giles, an early pioneer whose descendants had managed the property as an apple orchard since 1864.