The Queen of the Hunter Rides Again | Molly Morgan Wines
There are plenty of reasons to visit the Hunter Valley. The wine, of course. The scenery, the food, the long lunches and the pleasure of slowing down for a while.
But sometimes it is the story behind a place that makes the experience linger.
At Molly Morgan Wines in Lovedale, history is quite literally part of the tasting. Look across the 12 acres of vines towards the Brokenback Range, and you are standing in a landscape that carries the name of a woman whose extraordinary story is woven into the history of the Hunter Valley.
Molly Morgan was a convict, farmer, businesswoman, publican and landowner whose determination and resourcefulness saw her rise from extraordinarily difficult beginnings to become one of the most prominent landholders on the Hunter River.
It is a story that resonates strongly with the couple who now own the property, Diane and Adam Loong.
Born Mary Jones in Shropshire in 1762, Molly was convicted of stealing hempen yarn and sentenced to seven years’ transportation. After gaining her ticket-of-leave, she escaped the colony and returned to England, only to be transported to Australia again in 1804.
In 1819, she was among a small group sent to establish a settlement at Wallis Plains, now Maitland, and was the only woman in the group to receive land in her own right.
Molly farmed the land, established a profitable wine shanty near the Hunter River, acquired substantial landholdings and built the Angel Inn. She became one of the Hunter River’s largest landholders, with Wallis Plains popularly known as Molly Morgan’s and the road towards Singleton as Molly Morgan’s Line of Road.
It is a colourful and distinctly Australian story and one that Diane and Adam Loong were keen to discover before they had even completed the purchase of their own little piece of Molly Morgan country.
“We studied up on Molly Morgan,” says Adam. “We knew nothing about her before we bought the property.”
What they discovered made an immediate impression. “She was a strong leader, an icon of Australia and this region and is known as the ‘Queen of the Hunter’. We admire her. We think her strength and resilience, the kindness she was known for, are all important stories to honour and pass on.”
Changing the property's name was never an option.
“The property backs onto Molly Morgan Ridge, so when it was established in 1963 by the Roberts family, it was natural to call it Molly Morgan Wines,” says Diane. “We would never dream of changing it.”
Diane and Adam's own story began far from the vineyards. Adam was originally from Sydney and was serving as an F18 pilot with the RAAF when he met Diane in Perth. When he was posted to Williamtown, the couple relocated to Newcastle in 1997, where they have since built their lives and their businesses.
Diane's career has been in human resources, while Adam's background has been in the high-performance environment of military aviation. Diane established the HR consultancy Skildare, named after County Kildare in Ireland, where she was born, and after leaving the RAAF in 2012, Adam established Skildare Defence alongside the existing business. They remain involved in those businesses today.
In 2023, with their two children approaching adulthood, they thought they were heading towards empty-nest status. They began looking for a small Hunter Valley weekender where family and friends could escape to the country.
“We were looking for no more than two acres. We weren’t in any hurry, and then one day we drove past Molly Morgan Wines, which was up for sale, and just sat there looking. It was stunning.”
There were vineyards, three villas, 62 acres and a four-bedroom homestead - considerably more than the weekender they had envisaged.
“It wasn’t part of our plan to buy or run a vineyard. Wine was just something we enjoyed; we knew absolutely nothing about viticulture!”
They could see potential in the accommodation and, after plenty of discussion, decided to take what Diane describes as a calculated risk.
“What can go wrong?” she says. “We can always sell it again if it doesn’t work out. Give it a crack. We’re smart, hard workers.” They purchased the property just eight weeks before harvest.
“It was a baptism of fire,” says Diane. “We were literally starting from scratch.”
The vineyard was expecting around 16 tonnes of fruit at harvest, but rainbow lorikeets descended on the Shiraz, leaving just half a tonne. While bird losses of around 20 per cent are common, the usual deterrents, such as gas guns, weren’t practical with accommodation on the property. With surrounding urbanisation also reducing the birds’ natural habitat, Adam researched the problem and was one of the first to invest in 100 per cent netting across the vineyard.
“We effectively lost 100 per cent of our crop instead of the estimated 20 per cent. But that gave us a small batch and the breathing space to learn more about the business.”
They had three businesses to understand: the farm, the accommodation and the wine sales. There was no active cellar door, the brand was not well known, and they had no hospitality background. They began surrounding themselves with people who did.
Vineyard Manager Jacob Wiseman had worked on the property for the previous owners and stayed on. A Hunter Valley native with extensive vineyard experience, including time in France, he remains an important link between the property's history and its future. Chief Winemaker Daniel Binet brought two decades of Hunter Valley winemaking experience, while Marketing and Customer Experience Manager Olivia Groth joined the growing team to begin building the brand.
The rebrand that followed in 2024 was not about abandoning the property's heritage. It was about making that heritage visible. Molly's name and story became central to the new identity, with her image incorporated into the logo alongside a swirling wine-glass motif. “We wanted to capture her essence,” says Adam. “We wanted to feature her prominently.”
The story now forms part of the cellar door experience. The former storage shed was transformed into a relaxed tasting space overlooking the vineyard and Brokenback Range, opening in December 2024. Local cheeses can accompany tastings, and the space is family- and pet-friendly.
The intimate, unhurried approach is reflected in the consistent 5-star Google reviews Molly Morgan has earned, with guests regularly praising the warmth of welcome and depth of knowledge shared during wine tastings.
“We have a small boutique offering, an intimate, lovely experience where people can feel at home. We tell the Molly Morgan story, take our time with the tastings; it’s not salesy. We just want people to enjoy the wines and truly connect with them.”
That connection begins in the vineyard itself. Estate-grown, single-vineyard wines showcase Hunter favourites including Semillon, Chardonnay and Shiraz, alongside Rosé and Sparkling Rosé. The setting is an important part of the offering.
“You can see all the blocks from the cellar door,” says Adam.
“It looks directly across the vineyard and the mountains and is stunningly beautiful.”
Visitors don't need to do anything more complicated than pour a glass, sit down and enjoy it.
“Visitors can buy a bottle of wine and simply sit and enjoy the view – or stay longer in one of our three one-bedroom villas to really soak up the experience.”
The villas, built during COVID by the previous owners, sit among the vines and offer guests an opportunity to stay immersed in the landscape. They are peaceful, private and surrounded by wildlife, with kangaroos wandering through and the dams attracting ducks, ibis and waterhens. Guests regularly mention the wildlife, the tranquility and spectacular sunrises and sunsets in their reviews.
What began as the couple's idea for a simple Hunter Valley weekender has become a destination where people can arrive, taste, stay and slow down.
And there is still plenty more to come.
The owners are deliberately taking their time deciding where Molly Morgan Wines sits in the broader wine landscape. They have recently begun entering competitions, with all current vintage wines receiving medals; the highlight being a Gold Medal for the 2025 Semillon at the NSW Small Winemakers Show.
“Often what wins awards is not the wine that sells the best,” says Adam. “So, we're treading softly in that direction. It’s a five-year journey to decide where we sit in this space.”
The next major chapter is already taking shape, with the team having spent a season improving soil health and growing cover crops before preparing a new two-acre block for Fiano, an Italian variety they believe will perform well in the Hunter.
They also plan to explore food options and possibly build further on the property in the years to come.
“Right now, we just want to invite everyone here to try our wines, to enjoy our spectacular views, listen to the story of Molly Morgan, relax and take their time,” says Diane.
It’s worth discovering this hidden corner of Lovedale where you can witness for yourself what is widely regarded as one of the finest vantage points in the Hunter Valley and let your afternoon take care of itself. Molly Morgan, who built her own place in the Hunter through resilience and enterprise, still has her name on a vineyard in Lovedale and continues to inspire another generation of pioneers - one bottle, one guest and one new chapter at a time.
For more information, visit www.mollymorgan.com.
