‘Not going anywhere’: Limestone Coast winery to keep doors open
The owner of a cherished Limestone Coast winery has poured cold water on reports her business has collapsed. But there’s one catch.
The story of Sue Bell’s beloved Limestone Coast winery Bellwether Wines is set to continue despite reports it had “collapsed”, the winemaker telling InDaily all was “not over yet”.
The wine industry leader, whose Bellwether Wines lives inside the old Glen Roy Shearing Shed in the Coonawarra, on May 20, 2026, placed a company called Glen Roy Winemakers Ptd Ltd into liquidation.
It followed a tumultuous post-COVID period for the company, which eventually led to unserviceable debt to the tax office.
But accounting and advisory firm Pitcher Partners entered into a licence agreement with Bell in her personal capacity for her to continue trading the Bellwether business while liquidators consider their options.
This might see Bell acquire the Bellwether eventually, liquidators told InDaily.
“This happens more often than you think,” Pitcher Partners liquidator Thomas Salleh told InDaily about the business that runs a winery, cellar door and well-known glamping tents.
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“It pretty much preserved the value of the business.
“If we go in and shut it down immediately, then effectively, the goodwill of the business is reduced to zero.”
Bellwether is mostly trading business as usual: camping and glamping bookings are being honoured, sourdough cooking classes are continuing, food, coffee and tea are being made for customers, and tourists can visit the heritage shearing shed.
The only problem: Bell can’t sell any wine, including its renowned cabernet sauvignon grown in the region’s famed terra rossa soil.
As part of the deal with the liquidators, Bell had to apply for another liquor licence, which might take weeks to be approved.
“In that time, I won’t be doing wine tastings, I’m not selling wine,” Bell told InDaily.
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“The best part is that right now the doors are open, so I can honour all camping bookings that people have for anyone who wants to book to get away to come down and see all the other beautiful wineries in Coonawarra.
“We’re not going anywhere. We have certainly been through a difficult process – it’s not over yet – but the doors are not closed.”
For Bell, the liquidation of Glen Roy Winemakers followed an impassioned call to arms from the respected winemaker in April in order to encourage fans to buy her wine.
She said that while the community support was not enough to fend off liquidation, it gave her a solid financial foundation to keep the business operational now.
“My ambition with this place was always to create a deeper connection with our customers,” Bell said.
“We’ve definitely achieved that. The last couple of months have shown that and they’ve helped save me.
“My accountant said to me: ‘Look, you’ve run a marathon, but you didn’t get over the last hurdle’. We got that close and that is why we’re able to work with the liquidators.
“I think I’m over the line, but I’ve still got hoops to jump through.”
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