The wines in the Brand’s Laira Hero Range are available in limited quantities each year. They are widely sought after for their synergistic blend of rich, powerful Coonawarra fruit and elegant, expressive winemaking. The wines in the Hero Range are aged wines that present further cellaring potential. Captain Stentiford, the original custodian of the Laira vineyard, sold his grapes to another pioneer of Coonawarra's wine industry, John Riddoch. Yet it wasn't until the 1950s and 1960s, that landholders who sold their grapes onto larger wineries were given the title of ‘Blockers'. Eric Brand, the founder of Brand's Laira winemaking, was also a ‘Blocker' during this time. Brand's Laira Blockers Cabernet Sauvignon is named in his honour. With almost 300 hectares under vine, Brand's Laira is one of Coonawarra's largest landholders. Amongst these hectares of vines lie two rows of Merlot, the first ever to be planted in Coonawarra. From these original plantings, Brand's Laira established all of its Merlot vineyards and indeed, most of Coonawarra's Merlot can be traced to these first two rows. Fruit for the Brand's Laira Two Row Merlot is sourced from almost 30 year old Merlot vines, situated in the winery's Old Merlot Block. The low yielding vines means that only limited quantities of this unique wine are available each year.