Our wines are made with intent and focus at every stage of the process, developing the full potential of this site. Thoughtfulness and precision in the vineyard during the pruning and growing season promotes harmonious ripening allowing the expression of the natural ecosystem. The resulting wines are crafted with humility by the same hands that worked the land.
Chris has thought intently about every aspect of the vineyard, the interplay between the pitch of the land, soil, varietal, clones, natural tree lines for acid retention, row orientation and aspect for complexity. The vines are dry farmed allowing the ancient laterite, clay and granite soils to shine through and imbue our finished wines. As a viticulturist Chris’s focus has and always will be the vineyard, it is a simple yet complex philosophy, where respect for the site and natural ecosystem is paramount.
“My role is to thoughtfully and respectfully bring together the intricacies of this land and the vintage to produce wines genuinely expressive of the terroir.”
Chris is deeply rooted to this piece of land having begun farming it at the tender age of 19. He is committed to an organic and holistic farming model signified by Southern Cross Certified Organic 20109.
From inception he has nurtured the land and the vines. Unwilling to compromise the health of the land, the state of his treasured vines and ultimately the quality of the fruit, he has worked the vineyard completely on his own from day one. No stranger to hard physical labour he hand-prunes every single one of the vines himself, year after year. Apart from the very day the grapes are harvested no one else is ever allowed to touch his vines.
He produces wines of purity and complexity, expressive of, and deeply rooted to the land. It is an inimitable vision of a person who has focused their life’s work on a single vineyard. Only through viticultural focus and observation of the land and nature over decades can one truly understand and appreciate that complexity is achieved only with the mindful union of land, organic farming, soil, clone and minimal winemaking regime.
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