Latest

Melissa Nelson is a self-taught winemaker who fell in love with the Bot River region and the camaraderie amongst the winemakers in the region (her grapes grow just down the way from Luddite). Her aim was pretty simple – to make more than they could drink. More than a decade later, that simple aim has led to some simply amazing bubbles!

Melissa Nelson is a self-taught winemaker who fell in love with the Bot River region and the camaraderie amongst the winemakers in the region (her grapes grow just down the way from Luddite). Her aim was pretty simple – to make more than they could drink. More than a decade later, that simple aim has led to some simply amazing bubbles!

Melissa Nelson is a self-taught winemaker who fell in love with the Bot River region and the camaraderie amongst the winemakers in the region (her grapes grow just down the way from Luddite). Her aim was pretty simple – to make more than they could drink. More than a decade later, that simple aim has led to some simply amazing bubbles!

Founded in the late nineteenth century by Camille Vazart, the family is still based in the same house on Chouilly’s main street, and, after a 16-year ‘apprenticeship’ with his father, Camille’s grandson Jean-Pierre Vazart now manages the estate. He has just finished converting the vineyards to be certified organic - protecting the vineyards for future generations.

Having worked for some great Oregon wineries throughout his career, in so many cases, founder Ryan Harms’ friends wanted to support him, but simply couldn’t afford to. He decided that he wasn’t going to accept that wine made in Oregon had to be so darn expensive. So he created Union Wine Co., (which makes Underwood) so he could finally make accessible wines he could share with friends and family, without sacrificing quality.

Having worked for some great Oregon wineries throughout his career, in so many cases, founder Ryan Harms’ friends wanted to support him, but simply couldn’t afford to. He decided that he wasn’t going to accept that wine made in Oregon had to be so darn expensive. So he created Union Wine Co., (which makes Underwood) so he could finally make accessible wines he could share with friends and family, without sacrificing quality.

The very first winery in the Southern Hemisphere to farm using biodynamic practices, James and Annie Millton have stayed true to their practice since establishing The Millton Vineyard in 1984. Truly experimental, Libiamo represents the next generation of the Millton family, taking the reins and looking toward something that is completely unmanipulated and doesn’t leave a debt or burden on the planet.

Baby-brother brand to Sokol Blosser, this started as a project to continue releasing wines when a nasty pest called phylloxera wiped out most of their vineyards. Through luck and intention, it has evolved (see what we did there?) into a brand in its own right under siblings & co-presidents Alison & Alex Sokol Blosser

The very first winery in the Southern Hemisphere to farm using biodynamic practices, James and Annie Millton have stayed true to their practice since establishing The Millton Vineyard in 1984. Along their journey, they’ve raised a beautiful family. They’ve passed down their know-how to their children who now play key roles in some of Millton’s more avant-garde collections such as the “Crazy By Nature” which is some of our favourite juice!

“A dope-smoking political anarchist meets an upstanding young goody-goody sportsman at a mutual friend's 21st” – 35 years and 3 kids later, they are the family behind Luddite Wines. After a few years abroad, Niels and Penny returned to South Africa and found their plot of land in Bot River. Niels had a definite plan as to how he wanted to make wine and Penny knew that she wanted to farm as “green” as possible. Everything had to be about the wine. No intervention, no shortcuts and staying true to only bottling what, hand on heart was the best.

Alice Verburg, the middle child to Niels and Penny (who we know from the Saboteur White & Red) works with dad in the cellar at Luddite, adding a bit of fun & femininity to their wines. The culinary school grad, who has a couple of international harvests under her belt already, makes ONE barrel of her own wine every year that typically sells out at the speed of light – before she can even set any aside for herself!

Humble, hardworking and patient – hallmarks of the donkey, and according to Francesco Follador, the winegrower as well. Stubbornness is another. Francesco holds tradition and heritage extremely close to his heart, refusing to take the easy road on anything – from the location his of vineyards on hard-to-farm hills, to insisting on growing much less popular native grapes. All in the name of being true to what he strongly believes is the best the region can produce and preserving the deep heritage of Valdobbiadene. It’s because he shares so many of these qualities with the donkey, that he chose it as his logo. To quote his website, “Yes, we are donkeys and we are proud of it”.

Minimus started as the experimental arm of the Craft Wine Company, where the winemaker can bottle their experiments each year. Some bottles are good enough to be produced every year, others are one-offs - and numbered according to which experiment number it is.

Humble, hardworking and patient – hallmarks of the donkey, and according to Francesco Follador, the winegrower as well. Stubbornness is another. Francesco holds tradition and heritage extremely close to his heart, refusing to take the easy road on anything – from the location his of vineyards on hard-to-farm hills, to insisting on growing much less popular native grapes. All in the name of being true to what he strongly believes is the best the region can produce and preserving the deep heritage of Valdobbiadene. It’s because he shares so many of these qualities with the donkey, that he chose it as his logo. To quote his website, “Yes, we are donkeys and we are proud of it”.

Laura and Brendan Carter have an intense commitment to sustainability - a unique zeal some might say (= unico zelo in Italian - read on to find out why). They planted 35 different varietals to see which could grow without irrigation in the harsh Australian climate and ended with a handful of native Italian grapes they now craft into wonderfully smashable wines aimed at the next generation of wine drinkers.

Chad and Bree Stock, a husband-and-wife team, have merged their superpowers and unique backgrounds in wine to create Ltd. +, which emerged as a collaboration with farmers in the area, inspired to develop a diverse and sustainable wine landscape. The wines, often made from less common grape varieties adopting innovative techniques, are changing preconceived notions of Oregon wine. 

Minimus started as the experimental arm of Craft Wine Company. It is where the winemaker can bottle her experiments each year. Some bottles were good enough to be produced every year, others are one offs - and numbered according to which experiment number it is.