Jaysen Collins (winemaker)  - "I'm going to be honest, winemaking was not my first choice of career - I'm a frustrated 5"7 wannabe point guard that had dreams of making it as a basketballer in the NBA. If only I was another foot taller I kept telling myself.

What's this got to do with wine you ask? I've always wanted to spend some time in the USA amongst the basketball culture, see some games, buy some pimped out shoes - but life in general sometimes delays these goals. In 2015 I finally got to spend an extended amount of time on an amazing holiday property in California, right amongst the Sierra Nevada range. I have travelled back every year since and have come to know this vineyard like a second home.

This site well away from the razzle dazzle of the Napa. Exposed limestone, 2,000 feet above sea level - a bit foreign to my Barossa home. So I was able to grab a tonne of Pinot Noir and have a bash at something different. So I kept it simple - 100% whole bunches, foot stomped, large oak ageing and into a bottle. So I've brought back with me a bit of a reminder of home away from home."

JC’s Own is the solo venture of Jaysen Collins. We know Jaysen very well, through his Massena wines that he produces with his friend, Barossa veteran and Vinorium favourite, Dan Standish. It’s fair to say that Jaysen follows a creative style of winemaking, interfering as little as possible and allowing the grapes to do the work for him.

However, his twenty years of wine-making experience and his other project at Massena means that this experimental style is far more than just guess work! Very often, his wines are born out of an idea and Jaysen, drawing on his years of experience, has an inherent ability to seek out the vineyards that will communicate this idea to its very fullest. He even conceived the idea for the label of one of the wines first, and set out to produce a wine that would express the sense of this, finding the ideal site in Adelaide Hills.

Jaysen is Barossa born and bred, starting out as a qualified accountant, he began working in the business side of wine, becoming the general manager for Turkey Flat as well as the great Barossa winery St Hallett. It wasn’t long however, until Jaysen’s passion for wine grew and he decided that he’d “rather make wine than crunch numbers”. So scraping together enough money to buy some Grenache and Shiraz, he produced his first vintage with his good friend Dan Standish. Massena was originally meant to be no more than a side project for personal consumption, but grew to be one of Barossa’s most recognized and respected brands.

After two decades honing his skills as a wine maker, Jaysen felt it was time to take another step and start his solo project. JC’s Own wines are about letting the grapes do the talking and allowing them to naturally express the site from which they are picked, seeking out sustainable vineyards and practicing minimalist wine-making, using natural yeast, minimal sulphur and no fining or filtration. His wines are about the unadulterated essence of the grape, combining a sense of place and some great looking bottles!

See the New JC Collection - Read more

Read JC's Story 'From the Barossa & Beyond' - Read more

Barossa’s story began in the mid 1800s when a group of Silesian Lutherans, fleeing religious persecution, settled in the region and began working the land of Barossa’s largest land owner George Fife Angas. The settlers took to growing fruit and due to the climate in the region, grapes were most ideally suited and toward the end of the 1800s, several wineries had been established. Distinctly Germanic names such a Johann Henschke, Oscar Seppelt of Seppeltsfield and Kaesler that are leading names in the Barossa wine industry today are evidence of these early pioneers, and many are continuing today through several generations of the same family.

The wines were originally produced for religious and home use but it didn’t take long before they were being made commercially and by the start of the 20th Century wine was being exported back to England. The demand for fortified wine was huge and this coupled with the long journey on water, fortified wines dominated Barossa’s wine market right up until the end of the 1960s, but this would lead to a crisis that would set the industry into decline. As demand for fortified wines dried up, many growers were left unprofitable and the South Australian Government introduced the vine pull scheme, uprooting many of Barossa’s ancient vines during the 1980s. It took the efforts of some of the regions new faces of the time to bring the industry back by paying the growers above market value for their grapes, and saving the old vines that have become a hallmark of Barossa wine.

It is Barossa’s ancient vines that have shaped the region's style and reputation and the forward thinking attitude of the region's producers is one that is only beginning to filter through to the rest of the wine world. The winemakers of the 1980s helped to revive Barossa’s heritage, paving the way for the next generation of Barossa winemakers and this balance between heritage and progression has continued with an unparalleled energy through the region's newest and brightest stars of the 21st Century.

The Barossa Valley is warm and dry with low rainfall and low humidity, which can lead to a risk of drought during the growing season. It’s lower in altitude and is typified by gentle, rolling hills and valleys and is home to some of the world’s oldest clusters of vines, some of which are over 125 years old. These old vines are very low yielding and produce exceptionally concentrated fruit which is exploited by producers like Greenock Creek, Hobbs and Standish to make very rich and powerful wines that due to their concentration, often reach high levels of alcohol. Although several varieties are grown across Barossa, by far the most widely planted is Shiraz, producing rich, fruit forward wines. In the past, Barossa’s reputation has suffered from this rich style of wine, with consumers and producers favouring wines from cooler areas of Australia. However, a wave of smaller, artisan wineries began to pop up during the 1980’s and 1990’s and brought a resurgence to this region.

Explore the Barossa - Read more

97-98 Points - Stuart McCloskey “The most intense Pinot Noir of the trio. The dark fruit is lightly spiced and the most seductive of the trinity – sweet cherry and orange peel are unmistakable. The palate is incredibly fresh and juicy. I love the infusion of cranberry and redcurrant combined with the iron rich finish. Ripe and showing a more exotic side to Soumah’s winemaking. Lots of finesse and already showing bags of charm and character, but its glory years are yet to come. I am going to be harsh and award 97-98 points. It’s not there yet but I have no doubt it will be within 5-8 years”.

97+ Points - Magdalena Sienkiewicz "Tasted 3 hours after decanting. Deeper and darker in colour, vibrant crimson. Sour cherry and spice jump to the forefront of the lavish perfume. The palate is incredibly vibrant and luscious, showing great detail and polish. The tannins are super-fine and they melt away as you experience a long and intensely fruity finish. This is a certainly the most exuberant Pinot Noir of the entire Soumah range however, it is also one to be enjoyed best mid-term – it needs time more than the others. Amazing potential to go up a notch."

Unravelling the story behind the exotically named Soumah, it is in fact an abbreviation of South of Maroondah, hinting its location in the heart of Yarra Valley. Their wines however are far from exotic and instead they brim with a cool climate character and provenance of the majestic Yarra Valley. The perfect state of balance, calmness and composure of Soumah wines are expressed across the range, with the flagship wines receiving a graceful name ‘Equilibrio’. The global press wax lyrical with strings of medals including the Decanter Gold winning Equilibrio Chardonnay and Decanter Platinum Equilibrio Pinot Noir.

Located just east of Melbourne in Victoria and surrounding the Yarra River, Yarra Valley enjoys a mix of influences both Mediterranean and continental with the two main soil types being the bright red, fertile, volcanic soil found mainly around Seville. Yarra Valley has a climate slightly cooler than Bordeaux enabling a range of grapes from Bordeaux varieties such as Cabernet, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Sauvignon and Semillon to Rhone varieties such as Shiraz, Mourvedre, Viognier and Roussanne, but it is the cool climate varieties, most notably Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that the region is becoming most well known for, rivalling the great wines that are coming out of Margaret River and Tasmania.

It is known as the birthplace of Victoria with vines first being planted back in 1838, the region’s wine industry grew rapidly up until the early part of the 21st Century when the wine industry ceased production due to increased demand for fortified wine. It wasn’t until the 1960’s when names such as Dr Bailey Carrodus of Yarra Yerring and Dr John Middleton began replanting that the regions industry was revived. These names who were responsible for bringing the region back to life, have inspired a new generation of winemaker to continue taking the region forward and now Yarra Valley’s wine industry is thriving.

The Yarra Valley has a reputation across Australia as being a region that is buzzing with creativity. With experimental winemakers, pushing the boundaries, creating a culture of ground breaking, innovative winemaking that is driving Yarra Valley’s reputation as one of the most exciting regions in Australia today. This tendency towards pushing the boundaries of winemaking has spawned a minimalist movement in the region and you can find many producers that are creating wines with the absolute minimum of interference, sometimes bottling the wines unfined or unfiltered.

One of the most exciting producers that we’ve discovered from Yarra Valley is Hoddles Creek Estate, owned by winemaker Franco D’Anna. Franco specialises in creating Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. With the majority of their plantings in the cooler upper Yarra Valley, Hoddles Creek keep to the Yarra ethos of minimal, gentle winemaking and have created a range of Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that are up there with some of Australia’s very best.

Exclusive to The Vinorium

Halliday Wine Companion Awards - Best New Winery of The Year 2019

95 Points - Campbell Mattinson "Squeaky clean yet laden with character. Stalk, spice, nut and leaf matter notes steer a savoury course but the core of cherry-berry flavour is bright, juicy and ripe. The fundamentals are covered, the flair is then applied. Dry, herb-flecked tannin tethers the finish to the future."

Sourced from a single vineyard in the Derwent Valley, one puncheon from MV6, two puncheons from the mixed clone ‘home’ block, naturally fermented with 15% whole bunches in barrels, no plunging or pump overs, pressed to and matured in oak, 33% new, for 7 months. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 1848 bottles produced.

Brothers Matthew and Jonathan Hughes who were born and grew up in Tasmania, planted a minute 2 hectares of vineyard in 2011 in Flowerpot Tasmania, a tiny hamlet with a recorded population of just 73 residents. The Brothers intend to expand the vineyards to a maximum of 3.5 hectares which mainly consist of Pinot Noir with some smaller plantings of chardonnay, syrah, riesling and sauvignon blanc.

Jonny is the winemaker of this family run venture who originally studied winemaking in New Zealand and following this spent the next few years gathering a wealth of experience which included working a vintage at Central Otago’s Felton Road as well as Langehorne Creek, Mornington Peninsula, Barolo, Hunter Valley and Okanagan Valley in Canada before heading back home to Tasmania, working as the assistant winemaker at Moorilla in Hobart where he worked for seven years.

It is the experienced Jonny gained whilst travelling and working in various wineries across the world that has lead to the creation of their Hughes & Hughes range. This range of wines allows Jonny to experiment with a slightly more unconventional approach, and be more daring with his winemaking methods, combining various techniques that he discovered on his travels.

For the Hughes & Hughes range they source grapes from other local vineyards across Tasmania, from quality sites found in various sub-regions such as the Derwent and Coal River Valleys and the D’entrecasteaux Channel to produce either single vineyard expressions or bringing together and blending the grapes from vineyards.

The Hughes & Hughes wines are produced with a focus on the winemaking, working in small batches allowing Jonny to pay attention to the details to create something more unique. This meticulous approach has resulted in exceptional quality wines, a result that has been recognised recently when they were awarded the title of James Halliday’s Best New Winery Of The 2019.

Jonny Hughes wins the Gourmet Traveller WINE 'Young Winemaker of the Year' award - Read more

Positioned just over 400 km from mainland Australia’s south east coast, Tasmania has rapidly gained a reputation for being a premium, cool climate wine region, not just for sparkling wines but also for top quality still wines such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Shiraz. With vineyard sites positioned on the north and south east side of the island taking full advantage of the cool, maritime influences and coastal breezes that help to preserve the crisp acidity and freshness that is so important in producing wines of this Calibre. Wine makers in Tasmania utilise the whole region often blending parcels from vineyards across the different sub-regions that each lend its own specific identity to the wines.

Tamar Valley on the north coast is one of the warmer sub-regions with a higher level of rainfall producing fruit with a riper character. Just to the east of this is Pipers River, one of Tasmania’s coolest regions with a terroir dominated by red, ferrosol soils. As we travel south we come to the East Coast region followed by Coal River Valley, Derwent Valley and Huon Valley. Based in the Huon Valley is Glaetzer-Dixon, responsible for producing some incredible wines and one of our favourite Pinot Noirs. Dr Edge is a producer that focuses on the unique expression of each terroir creating three individual, single vineyard Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays each from a different sub-region. Simply named North - from Stoney Rise vineyard in Tamar Valley, East – from Hazards Vineyard in the East Coast and South – from Meadow Bank vineyard in Derwent Valley. As well as these single vineyard expressions Dr Edge also produces a blend of all three named Tasmania.

Based in the Huon Valley is Sailor Seeks Horse who brought a derelict, 6.5 hectare vineyard back to life from which they now produce exquisite Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Hughes & Hughes can be found in a tiny hamlet called Flowerpot, who as well as Pinot and Chardonnay, produce Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc from grapes sourced from growers across the island. Our range of Tasmanian wines is continuously growing and we believe the region is just beginning to discover its potential for world class class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay as still wines as well as the famous sparklings to come out of Tasmania.

Wild and dramatic, cultured and quirky - Read more

97 Points - Stuart McCloskey “Wow – the bouquet races out of the glass with hedonistic impact. Briary, autumnal, deep, earthy and broody (wood smoke / fire hearth / bacon fat / soy / mushroom) uplifted with sour cherry and sweet spice – fresh rubbed rosemary and bay too. This is one of those beauties which keeps giving. You will never tire of swirling and sniffing. The flavours fan out wonderfully across the palate with filigree tannins keeping pace. Sour cherry and cranberry cascades with a soupçon of soy, briary fruits and a little backdrop of smoke. A very individual wine created by a truly gifted winemaker. Powerful but the earthy goodness provides an honest balance. Incredible length, dried blood orange on the finish and a wine which will appeal to those who love By Farr wines… Decanted for an hour and served using Zalto Burgundy glassware. Drink now to 2030.”

97 Points – Magdalena Sienkiewicz "Incredibly complex nose with morello cherry, blackcurrants, eucalyptus and spices luring in its depth. It doesn’t stop there with wafts of sweet warm earth, lots of bramble, iodine, green olive tapenade, herbs and smoked spices continuing to pour from the glass. This mesmerising mixture washes across the palate with a beautiful savoury edge. Sour cherry blends with spices and soy leading you to a warming earthy finish. This is a hedonistic effort reflecting a darker side of Pinot Noir. Filled with individuality, it is yet another amazing wine from the talented Owen Latta and his team."

Owen will certainly feature as one of our Wine Producers of the Year and there are two wines which are strong contenders for Wine of the Year 2020. His Morillon Block has set the benchmark for the year ahead – certainly for Pinot Noir and the 2018 Intrinsic Chardonnay, which if placed in a blind Grand Cru Burgundy tasting would fit in a treat.

We asked Owen to tell us about the story of Eastern Peake Winery and how he ended up as winemaker.

"Eastern Peake was a small project that evolved from very humble beginnings. Dianne Pym and Norman Latta purchased their property in the late 1970s in the tiny township of Coghills Creek, Western Victoria just 25 km north west from the City Of Ballarat. The idea was to build a Mud Brick home, grow and make all of their own food to be self sufficient on the land and escape from Melbourne, where Norman had grown up. They successfully built their own home, grew vegetables, had livestock on their beautiful piece of land over looking the Creswick Valley to the east with a dramatic backdrop to the west with the Granite outcrop of Eastern Peake on Mount Bolton... Read more

Read - The Eastern Peake Story

Despite being the second smallest state in Australia, Victoria is home to over 600 wineries, more than any other wine-producing state. However, Victoria does not produce the most wine, as rather than producing mass quantities of cheaper wine, its wineries tend to be smaller and more boutique in style. The cool climate here produced by the coastal areas means that a wide range of wines can be made, from stunningly complex Chardonnay’s and delicate Pinot Noirs in the Yarra Yarra Valley, to savoury and rich Shiraz from Heathcote and iconic fortified wines from Rutherglen.

Our favourite producers from the Victoria region include By Farr and from the Heathcote area, Wild Duck Creek.

96 Points - James Halliday "Hand-picked and sorted, wild-fermented, 21 days on skins, 10 months in French oak (25% new). Deep colour; the bouquet and palate flow with black cherry/berry fruits, violets and spices lurking in its depths. The palate has abundant power that will sustain the wine for years to come. The richness of the plush fruit looked better and better on retasting."

Hoddles Creek Estate is owned and run by the D’Anna family who first established a vineyard in 1997 on the property that had been in the family since the 1960’s. The vineyard consists of predominately Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with additional blocks of Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Due to the steeply sloping aspect of the vineyard, machine harvesting is not possible and all pruning and harvesting has to be done by hand which ultimately ensures minimal fruit damage and a higher quality of fruit. The estate is located in the Upper Yarra Valley which experiences a cooler climate which leads to greater freshness and finesse in the wines.

The viticulturalist and winemaker at Hoddles Creek Estate is Franco D’Anna who begin his career at the age of 13, working in the family liquor store, becoming the chief wine buyer by the age of 21. After completing his Bachelor of Commerce degree, Franco went on to study viticulture at Charles Sturt University whilst helping to maintain a newly planted vineyard, and working a vintage at James Halliday’s Coldstream Hills and two years at Witchmount, gaining further experience in subsequent years in France, Sicily and Northern Italy. Franco sought mentoring from Mario Marsen from Mount Mary who consulted on Hoddles Creek’s first vintage.

Inspired by how his Grandfather did it back in Italy, Franco’s philosophy is about simplicity and making traditional wines with minimal intervention. The winery is split level with the tanks upstairs and the barrel store located 3 metres underground allowing the wines to be gravity fed, using no artificial cooling or heating, simply opening the doors of the winery at night to let in the natural cool air all leading to a gentler winemaking process.

Franco’s notes his experiences in winemaking across the world as having significant influences on his style, learning something new from each place. His experience at James Halliday’s Coldstream winery taught him how fundamental a rigorous hygiene practice is in the winery, his time spent in Gevrey-Chambertin with Pierre Naigeon about monitoring tannin levels to produce gentler, finer tannins that help the wine to age. His time in Barolo working with Nebbiolo furthered his understanding on tannin management and at Mount Etna in Sicily, Franco gained a deep understanding of the natural wine movement.

Our exclusive Q&A with Franco D'Anna of Hoddles Creek Estate - Read more

Located just east of Melbourne in Victoria and surrounding the Yarra River, Yarra Valley enjoys a mix of influences both Mediterranean and continental with the two main soil types being the bright red, fertile, volcanic soil found mainly around Seville. Yarra Valley has a climate slightly cooler than Bordeaux enabling a range of grapes from Bordeaux varieties such as Cabernet, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Sauvignon and Semillon to Rhone varieties such as Shiraz, Mourvedre, Viognier and Roussanne, but it is the cool climate varieties, most notably Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that the region is becoming most well known for, rivalling the great wines that are coming out of Margaret River and Tasmania.

It is known as the birthplace of Victoria with vines first being planted back in 1838, the region’s wine industry grew rapidly up until the early part of the 21st Century when the wine industry ceased production due to increased demand for fortified wine. It wasn’t until the 1960’s when names such as Dr Bailey Carrodus of Yarra Yerring and Dr John Middleton began replanting that the regions industry was revived. These names who were responsible for bringing the region back to life, have inspired a new generation of winemaker to continue taking the region forward and now Yarra Valley’s wine industry is thriving.

The Yarra Valley has a reputation across Australia as being a region that is buzzing with creativity. With experimental winemakers, pushing the boundaries, creating a culture of ground breaking, innovative winemaking that is driving Yarra Valley’s reputation as one of the most exciting regions in Australia today. This tendency towards pushing the boundaries of winemaking has spawned a minimalist movement in the region and you can find many producers that are creating wines with the absolute minimum of interference, sometimes bottling the wines unfined or unfiltered.

One of the most exciting producers that we’ve discovered from Yarra Valley is Hoddles Creek Estate, owned by winemaker Franco D’Anna. Franco specialises in creating Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. With the majority of their plantings in the cooler upper Yarra Valley, Hoddles Creek keep to the Yarra ethos of minimal, gentle winemaking and have created a range of Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that are up there with some of Australia’s very best.