Frequently asked questions
We know wine can be confusing (and wine terminology even more so)—so we are here to help.
Q
Do your wines contain sulphur/sulphites?
A
Yes, most of them do. Much less than what we are allowed in our organic protocol limits (and a lot less than standard wine), but still some. We do this to ensure the wines make it to you as delicious as the day we bottle them.
Our aim is for all releases from 2021 onwards to be consider 'low sulphur', which for us means less than half of the organic protocol limits.
All of our current releases are low sulphur.
For a little more detail on the actual low sulphur limits we set ourselves, click here.
Q
Are your wines certified organic?
A
In early 2016 we undertook to convert our 125-acre vineyard to organic, regenerative farming methods and began the organic certification process with the ACO (our certifying body). That means no chemicals, no pesticides, no artificial anything, plus maximum water efficiency and a policy of no-bare-earth for optimum soil life.
Our 2018 and 2019 wines are considered ‘In Conversion Organic’ by the ACO. This is because there is a 3-year delay in obtaining full certification to allow for the complete recovery of soil microbes and to be absolutely certain that there is no trace of residual chemicals from past vineyard management in a fully certified wine.
As the ACO puts it, “During the ‘In Conversion’ period farmers must adhere 100% to the Australian Certified Organic Standard. They cannot use prohibited chemicals and other inputs as required by the Standard. The only difference between their product and one that is fully certified organic is time. It’s like training wheels – they’re transitioning to certified organic, and we still need to support them for their efforts during this time.”
Because there is no residual chemical issues in the winery, the delay does not apply to the winemaking process. From day one, all of our winery/winemaking practices have been 100% certified organic and we use only organic ingredients.
Our vineyard certification period is now complete so all of our wines from vintage 2020 onwards, are 100% certified organic in both the vineyard and the winery
You can read more about our winemaking philosophy here.
Q
Do all the grapes you use for your wines come from your vineyard?
A
Yes. We only use grapes from our organic and regeneratively managed vineyard.
Q
Are these natural wines?
A
Some, not all. All of our wines are organic at all stages and thoroughly sustainable in every way, but natural wines are one step further again.
The natural wine category is a confusing space, with no set guidelines, but for us it is clear, a natural wine contains just one ingredient: fermented organic or biodynamic grapes - period. Only wild yeast, no sulphur, no additions, just pure, raw, fermented grapes.
Our winemaking philosophy (read more here) is about intervening with our ferments as little as possible to create wines that are a true expression of the grapes harvested. But we do usually add some sulphur and we do often use some other little interventions / additions during the winemaking process. Sometimes we don't, and they are 100% natural wines. We believe in minimal intervention, not always zero intervention, and we will always make it clear which wines are what.
If you’d like to learn more about natural wine and its terminology, here, here, here and here are some great articles.
Q
Can I buy your wine outside of Australia?
A
Our wines are available in Hong Kong via SloWood, Korea via Nova Wines, the US via Legend and in the EU via UN PO'! But we are only able to ship to Australian destinations from our online shop.