The Grampians wine region is just over an hour up the road from Ballarat, it has a long history of producing exceptional Shiraz and Riesling.

In 2025, we were introduced to Andrew and Katrina Toomey whose vineyard lies between Ararat and Great Western. The gnarly and mature Shiraz vines producing execptional fruit. The grapes were destemmed and fermented in small open fermenters using a mix of wild and innoculated yeasts. Aged in 25% new oak (Sirugue and Francois Freres) and bottled without fining or filtration.

There was a risk this could become a brute of a wine, so we took great care to avoid over-extraction during fermentation and again with oak selection. It’s blackberries, black currants and generous but restrained tannins on the palate. Despite tipping the scales at 15% alcohol, people’s first comment is “it’s so smooth…”. This would readily pair with Beef Cheeks, Beef Wellington or Steak and Frites.