BRAND INFORMATION Welcome

Thank you for your interest in Willunga 100 and McLaren Vale wines. This booklet is designed to give you all the key information you need to sell our wine, or to become a brand ambassador. We look forward to working with you! About Us

Willunga 100 was founded by David Gleave MW and John Ratcliffe, two devotees passionate about making outstanding wines from McLaren Vale.

Before our first vintage in 2005, David and John explored McLaren Vale and came across plots of 50-year-old vines. At the time, most of the wine produced from this fruit was destined for blending as there was little demand for top quality Grenache. David and John decided this had to change, so they made these vines their focus and gave them the attention they deserved. We haven’t looked back since.

The Tree

The tree featured on our bottles is an old River Red Gum that stands tall over the vineyards. It was well over a hundred years old when the first vines were planted in Australia in the 1840’s.

The Willunga 100 Name

We take our name from the historic ‘Hundred’ of Willunga that was established in 1839, only three years after the settlement of . At the time, 100 households were needed to occupy an area in order to qualify for a place on the map, this was called a ‘Hundred’. Today, the Hundred of Willunga is where much of our fruit comes from. Our Winemaker

Skye Salter, Winemaker

Skye Salter is a passionate and established winemaker who has spent much of her career working in South Australia for wineries such as Hardy’s Tintara, Penny’s Hill, Wirra Wirra, Shaw & Smith and Project Wine.

Skye took time to broaden her experience overseas, working vintages in Burgundy and Languedoc-Roussillon in France, and Canada’s chilly Okanagan region.

After many vintages living the nomadic winemaker lifestyle, she decided put down roots in Port Willunga with her husband, and fellow winemaker Charlie Seppelt.

Skye was a judge with the McLaren Vale Wine Show in both 2019 and 2020, and the 2020 recipient of the Wayne Thomas Scholarship which scored her a place at the Australian Wine Research Institute in their Advanced Wine Assessment Course. She was also was recognised alongside her husband for their brand Paralian Wines as 2020 finalists for ‘Top Winemakers’ by the Young Gun of Wine Awards. Our Vineyards

Nestled between the Mount Lofty Ranges and the white, sandy beaches of the Gulf of St Vincent, McLaren Vale is just 45 minutes south of Adelaide and known as the birthplace of . Today it has over 7,500 hectares under vine, 90% of which are red varieties. The Mediterranean climate in McLaren Vale is a big draw card, and the soils are among the oldest in the world estimated at over 500 million years. The resulting low vigour and old vines combine to produce low yields and stunning, concentrated fruit. Each sub-zone provides a unique diversity in flavour, which we aim to showcase in our various grenache wines. Our Vineyards

Blewitt Springs Clarendon

Willunga 100 has been a pioneer in unoaked, single vineyard Grenache in McLaren Vale for the last 15 Tucked in the gullies on the Onkaparinga River, Clarendon years. Its Blewitt Springs Grenache won the ‘Best Grenache Trophy’ at the McLaren Vale Wine Show in is a beautiful village rich in heritage. Willunga 100 produces 2015 and 2016. With cooler temperatures and moderating afternoon sea breezes, the grapes grown their The Hundred Grenache, Clarendon from this area, here enjoy a long and even ripening season. Vintage in Blewitt Springs is often two to three weeks which comes off the Smart Vineyard. It won the ‘Best later than the rest of the district, giving the fruit a few extra weeks to ripen with a greater depth of Two-Year-Old or Older Grenache Trophy’ in 2017. flavour* The Smart Vineyard The Blind Spot Vineyard This vineyard has dry grown Grenache bush vines which The Blind Spot Vineyard was bought in March of 2019 and is the source of Willunga 100’s Grenache, were planted in 1923 on ancient loam soil over red-brown Grenache Rose’, and occasionally their flagship wine, The Tithing Grenache. The vineyard has some clay and bedrock. It’s situated 220m above sea level on OH-60 Shiraz vines which go toward a limited release Shiraz. the moderate to steep hills of the Clarendon Onkaparinga Gorge. The 19-hectare site, situated on Moritz Road in the heart of Blewitt Springs, has close to eight hectares of old, bush trained Grenache. The vineyard is situated within the ‘Hundred of Willunga’, the area which was the inspiration for the company name.

“We’ve taken fruit off the vineyard for several years, so we know just how good it is,” says winemaker Mike Farmilo. “In fact, our 2016 ‘Tithing’ Grenache, one of the best wines we’ve made in the past 15 vintages, came off this site”.

Willunga 100 founder, David Gleave said of the purchase: “The success enjoyed by Willunga 100 has been built on the quality of fruit we source from our growers, the best of whom we will continue working with. As our business has grown, we’ve been looking for our own vineyard for a couple of years and knew exactly where we wanted to be. When this site came up, its location on Blewitt Springs sands made for a quick decision.”

Trott Vineyard

The dry grown Grenache bush vines for this site were planted in 1952 on ancient sandy soil over a clay and ironstone base. Owned by local viticulturist Sue Trott, the Trott Vineyard is situated 210m above sea level on the moderate to steep hills of Blewitt Springs next to the Onkaparinga Gorge. The fruit from Willunga 100’s award-winning single vineyard wine The Hundred Grenache, Blewitt Springs, is sourced from this vineyard. Our Wines Wines Premium Range

Flagship Wine

The Tithing Grenache

The Tithing Grenache forms part of the limited release range. Only made in the best vintages from small parcels of premium old dry grown bush vine grapes from iconic vineyards within the region. The Tithing showcases the influence of oak and barrel maturation to mirror the old-world style of Grenache that can be achieved with McLaren Vale fruit. The handpicked fruit is open fermented at high temperatures with regular pump overs and plunging down to ensure optimum early extraction. This regime lessens towards the end of ferment ensuring the delicate aromatics of Grenache are retained. The wine is matured using a mixture of new and seasoned French oak puncheons which add complexity and mid-palate richness. The power and concentration of this wine sees it hold its own against its old-world peers such as Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Priorat and Roussilon. Bottled under screwcap to ensure freshness and longevity this wine will delight for years to come. RRP $55 p/bottle

Single Vineyard Wines

The ‘ Hundred’ range exemplifies the The 'Hundred' range exemplifies the diversity in style that can be achieved with diversity in style that can be achieved with McLaren Vale Grenache by focusing on McLaren Vale Grenache by focusing on single vineyard wines from some of the single vineyard wines from some of the region’s finest sub-zones. The dry grown region's finest sub-zones. The dry grown bush vines for this single vineyard Grenache bush vines for this Single Vineyard were planted in 1952 on ancient sandy soil Grenache, were planted in 1923 on ancient is over a clay and ironstone base. The Trott loam soil over red-brown clay and vineyard is situated 21Om above sea level, bedrock. The vineyard is situated 220m on the moderate to steep hills of Blewitt above sea level, on the moderate to steep Springs next to the Onkaparinga Gorge. hills of the Clarendon Onkaparinga Gorge. Fruit is hand harvested and whole berry Fruit is hand harvested and whole berry sorted, then vinified in open fermenters and sorted, then vinified in open fermenters The Hundred gently basket pressed. The result is a vibrant The Hundred and gently basket pressed. The result is Grenache and complex wine that is a pure expression Grenache an elegant and fragrant wine that is a pure of both site and variety. expression of both site and variety. Blewitt Springs RRP $45 p/bottle Clarendon RRP $45 p/bottle Our Wines Wines Willunga 100 Range

Grenache Tempranillo Cabernet Shiraz Shiraz Viognier Grenache Rosè

This wine shows the Aromatics of black cherry, Intense mulberry, plum The colour has a bright The colour is pale pink Grenache characters of sweet plum and hints of and a hint of mint are in purple intensity, solid to with a hint of salmon. The both the Blewitt Springs allspice are evident. The balance with rich spice. the core. The nose offers nose is lifted and full of and McLaren Flat sub- palate is a little more The palate is a smooth a tremendous lift of spice aroma, field strawberries zones. Bright, lifted and generous with blackberries, blend of the Cabernet from the Viognier. Dark and cherry jump out of intense floral aromatics spice and an earthiness tannins coupled with blackberries are supported the glass. The palate has a in the blue and red berry that gives the wine a luscious cherry and spice in the background by a savoury tannin profile with spectrum. The texture savoury note. The tannins flavours from the bolder careful use of oak. The a crisp drying acid, giving and richness from the are persistent and Shiraz. French oak holds a palate is rich and luscious, it great length. Designed lees ageing and oak promote great length, supporting role, aiding in followed by long tannins to drink now (and put maturation are harnessed backed by a balanced acid the pleasing and lingering and dominating fruit. another in the fridge!). by fine sandy tannins that structure. Will age finish. Pair with seafood, asian reflect the soil of the beautifully. laksa or a creamy cheese. vineyards.

All from McLaren Vale, SA. All RRP $25 p/bottle Grenache Profile

What makes Grenache special? Light red - Medium - Dark Purple Colour

This grape has an amazingly diverse flavor profile Light - Medium - Full throughout its life, from raspberry/strawberry with white Body pepper spice in its early life, to leather and tar flavors later in the ageing process. It’s medium bodied, balanced Dry - Medium Dry - Sweet and a great match for many foods. Pair with Italian or Sweetness Mediterranean dishes, casseroles, dark meats, salmon, Low - Medium - High game or sharp cheese. Oak Tannin Flavours: Strawberry / Dark raspberry / White pepper / Acidity Cherry Spice / Earth Alcohol Rootstocks: Rupestris St George, 99R. 44-53M, 110R, 41B 13.5-15.5% and 3309C

What conditions does it need?

Soils: Grenache produces the best quality fruit on dry rocky slopes. In California, and as we are seeing in McLaren Vale, it’s best adapted to deep loamy sands, like our Clarendon vineyard, or fine sandy loams such as those in Blewitt Springs.

Pruning: In both Spain and France, both long and short spur training or Gobelet (bush) training is used. In Australia it performs well as head trained and spur trained vines. In California the preference is spur training and cordon training.

Vigour and Yields: Very vigorous upright growth with late ripening. The yield dictates quality and adapts well to dry, windy conditions.

Acknowledgment to AWD Grenache Guide Grenache Origins

EUROPE Evidence suggests that Grenache most likely originated in Catalonia, Spain. Planting around Europe started under the Crown of Aragon in places such as Sardinia and Roussillon in southern France. There was even an early synonym for the vine, Tinto Aragonés which means Red of Aragon. It has varied names across the globe, for example in Sardinia it is called Cannonau, Rool in South Africa, and Grenacha in Spain.

AUSTRALIA Grenache was one of the first original varieties to be planted in Australia in the early 18th Century, and up until 1960 was one of the most widely planted grapes. Our climate and soil provide great growing conditions, similar to that of their Mediterranean origins. The ‘Great Vine Pull’ changed the landscape for Grenache, however Australia still boasts some of the oldest vines in the world.

USA In the 19th century Grenache impressed growers in the USA with its ability to withstand extreme terrain and climate and became widely planted within the San Joaquin Valley. It became a staple blending variety for pale sweet wines. In the early 20th century the ‘Rhone Rangers’, an American movement, focused their attention on premium Rhone style wines. As a result, Grenache was one of the first Vitis Vinifera wines to be successfully vinified in Washington.

SOUTH AFRICA Grenache Noir was discovered in the 1800’s, but this information was only verified in the 1900’s. Winemakers slowly started to realise the potential for making great Grenache by utilising their Mediterranean climate and the diverse typography of South African vineyards. With Grenache becoming a more popular variety, plantings steadily increased between 2011 and 2015 where there was a staggering 55% increase in plantings of Grenache (Rool). Australian Grenache History

1920s – 1832 1838 1960s

Grenache was one of First Grenache A popular choice for Consumer the original varieties vineyard planted in fortified wine preferences shift brought to Australia by South Australia, production (which to table wines. James Busby, the thriving in the warm, made up 80% of the Grenache ‘father of Australian dry conditions. industry in 1960). production wine’. Backbone of many dramatically blends. decreases. Early 1988 1980s 1980s

Winemaker Charles Wirra Wirra winery Overabundance of Melton experiments removes Grenache grapes and wine in the Winemakers begin to with the classic from renowned market place led the appreciate what old- GSM blend, creating ‘Church Block’ government to vine, low-yielding the first batch of blend, replacing it incentivise growers to Grenache can offer. now legendary with Cabernet pull vines. ‘Nine Popes’. Sauvignon and Merlot.

2000s Today

The new, lighter styles of Grenache are much-loved by consumers and critics alike, so we can expect to see much more of this perfumed red wine in all its forms. Awards & Reviews

“ 2018 The Hundred Grenache, Blewitt Springs Gold Medal Winner at The Royal Adelaide Wine Show 2020 94 Points - Halliday Wine Companion 2021. “

2020 Grenache Rosé - 93 Points Our 2016 “ “Dry and savoury, soft perfume of spring The Tithing blossom, lilac, redcurrants with a Grenache medium body and a fine acid line. A very was featured appealing rosé, moreish in style and best in Matthew enjoyed on a balmy day or evening.” Jukes ‘Top 100 Wines’ Amanda Yallop for the Real Review, 20 September 2020 “ Penny Lamb [email protected] +61 488 945 699 WWW.WILLUNGA100.COM