Martin Shaw is a winemaker with considerable international experience. He graduated from the Roseworthy College in 1981 and worked with Brian Croser at Petaluma for eight years prior to setting up the 'Flying Winemakers' network in France, Spain, Chile, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to Shaw + Smith, Martin still consults at number of companies within Australia and overseas. Aside from being a wine producer, Michael Hill Smith is a wine judge and consultant and contributes to various wine and food publications. In 1988, Hill Smith became the first Australian to pass the rigorous Master of Wine examination in London.

The Adelaide Hills is one of the most exciting wine regions. Although grapes were planted as early as 1839, it was not until the early 1980's that modern viticulture emerged. Today there are 54 Adelaide Hills wine labels with over 3000 ha of vineyard planted and more planned for the future. The region is strikingly beautiful with its patchwork of forests, farms, orchards and vineyards.

Because of it's distinctive cool climate, the grapes grown in the Hills have wonderful fruit composition, particularly in depth and spectrum of flavour, natural acid balance and overall finesse. Grape varieties best suited to the Adelaide Hills are Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling, Merlot and Pinot Noir. Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz are more marginal, but perform well on certain sites with some experimentation with Viognier, Nebbiolo and Tempranillo.

In 1994 Shaw + Smith planted 28-ha of vines at Woodside in the Adelaide Hills. This vineyard is the home of Shaw and Smith's single vineyard M3 Chardonnay and consistently produces outstanding chardonnay fruit. The balance of the vineyard is planted to sauvignon blanc and is a vital component of the estate Sauvignon Blanc blend each year. The M3 Vineyard is close planted and uses vertical shoot positioning, the canopy configuration that has been so successful in the region. The soil is sandy loam over red-yellow clay with some shale.

In September 1999 Shaw + Smith purchased 46 ha on Jones Road between Balhannah and Hahndorf. The property is blessed with wonderful views of Mt Lofty, is ideally suited to viticulture and was planted to Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Average altitude 420 metres and all grapes are hand picked. The soil is free draining sandy loam over red clay with underlying quartzite and shale. As well as being home for the winery, the Balhannah property is the site of the single vineyard Riesling and Pinot Noir wines and contributes to the fruit sourced for the Sauvignon Blanc. Just behind the winery, on a prized northerly aspect, a parcel has recently been planted to Shiraz. The soil is sandy loam over red clay with underlying quartzite and shale.

In 1953 Mildara's Managing Director Ron Haselgrove, bought 12,735 litres of Coonawarra red wine from Bill Redman. Ron recognised that the Coonawarra could produce classical, elegant Cabernets and in 1955 he purchased the Company's first 12.5ha of the Coonawarra's famous Terra Rossa soil. Mildara was the first major winery to invest in the Medoc of the South.

In 1958 Ron Haselgrove assembled an experimental blend of 50% Coonawarra Shiraz and Cabernet and 50% Hunter Shiraz to make a wine that still ranks as one of Australia's finest. In 1966 the first Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz Malbec was produced. Mildara had interplanted Malbec with Cabernet Sauvignon in the manner practised in Bordeaux.

Many successes followed, notably the Montgomery Trophy for Best Dry Red Table Wine at the 1984 Royal Adelaide Show. These acclaimed early blends were forerunners to Jamieson's Run which was launched in 1987 to celebrate Mildara's centenary. Mildara Wines purchased the Wolf Blass group in 1991 to form Mildara Blass, a publicly listed company.

In 1996 Fosters Brewing group completed the acquisition of Mildara Blass but Mildara continues to operate as a more-or-less separate entity. Mildara Blass has focussed on the upper end of wine markets, enjpying an estimated 9% share of the domestic market for bottled wine in 1996 but some 30% share of its targeted premium market.

The US is Mildara's major export marketing taking around 350,000 cases per annum or over 50% of the group's exports. Its wines are marketed there under the Black Opal and other related labels. Mildara Blass exports to more than 70 countries worldwide. In 1997/98 Mildara exported over 1,000,000 cases of premium wines, showing a 25% growth in exports over the past year.

While the Hentschke family first settled in the Barossa Valley in 1842 and remained there for many generations, Hentley Farm founder Keith Hentschke grew up on a family property at Lameroo. After studying Agricultural Science and Wine Marketing at Roseworthy College, Keith graduated with the prestigious Gramp Hardy Smith Memorial Prize for the college’s most outstanding student. Keith’s extensive experience within the wine and agricultural industry is the foundation of his belief that careful vineyard selection is the key to producing high quality wines.

Keith Hentschke chose a special site along Greenock Creek, at the intersection of Gerald Roberts and Jenke Roads, in the ancient winegrowing hamlet of Seppeltsfield to plant vines in the early 1990s. With a focus on perfecting the vineyards, the first wines weren’t released from the property until 2002.

Hentley Farm was planted in the early 1990s to Shiraz and Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and a small parcel of Viognier. Blocks were carefully selected for orientation and aspect with different clonal material used according to suitability. The estate was extended through the purchase of the neighbouring high quality Clos Otto block in 2004.

The depth and complexity of Hentley Farm wines arises from the great variety of terroirs, created by the diversity within the 150 acre estate’s east and west facing slopes and altitude variances. Subsoils of tightly structured friable clay offer huge water holding potential, offering respite for our vines in times of low rainfall. It remains essential to acknowledge the viticultural team's custodial responsibility for the land, are nurtured to their optimum potential through sound environmental practices that support agricultural sustainability and vineyard biodiversity. At Hentley Farm, environmentally sustainable dry land farming is the principle strategy, with an emphasis on keeping the vine and earth in a natural state of balance through minimal interference. The team at Hentley Farm endeavour to simply guide fruit from vine to bottle, allowing the unique characteristics of each vineyard block to shine through. As a result, Hentley Farm produces distinctive wines that display elegance, subtlety, depth and complexity.

Hentley Farm remains faithful to the traditions of Barossa Valley, as originally settled by Silesian migrants in the early 19th century, who began the rich tapestry of the region’s mixed farming history. Many of the traditions of these early settlers are still celebrated by the Barossans of today, not least the food traditions of smoked meats, artisan breads and preserves. Hentley Farm is a great place to visit for its scenic views and picturesque vineyard vistas, to relax over an indulgence of the most exquisite gastronomy and exceptional wine.

The grapes in Chalk Hill wines are primarily sourced from six family-owned vineyards in the McLaren Vale district, 40 kilometres south of Adelaide in South Australia. McLaren Vale's Mediterranean type climate of cool, wet winters and warm, dry summers provides perfect growing conditions for premium grapes. Each Vineyard has a different soil type and topography, providing unique growing environments for the grapes. We take these unique factors and combine them with expert viticultural management to produce grapes of distinct character and appeal that make Chalk Hill wines so sought after.

The home vineyard, Slate Creek lies on the northern edge of the Willunga township and is the most southern of the six vineyards. The vineyard dates back to 1897, when the first Grenache grapes were planted - they still produce fruit today. Willunga sits at the base of the Sellicks Hill Range and during summer, early evening breezes blow cool air through the vineyard, helping stop mildews taking hold.

At the northern gateway to McLaren Vale lies the Gateway vineyard, the first vineyard you see upon entering the district. Shallow red tertiary and stone soil sits on a limestone cap, similar to the famous Terra Rossa soils of the Coonawarra. These shallow soils combine with constant wind to provide a natural constraint on the vigour of the Shiraz vines, producing intensely purple grapes with silky tannins and strong berry flavours.

Wits' End vineyard straddles the plain between the McLaren Vale and Willunga townships and sits next to Penny's Hill winery. It is planted with Shiraz and Chardonnay grapes and has a winter flowing creek that over the millennia has deposited shale giving two distinct soil types.

The Wright's property is the most recent addition to Chalk Hill vineyards and potentially the most outstanding of them all. The vineyard was acquired from the Wright family and is now partly planted with experimental clones of Barbera, heirloom Shiraz clones and the grape variety mistakenly identified as Albariño. Around two-thirds of the vineyard is yet to be planted, further investigations are under way into the suitability of emerging varieties such as Touriga Nacionale, Arinto and Nebbiolo. Chalk Hill have also fenced off some large tracks of land that will form another site for habitat restoration with local native trees and plants. Premium estate selection wines occur when the team identify an exceptional parcel. It may be a single vineyard or only one barrel, but these wines are outstanding examples in great vintages and do not achieve their selection lightly.