Wines that speak the truth

Colin and his wife Jennie run an organic vineyard and make wines in a shed, where the most elaborate piece of equipment is the coffee machine. Their vineyard is on land that Jennie’s family has owned for more than 30 years.

Under their Adelina Wines label, Colin’s mission is to gently craft wines that honour the vineyard, which mainly grows Shiraz and Grenache, including vines that have been around for many decades. He makes bright, elegant reds in a region often better known for its bolder, full-flavoured styles.

“I love the idea that wine has an identity, that it speaks of where it comes from,” says Colin. “My winemaking has changed over the last few years, but ultimately it is about reflecting the vineyard and vintage.”

Colin is fascinated by the science behind winemaking and did a PhD on yeast metabolism at the University of Adelaide’s winemaking school. So, it’s not surprising that he’s always experimenting, whether it’s with grape varieties, winemaking techniques or fermentation vessels. 

“We always seem to be playing around with different things,” he says. “Experimentation is really quite important for us.”

Colin’s curiosity and creativity have led him to create several winemaking projects. Adelina is all about serious wines from serious vines, and Colin and Jennie also co-run Some Young Punks – a collaborative label producing bold, contemporary wines from South Australian vineyards. Through their most recent project, Vine Mind, they’re making left-of-field wines using 100% Clare Valley fruit. It’s a chance to showcase the region in a whole new way.

But whatever wine style he’s producing, Colin wants to be known as an authentic maker.

“In this day and age, we’re often given snippets of information instead of a whole picture,” he says. “The thing I love about an authentic identity is that you are held accountable. And if there’s one thing that I’d hope we’re doing here, it’s being authentic.”

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