Daniel Shaw
STEPPING UP
After working in traditional wineries around the world, Daniel Shaw has thrown out the rulebook and is letting the land and the changing seasons guide his premium wines.
In the cool hills of the Orange wine region, Philip Shaw wines was a pioneering winery of this budding region. Daniel’s father Philip, an acclaimed vigneron, established it in the late 1980s, then handed over the reins to his sons Daniel and Damien in 2015. Crafting wines renowned for their elegance and restraint, Daniel is making his mark and taking this lauded winery to the next level.
Elegance in evolution
Daniel always hoped he’d end up in the family business, but he never took it for granted. After graduating from winemaking, he spent a decade working in the US, New Zealand and Italy, learning from great winemakers. Then his father Philip asked him to join the business, and he returned to Orange.
Living next door to the winery with his wife and four young kids, Daniel’s life revolves around wine. His elegant, interesting wines reflect the soils, elevation and cool climate of the Orange wine region. But they also honour the French regions where the grape varieties – Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc – are originally from.
Daniel has well and truly maintained the high bar his dad set, and Philip Shaw wines continue to win awards. But that’s not what drives Daniel.
“I think you can either go down the path of trying to make wines to win show medals, or you can make wines that are interesting and enjoyable. And I think they’re two disparate things,” says Daniel. “I’m trying to make something that puts a smile on your face. I’m trying to make wine that goes well with food and that heightens the whole experience.”
Working hard to take Philip Shaw Wines to the next level, Daniel is constantly tweaking and refining his approach, and isn’t afraid to think outside the square.
“I have worked around the world in quite traditional environments, but to me it’s really about throwing all that up in the air,” says Daniel. “There’s no recipe for winemaking. There’s no right way to do it. It’s really about being able to think creatively, throw caution to the wind and just have a go.”
“There’s no recipe for winemaking. There’s no right way to do it. It’s really about being able to think creatively and just have a go.” – Daniel Shaw
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