Creating a legacy

When Jim’s parents branched out into wine, Jim was only in high school – but he was a key part of the plan. The family needed a winemaker, so Jim switched his career ambitions from cabinet maker to winemaker. These days Jim oversees the winemaking at Mallee Estate and runs the business alongside his brother Arthur. He’s devoted his career and life to South Australia’s vast Riverland wine region.

“As kids we made our own fun here and that’s the great thing about the Riverland,” says Jim. “You grow up swimming, playing in mud, going on adventures. That’s how you make a connection to the land, when you actually feel it and touch it and smell it.”

Today Mallee Estate is an award-winning producer of vibrant Aussie wines that evoke the atmosphere of a Greek taverna. It’s had global success, exporting to the US and China. With his close ties to the land and his family, Jim makes wines that reflect the region, the vineyard and the family’s heritage.

“In life you can be a follower or a leader,” says Jim. “We don’t try to make our wines like any other winemaker. We just make them the way we like to drink them.”

The vineyard is managed with a focus on sustainability and the wine range covers traditional and alternative varieties, including Chardonnay, Shiraz and Tempranillo. In 2015, Jim won the Riverland Winemaker of the Year award, and in 2017 Mallee Estate was named Riverland Producer of the Year at the New York International Wine Competition.

“Our long-term goal is to continue our progression of becoming a premium wine producer and being environmentally friendly, so hopefully we have something to pass on to the next generation,” says Jim. “I think that’s what it all comes down to, is family.”