Santolin Wines
Yarra Valley , Victoria
Brands
Santolin Single Vineyard, Cosa Nostra
Winery Overview
They’re a couple of young, driven, lo-fi winemakers from the Yarra Valley. Total staff: Adrian and Rebecca Santolin (that’s us), and their little girls, Sienna, Sofia and Scarlett (not yet on the payroll).
After working at other wineries for too many years, in 2012 they decided to take all our spare money and buy one barrel, one tank and two tonne of pinot noir, and start doing things their way.
Fast forward a few years and our indie status was cemented with a win for ‘Best New Act,’ at the Young Gun Awards, and have picked up a few trophies including ‘Best New World Chardonnay,’ and ‘Best International Chardonnay’ at HKIWSC (Hong Kong International Wine & Spirit Competition) and Decanter Asia. Qantas started serving their wines in their International Business class cabins (our wines officially fly better than we do), and their personal wine supply is now secure – a necessary addition when raising small children and running a business.
At the end of the day, they’re making wines they like to drink. They make small batches and they make them interesting.
Seeking Distribution in
Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, USA
Winemaker Bio
Adrian Santolin’s beginnings in the wine industry started when he began working, at an early age on the family vineyard and orchard, established by his grandfather, an Italian immigrant from a small town near Castelfranco in the Veneto region, who arrived in Australia in the 1930s.
Born in Australia to Italian parents, Adrian was fully immersed in his family’s Italian culture growing up – and wine, of course played a big part of that heritage.
Moving to the Hunter Valley in 2003 saw Adrian’s commencement into winemaking. Starting out as a cellar hand, within two years he had worked his way up to Assistant Winemaker. A six month break in 2006 saw him work a vintage in Italy and spend some time with his extended family.
After marrying Rebecca in 2007, together they moved to the stunning Yarra Valley region of Victoria and over the next 5 years Adrian worked at various wineries and vineyards gaining extensive knowledge of Pinot Noir production, vineyard management techniques and most importantly, learning and appreciating the art of minimal intervention winemaking which would become his mantra for the wines he would aim to one day create.
“Minimal intervention makes for a complex wine with great finesse. It makes the varietal, regional and vineyard characters of a wine stand out, and that’s exactly what you’re looking for. It’s not what you put in, it is what you leave out.”
