Winemaking

Ben’s approach to winemaking is measured and shaped by place. Drawing on ten generations of family experience, his style leans into small-batch techniques, handpicked fruit and a focus on balance over power. He uses tools like wild fermentation, gentle extraction, lees stirring and careful oak handling to support the fruit’s natural character rather than dominate it. Each season is approached on its own terms, always aiming for structure and finesse.

The wines are built for enjoyment now, but carry the depth and detail to evolve with time.

The Process

For us, winemaking is about knowing when to act and when to leave well enough alone. It begins in the vineyard, with every parcel handpicked and brought to the winery with care.

From there, the approach is gentle and precise. Fruit is carefully sorted and destemmed using our Oscillys system, helping preserve whole berries, fragrance and the fine detail that defines cool-climate Yarra Valley wine.

Fermentation and maturation are guided by the character of each variety and vintage. Texture may be built through lees stirring, while malolactic fermentation is used selectively to bring softness and balance. Nothing is done by formula. Each wine is allowed to find its own expression.

French oak plays a supporting role, with seasoned barrels favoured and new oak used sparingly. The intention is never to overshadow the fruit, but to give the wine structure, depth and time to evolve.

A person’s hands harvest a bunch of dark purple grapes from a vine, using pruning shears, surrounded by green leaves in a vineyard.
Picking
Two hands reach down to sort or pick through a large pile of dark grapes, possibly in a winery or vineyard setting, with a shallow depth of field and blurred foreground and background.
Crushing & Destemming
Large wooden fermentation tanks with black metal bands are lined up inside a dimly lit industrial brewery or distillery, with metal railings and walkways above each tank.
Fermentation
Rows of dark glass bottles are stacked closely together, viewed from below. The bottles have metal clasps and stoppers, reflecting light, creating a pattern of shiny highlights and deep shadows.
Riddling
A close-up of a hand stained with red grape juice holding a glass of red wine, with traces of wine on the glass and fingers. The background is blurred.
Blending

Viticulture

A bottle of rosé wine with a copper-colored cap stands next to green ivy leaves, set against a light beige background. The wine label reads “Château Mosé” with elegant, minimal design.

Vineyard practices are adapted seasonally to maintain vine balance and support fruit development, with a focus on canopy structure, soil health and managing disease pressure through proactive, low-intervention methods. Attention to detail helps preserve natural acidity, encourage even ripening and reduce reliance on inputs.


At both the Coldstream and Gladysdale vineyards, the approach is responsive rather than prescriptive. Each block is managed to reflect the climate and character of the vintage.

Biodiversity

A clear wine glass contains a fluffy, beige lichen or moss, set against a smooth, neutral background with soft lighting.

A vineyard is more than rows of vines. It is a living system, shaped by what grows between them, beneath them and around them.

Across our sites, we are focused on building healthier soils and more resilient vines through native planting, cover crops and a considered reduction in chemical inputs. These practices help create greater balance in the vineyard, supporting soil structure, water retention and the natural life within it.

Cover crops between the rows protect and nourish the soil, while native vegetation helps create a more diverse and connected environment around the vines.

The philosophy is simple. Healthy soils support healthy vines, and healthy vines are better equipped to respond to the season.

For us, biodiversity is not separate from wine quality. It is part of the same conversation, creating vineyards that are more balanced, more resilient and more expressive of their place.

Clones and Rootstock

Great vineyards have a way of leaving their mark.

Our two Yarra Valley sites each bring something distinct to the wines. Coldstream is home to our Bordeaux varieties, grown on grey loam and alluvial clay in the warmer heart of the valley.

Gladysdale is different. Located in the Upper Yarra, it sits in a cooler part of the region that is particularly well suited to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The combination of cooler conditions and red volcanic soils gives the fruit time to develop slowly, building freshness, detail and finesse.

These differences influence everything from how the vines grow to how the fruit ripens, and ultimately how each wine tastes and feels.

We match varieties, clones and rootstocks carefully to each site, but the intention is not to control the vineyard. It is to understand it. To work with the soils, the climate, the season and the natural rhythm of the vine.

That is terroir in its simplest form: a wine carrying something of the place it came from.

For us, that sense of place matters. It gives each vineyard its own voice, and each vintage its own story.

Dominique Portet

“From fruit to bottle, the focus is on letting the site speak and the season lead. The result is wines built with care, balance and the detail to reward time.”