Welcome to the February edition of Instincively Curious. Exciting news! Vintage has started two weeks earlier than usual this year! A dry warm year in South Australia has given us a head start, and we’re looking forward to an exceptional harvest. Our winemaking team are already in full swing, with a few vintage casuals yet to even start! In 2025 Two Hands are celebrating our 25th vintage, our Silver anniversary. Here’s to 25 years and COW-N-TING!
IN THE VINEYARD
Nets have recently been installed over our estate Gnarly Dudes and Kraehe House blocks located at Marananga. The nets help to minimise the fruit lost to the many hungry birds in the area, who love to get stuck in to the bunches and eat our precious grapes.
Elsewhere, in our Holy Grail vineyard, as we prepare for harvesting the vineyard team will soon remove our Sapflow system to prevent any potential damage. Sapflow is an integral tool in our efforts to reduce water usage at Holy Grail, our most important vineyard asset. Recently Peter (along with pictured tough vineyard puppy dogs Honey and Chip) hosted a training session with our Cellar Door and DTC team You can read more about Sapflow and our Sustainability efforts HERE.
Brutus and his family of Scottish Highlander cattle also get a special treat during vintage. After the grapes are destemmed, the leftover stalks are fed to the cows and they absolutely love it!
IN THE WINERY
Richard and his team have been busy processing and analyzing grape samples from across our estate and grower vineyards over the past couple of weeks. Richard and Peter (pictured below) having been busily tasting and making notes on the sample to better determine fruit quality, flavour and tannins. They also measure sugar and acidity levels to determine when to pick the grapes at peak flavour and ripeness.
The first grapes of Vintage 2025 have arrived in the past week. We crushed some McLaren Vale Shiraz for Angels Share on Valentines Day, Feb 14th! An auspicious day to be sure. We expect our first Barossa fruit to come in in the next few days.
Both Peter (Chief Viticulturalist) and Richard (Chief Winemaker) are very optimistic on the quality of the 2025 season. In particular, there are some outstanding blocks within the Holy Grail vineyard. It will be a few years until these wines see the light of day, but each year our marketing team take great pride in creating a unique and funs t-shirt design for our vintage crew and staff. In 2025 Two Hands are celebrating our 25th vintage, our Silver anniversary. Here’s to 25 years and COW-N-TING!
INTERSTATE EVENTS
MARCH
Gold Coast Dinner
14th March – 6pm
Blowfish Ocean Grill + Bar, Broadbeach
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Brisbane Cellar Door on the Road
15th March – 12pm or 2pm
Proud Henry – Wine bar and Ginoteca, 153 Wickham St, Fortitude Valley
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APRIL
Sydney Dinner
11th April – 6pm $175 per person
A private dinner at The Wine Library, Woollahra
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Sydney Cellar Door on the Road
12th April – 12pm & 2pm $75 per person
bibo Wine Bar, 7 Bay St, Double Bay
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SCORES & REVIEWS
WINE COMPANION
2022 Coach House Block – 95 points – GOLD
Seppeltsfield Road, Greenock, Barossa Valley Shiraz
“I’ve driven past this wee block of vines in Greenock many times, tried the wine a good number of times, too, and it always strikes me as an excellent representation of the western Barossa Valley. Deep magenta/crimson in colour with uber-ripe Doris plum and juicy blueberry fruits with licorice, violets, pan juices, vanillin oak, dark chocolate and some light choc-mint. The tannins are powdery, with a light ferrous edge, and melt back into the deep fruit profile beautifully, finishing long and moreish.” – DB
2023 Gnarly Dudes – 93 points ★ (a wine considered to offer special value for money within the context of their rating)
Barossa Valley Shiraz
“A ripe, juicy, contemporary Barossa shiraz with plush plum, blueberry and boysenberry fruit tones along with an array of dark spice, fruitcake, dark chocolate, panforte, olive tapenade, vanilla pod, violets and earth. I love the fruit this year, there’s an opulence to it but it tends towards savoury at the back end, fading off slowly with oodles of spice, roasting meats and fine, sandy tannin.” – DB
AT CELLAR DOOR
Barossa Wine-a-Thon Seppeltsfield Road Edition
15th March 2025 – 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM
You don’t want to miss this!! The 1st Barossa Wine-a-Thon!
That’s right a marathon that includes wine & gin! But…… there’s no running involved!! Starting at 11am you’ll be transported by mini bus to 5 venues along Seppeltsfield Road.
– Paulmara Estate, Rolf Binder, Laughing Jack Wines, Two Hands Wines, Seppeltsfield Road Distillers.
With wine tastings at each venue & 5 food courses to be served throughout the day. Entertainment will also be provided at each venue to make for an exceptionally fun day.
WINE OF THE MONTH
THE BOY
EDEN VALLEY RIESLING
The Eden Valley has a proud history of Riesling. Two Hands ‘The Boy’ is the epitome of an Eden Valley Riesling with its exotic aromatics and great intensity of flavour on the palate..
The region of Eden Valley is located just east of the Barossa Valley, this vineyard being a short 20 minute drive from where our Cellar door is located. Eden growing season temperatures are significantly lower than those of the Barossa Valley, and the final stages of ripening and harvesting take place in much cooler conditions.
“So you walk and walk and walk and finally you find a special place with a special vineyard. You walk some more and you taste and you’re excited… 108 year old Riesling vines perched high atop the Eden Valley with an intensity you have never experienced before… you have found ‘The Boy’.” – MT
Lara was born in Switzerland but moved to Australia with her parents at the age of 8. She has lived all over Australia but when working in hospitality in Melbourne, she realised she wanted to know more about the wines she was serving and her passion for the industry began. Lara went on to travel back to Switzerland to complete her first vintage before returning back to Australia to study a Bachelor’s Degree in Winemaking from Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga. In her free time, she enjoys fishing, hiking and camping particularly in SA’s Fleurieu region. Her love for the outdoors is also what led to her deciding to make the change and work in viticulture over winemaking.
Q&A
What made you want to join the wine industry?
I love seeing the variations of vintages and various wine making techniques through the to the final wines. No two years are the same which makes a dynamic and intriguing industry to work in.
Favourite thing about vintage?
The relief of finally harvesting fruit from a vineyard that you’ve tendered to and watch grow for a year, and of course the excitement of working full steam with a team.
Favourite Two Hands moment so far?
I do love going out to feed the Scottish Highland cows and all the nice sunny days working out at Holy Grail vineyard with that amazing view.
Favourite Two Hands Wine?
Coach House Block along with our wines made from Eden Valley, Charlie’s Garden and Yacca Block.
For Valentines Day this month we created the perfect pairing to our Sexy Beast Cabernet Sauvignon. Listen and follow below!
