Presenting a series of Sunday's showcasing the stories from Wine, Beer & Spirits of the Fleurieu.

These are reproduced with permission from Soul Publishing and Rojina Duval.

These stories feature prominent farmers, fishermen, producers and chefs – from Port Noarlunga to Cape Jervis – along with their favourite recipes and tips. Enjoy!

CAMWELL WINES

Camwell Wines is a micro-batch wine company owned by husband and wife team, Brad and Kendra White Cameron. A fifth-generation grape grower and first-generation winemaker, Brad has been working in the vines of McLaren Vale and the Fleurieu his entire life.

“My family has been a massive contributor to the viticulture industry for decades, and we wanted to expand on that tradition by adding winemaking to the mix,” says Brad. “Camwell was started in 2014 as a side project – it wasn’t until I met Kendra during 2015 that the company took shape.

“Kendra’s passion for wine and her encouragement to grow convinced me to look beyond just viticulture and to create something special in the wine industry. Together, we’ve made what we feel are truly bespoke wines, and continue to expand on our dreams.

“We started from scratch and made single barrels of shiraz in 2014 and 2015. From there we headed to Marlborough to do a vintage to see how the big-time wineries worked, soaking in as much education as we could. “We love that we’re able to be creative together and be the ying to the other’s yang in the winery,” says Kendra. “We’re addicted to the highs and lows of the wine industry, from the sleepless chaotic months of vintage to the quieter months in winter when we get to focus on the barrels.

“We hand-make our wines with sustainably grown grapes from single sites, using minimal intervention in our solar-powered winery,” says Brad. “Every wine we make is no larger than two barrels per varietal and we work side by side with my father, Derek Cameron, and the rest of the family to find the very best fruit we can source.

“Our latest news is that we are currently in the throes of building a new winery in the Willunga foothills, and we’re excited about our plans to have seasonal pop-up events there,” adds Brad.

“We also have some new products we’re very proud of – our 2020 ‘Teli’ Skin Contact Viognier, 2019 Grenache and 2019 Nero d’Avola.” 

PAIRING

“Our featured wine is our 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a special clone of the grape called SAVII01, grown by the Cameron family, and is quite rare. The aromatics on this wine are absolutely mouth-watering, with green capsicum and soft, warm spices filling the glass. The palate is packed with fresh plums, ripe strawberries and milk chocolate – it’s velvety smooth and dangerously moreish! If we had our way, everyone would drink this wine with duck and a rich jus!”

CELLAR DOOR

“While we don’t have a cellar door, we encourage people to contact us to set up private tastings. We are always happy to showcase the winery or vineyard and let them experience an insider’s look at our small company. We can be reached via our Instagram account, Facebook, or email us at [email protected].

ADDRESS 328 California Road, McLaren Vale SA 5171

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