wine growing & wine making

Polperro 2019 PolperroWinery ChristinaNinaPhotography 65

Our Craft

We are wine growers, before we are winemakers. We believe great wine is made on the vine. The moment each parcel of fruit arrives in the winery, with it is an opportunity to truly respect the work of nature. Our aim is to do as little as possible to the wine, promoting character and balance, while never masking or interfering through the use of excessive additions or filtration.

In the winery the basic principles of winemaking—of temperature and hygiene—are closely observed. This means barrel storage is strictly climate-controlled, keeping the wines at a low and safe temperature throughout vinification and maturation. Our barrels and equipment are steam-cleaned to 100°C, limiting the need for both chemicals and sulphur.

Our approach is sympathetic and sensitive to each wine, assessing suitability for oak on an individual basis. We work with a select handful of cooperages, predominantly out of Burgundy. These masters of their craft deal in light, toasting and tight-grain oak sourced from forests across France.

A Regenerative Approach

Sustainability is at the core of our vineyard management; a light and gentle touch.
Our home vineyard, Talland Hill, is Certified Organic and Biodynamic through the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia (NASAA) and we are well underway to achieving certification across our other managed vineyards.

We nurture our land, increasing soil fertility through ecologically respectful, organic, regenerative farming practices. Increasing biodiversity and vine health from the soil up, our sustainable land management utilises cover crops, natural water retention, organic management of disease pressure and pests with the use of beneficial insects.

Ultimately, we’re farming for the future.

We are winegrowers with a deep love and care for the land. We make, grow and farm our vineyards using a philosophy of sustainability and regenerative agricultural.

How we achieve this is by using a mix of biological, biodynamic and organic practices. We proudly achieved organic and biodynamic certification at Polperro in 2019.

– Sam Coverdale

Christian Kimber Canon R5 Masters Web Resolution 489

Polperro & even Keel wine

Buy Wine

Polperro wine – est. 2009 /

Our wine is estate grown, a single vineyard expression of our unique sites from the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia. This region’s distinctive attributes are a cool maritime climate, bounded on three sides by ocean and the varied altitudes of the verdant hinterland, cooled by the salty winds and nurturing the ancient rich volcanic soils.

Sam Coverdale, owner and winemaker, along with his team, tends to every facet of vineyard management, wine growing and wine making. This ensures that the resulting wines demonstrate a clear sense of place where the elements of the soil, micro climate and the people who tend to the land come together to create something truly unique. We manage nine vineyards, five of which are used to create our single vineyard wines.

Our Mornington Peninsula single vineyard range consists of Talland Hill, which is Certified Organic and Biodynamic, Landaviddy Lane (sub region Shoreham), Coverdale Vineyard, Little Laney and Mill Hill (sub region Red Hill) the highest vineyard on the Peninsula.

We grow, make and farm our vineyards using a philosophy of sustainability and regenerative agriculture, applying a mix of biological, biodynamic and organic practices.

Even Keel Wine – Est. 2006 /

Celebrates the individual strengths of Australia’s wine regions with a small production of elegant and balanced wines grown in regions best suited to specific varieties.

Even Keel’s small production of wines is established through long-term relationships with growers from individually selected vineyards in some of Australia’s best and most distinctive wine growing regions.

Whether it be Chardonnay from Tumbarumba, Pinot Gris from Mornington Peninsula, Pinot Noir from Tasmania, Sangiovese or Grenache from Heathcote, Sam focuses on wine making techniques that reflect the particular influences specific to each region.