Three wine business owners in Tasmania are launching a collaborative wine brand with the ambition to become “a powerful force for good”.
Back in January, winemaking friends Cynthea Feldheim (Marion’s Vineyard), Rebecca Duffy (Holm Oak Wines) and Fran Austin (Delamere) got together over a glass of wine to consider how they could give something more back to their local community.
Inspired by their belief that they could have a greater impact together than individually, the idea was born to create a Tasmanian Pinot Noir blend from their vineyards – and donate the funds from the wine sales to a community or individual experiencing hardship.
Funds from the sale of 2019 Loveliness Pinot Noir will be donated to Vaughn Dell’s family.
Vaughn, a well-known Tasmanian vigneron, passed away unexpectedly in the early hours of 19 May 2020 at home on the Sinapius Vineyard.
He was only 39 and left behind his wife Linda and young daughters Esme and Clementine.
All proceeds from the wine will be donated to the trust account set up to help Vaughn’s daughters now and in the future.’
The name ‘Loveliness’ refers to the collective noun for a group of ladybirds.
“These humble creatures are highly beneficial in vineyards,” Cynthea says.
“Healthy populations of them are a sign of natural resilience and a balanced ecosystem.
“We see this as the perfect metaphor for what we are aiming to highlight: community is the foundation stone of our society – when we work together, we too can be a powerful force for good,” Cynthea says.
Little did they know when the concept was conceived, that the months ahead would bring such turbulent times.
Fran Austin from Delamere views this as somewhat serendipitous, “Never have we seen a year when kindness and generosity has been more important,” she says.
“It felt lucky, with the turmoil we’ve all been dealing with, that we had something already underway that offered some help, however humble the gesture might be.”
While the main purpose in creating the Pinot Noir blend was to provide a donation of financial support, it was imperative to the group that they created a wine of exceptional quality in keeping with their high winemaking standards.
“This wine was made with the same passion and dedication that we apply to making all of our individual branded wines,” Bec Duffy says.
“It was fascinating putting the wine together. We’ve created a wine that truly is greater than the sum of its parts.”
The trio hope that other wine industry makers will join the collective to donate wine each year, collaborate on the final blend and build on the foundations they’ve started.
The 2019 Loveliness Pinot Noir will be available for sale in single bottles, three-packs ($150 plus shipping) on the Marion’s, Holm Oak and Delamere websites.
Only 31 dozen were made.
The label design was donated by Georgie Armstrong, the labels by Multi-Color Corporation Labels (MCC), the boxes by Cospak and the photography by Renee Hodskiss.
You can buy the wine at Marion’s Vineyard, Holm Oak Wines or Delamere.
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