Patrick Sullivan

Patrick Sullivan launched his own label in 2012 after formative years working alongside Stuart Proud, William Downie, Anna Martens and Eric Narioo at Vino di Anna. He and his wife Megan run Tumblestone Farm in the Strzelecki Ranges, Baw Baw Shire, Gippsland - around five hectares under vine at roughly three hundred metres elevation, with fruit also sourced from the Upper Yarra Valley. Total production is somewhere around two to three thousand cases a year.

I do not put myself in the category of Natural Wines. I only make wine. Natural Wine is a constructed term that I do not like very much. I make wine in the way I like it and in the style that I like to drink and I do not feel better than someone who acidifies or uses selected yeasts. I do not do it because I do not like it. I do it differently.

Patrick Sullivan

Patrick portrays himself as a farmer, not a winemaker. His path began young - vines during school holidays, two years in Europe after high school, then studies in botany and actuarial science back home. The intellectual background shows up in the farming: biodynamic in practice (not certified), cover crops, chickens, ducks, orchards alongside the vines, polyculture as a working system rather than a talking point.

The estate grapes are Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Gamay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, and Riesling. Native yeasts, no fining or filtration, minimal or zero sulphur. The wines are vibrant, sometimes volatile, often polarising.

The cuvées shift year to year, but recurring names include Baw Baw Shire Pinot Noir and Baw Baw Shire Chardonnay (estate fruit), Hazel's Vineyard Pinot Noir (Upper Yarra), Yarra Valley Chardonnay, Riesling, and Pink. The labels are hand-illustrated, often by Megan - distinctive enough that you notice them on a shelf.

See also Jumping Juice - his accessible side project, a fresh carbonic-style red and white, an easier entry point than the main label.