John and Margarete Glaetzer had a vision of creating their own unique premium wine label. First vintaged in 1974, the Cabernet Sauvignon was created under this new label. John’s Blend was an instant success when it was released in 1977. The then youthful John had already worked with some of the greats of Australian wine, including John Vickery and starting work with Wolf Blass after graduating from the Oenology course in 1970. In 1995 a rich and intense Margarete Shiraz was added to the label, a perfect companion to the Cabernet Sauvignon - both wines offer a unique experience to red wine connoiseurs all over the world.

John’s Blend developed side-by-side with numerous Wine Show honours and John’s own prominent role in Wolf Blass Wines as the senior red winemaker. The result was hardly surprising, for John’s part in the story of Wolf Blass Wines, resulted in winning an unrivalled four of the prestigious Jimmy Watson Trophies for Australia’s top red wine 1974, 1975, 1976, and 1999. Also winning eleven Montgomery Trophies for the finest red wines at the Royal Adelaide Wine Show, to name just a few of the awards.

It would be fair to say that in Australia’s fine wine making fraternity there are few others who can share alongside John Glaetzer, the extent and depth of contribution to super premium red wine. John’s Blends are as friendly and rewarding as the winemaker himself, reflecting the rich traditions of Australian finest winegrowing regions and the people who make the wines.

To find out how well John's Blends travel, John Glaetzer decided to put his wine to the ultimate test. He sent one of his daughters on a mission, "..take these bottles to all corners of the world and do not return until they have gone to the extremes." So off his daughter went, the wine was taken (and survived) treks through mosquito infested jungles and packed on top of buses across freezing salt plains.

John's Blend travelled for days down rivers in a dugout canoe, was inspected by a bobby at Windsor Castle and approved by monkeys in the amazon rainforest. They experienced temperature extremes from minus 22 degrees celcius in an igloo in the Swiss Alps to plus 40 degrees while trekking through the Sahara desert on the back of a camel. It lay in the lap of Denmark's famous Little Mermaid and went on a pilgrimage to The Vatican's St Peter's Square. It was exposed to the elements on the rough Atlantic Coast of Ireland and held by a big cigar-smoking, cuban mama in Havana. It reached the extremes of 20 meters below sea level when scuba diving among the corals in the Red Sea off Egypt to an altitude of over 5000 meters in the highlands of the Bolivian Andes.

BlackJack vineyards released its first wine in November 1994 and in the short intervening period has established an enviable reputation fro producing fine and generous red wine. It is the Blackjack philosophy to produce consistent high quality red wines that reflect the vineyard and vintage variations. Beautiful in every season, Blackjack Vineyards offer a friendly welcome, a chance to taste some excellent full-bodied reds and talk about the joys and despairs of grape growing and winemaking in historic Central Victoria.

Each vintage, BlackJack Wines produces an exciting and highly acclaimed portfolio of dry red tablewines. Visitors to the winery now see a hillside planted with rows and rows of well-tended vines. Beautiful in every season, Blackjack Vineyards offer a friendly welcome, a chance to taste some excellent full-bodied reds and talk about the joys and despairs of grape growing and winemaking in historic Central Victoria. Over a dozen vintages of BlackJack Shiraz have been released, a classic Australian shiraz style that's big, bold, flavoursome and with the potential to develop in the cellar for at least a decade.

The relatively recent addition of the Block 6 Shiraz to the Blackjack range made an immediate impact at the 2004 Royal Melbourne Wine Show, winning the Premier's Trophy for best Victorian wine of the show, and the Winery Supplies Trophy for best shiraz in the open classes. The 2003 vintage won the top gold medal in its class at the same show. Block 6 is adjacent to the original shiraz plantings but produces quite a different style of wine, more savoury than sweet, and aptly described by some critics as being much more Rhone-like.

BlackJack Cabernet Merlot is made in traditional open fermenters, then aged in small oak barrels for nearly two years, this medium-weighted and complex dry red shows hallmark varietal flavours of mint, blackberry and cassis. BlackJack Chortle's Edge Shiraz can be best described as a Monday-to-Thursday wine, a delightful medium-bodied, flavoursome shiraz made for easy everyday drinking. While there is some lovely oak in the background, it is essentially a fruit-driven style of red with predominantly cherry and plum flavours.

James Halliday's Australian Wine Companion has elevated BlackJack Wines to the maximum five-star rating, reflecting "An outstanding winery capable of producing wines of the highest calibre". The rating places BlackJack among the best four producers in the Bendigo district and in the top 8.5 per cent Australia-wide. Reviewing individual wines, he awarded Blackjack Shiraz and Block 6 Shiraz with the maximum rating of five glasses, outstanding wines of the highest quality, usually with a distinguished pedigree. Campbell Matttinson writes of BlackJack, "Last year's was a beauty and so too is this. Wow, this is terrific at any price. Sweet coconut and mint rises over savoury , peppery plums, the savouriness and sweetness clubbing together into a seriously seductive package!"

David's extensive experience in viticulture and wine production, honed during his days at the Wynn family's estate at Connawarra, had given him a keen eye for the perfect site, and he finally settled on the land that is now Mountadam.

The site selection was based on three critical factors, firstly the stability of climate. Grape growing, like growing any fresh produce, is subject to the weather. Either too little or too much rain at the wrong time can cause ripening and disease problems. Mountadam experiences little or no rain during the critical ripening period.

The cool climate was a critical factor. David Wynn knew that to produce elegant yet powerful wines, the vines should not be subject to the stress of hot conditions. At 550 metres above sea level, it is sufficiently cool to preserve the delicate flavours of the grape through-out its entire ripening process.

Well drained soils also played a major role in the selection of the winegrowing property. Shallow soils over base rock provide perfect drainage and soil dryness to minimise vigour and maximise fruit concentration. Preparations for planting Mountadam commenced in 1970 with many years spent developing and improving the property.

Mountadam wines are always made from the best portion of fruit available from the winery's source vineyards in the Eden and Barossa Valleys. The estate provides a myriad of interesting meso climates and geological formations. Importantly, the various sites which cling the the hillsides and high valleys have been chosen for their true continental climate with warm sunny days and cool evenings. The complex microclimates combined with the classic soils and geologies, provides the Mountadam winemakers with an array of palates from which to craft the superb wines. Mountadam wines are always crafted in honour of the winery's patriarch, David Wynn, the founder of Mountadam and one of the great visionaries of the Australian wine industry

Ian Summerfield felt that Walter Henning had exposed him to an enterprise that could bring the family prosperity amidst challenging times for the farming industry. Planting grapevines seemed a viable alternative to the other crops Ian and his family had previously produced, and he proceeded to plant 10 acres of predominantly Shiraz vines, which his two sons would grow up amongst in the years to come.

Ian's plan was to grow the grapes with a view to selling the harvests to Taltarni or Seppelts, and he proceeded to sell the early harvests to Great Western (now Seppelts) and Chateau Remy (now Blue Pyrenees). However, he had faith that the winemaking industry was going to take off, and acknowledging that he had little understanding of how to turn the grapes into wine, Ian set about building his own winery and sort the advice of a winemaker with veritable celebrity status in the industry, Leo Hurley.

Hurley's tutelage helped cement the Summerfield ethos of minimal intervention with the vines, and it is this methodology that Ian refers to constantly today. Additionally, Drew Noon - who was appointed State Oenologist and is one of Australia's few Masters of Wine - played an important role in the development of Summerfield. Noon continues to be involved with the Summerfield family, returning frequently to the property at Moonambel.

Ian's eldest son was encouraged to pursue greater interest in winemaking. Craig commenced his studies in viticulture and winemaking in Maryborough, and went on to study at Roseworthy Agricultural College in Adelaide. Craig's commitment to acquiring an academic understanding of viticulture and winemaking further inspired Ian to plan, build and develop the winery. Craig's academic understanding of oenology perfectly complemented Ian's practical experience and knowledge of the grapes.

Ian Summerfield had come to love the vines and nurtured them with the dedication and commitment a parent has for a young child. Consequently, it wasn't until recently that he relinquished his position as head winemaker at the winery. In 1987, Ian's youngest son, Mark Summerfield, was visiting the winery from Adelaide on the premise that he would be staying a short time before moving on to Sydney. But Mark found his father's passion for the grapes and for the business infectious and has remained at Moonambel since. Mark has learned the art of blending and winemaking under his father's guidance, ensuring the preservation of the techniques and philosophies Ian developed with Hurley and Noon.