Shaw + Smith

Shaw + Smith began over a long lunch in 1989 when cousins Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith MW decided to realise their shared dream of making wine together. Martin had honed his craft studying at the University of Bordeaux and working as a flying winemaker across Europe, while Michael had just become the first Australian to pass the notoriously difficult Master of Wine examination in 1988. Their founding vision was to make exciting, refined wines exclusively from the Adelaide Hills that would rank among Australia's best. The first vintage in 1990 was produced using facilities at Wirra Wirra and Petaluma; in 1999 they purchased a property at Balhannah, planted vines, and built a winery and tasting room in time for the 2000 vintage.

• Established 1989 by winemaking cousins Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith MW; first vintage 1990 made at Wirra Wirra and Petaluma using purchased grapes
• Own winery and tasting room built at Balhannah, operational for the 2000 vintage; the award-winning tasting room overlooks the Balhannah Vineyard
• Michael Hill Smith awarded Order of Australia (AM) in 2008 for his contribution to the Australian wine industry

Shaw + Smith played a foundational role in establishing Adelaide Hills as a serious cool-climate wine region on the world stage. By championing unoaked, high-acidity Sauvignon Blanc and mineral-driven Chardonnay at a time when Australian wine was dominated by heavily oaked, riper styles, the winery demonstrated that South Australia could produce restrained, food-focused wines of genuine international quality. Their consistent quality across more than three decades has built a loyal following among trade and consumers alike, and their wines are now regarded as benchmarks for their respective varieties in Australia.

• Positioned Adelaide Hills Sauvignon Blanc internationally by demonstrating a distinctly cool-climate, restrained style during a period of Australian oak dominance
• Sauvignon Blanc sourced predominantly from estate vineyards at Balhannah and Lenswood, with fruit from a small number of trusted growers
• The 2025 Sauvignon Blanc is the 36th consecutive vintage, reflecting sustained quality and demand since 1990

Shaw + Smith wines are defined by restraint, precision, and clarity of fruit expression. The Sauvignon Blanc is fermented cool in stainless steel with no oak, matured on lees, and bottled early to preserve freshness, producing a characteristically pale straw-green wine with citrus, pink grapefruit, and herbal notes underpinned by fine acidity. The M3 Chardonnay is hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed directly to French oak barrels, where it ferments and matures for nine months, yielding a textured, mineral-driven wine with restrained power. Across the range, minimal intervention and site transparency are the guiding principles.

• Sauvignon Blanc: unoaked, cool-fermented in stainless steel, lees maturation, early bottling; lemon, pink grapefruit, herbal notes with clean acidity
• M3 Chardonnay: hand-picked, whole-bunch pressed, nine months in French oak; sourced from Lenswood, Piccadilly, and Lobethal vineyards
• Shiraz and Pinot Noir: whole-bunch and whole-berry fermentation; Balhannah Vineyard Shiraz aged in 500-litre French oak puncheons, reflecting cool-climate spice and restraint

The Shaw + Smith Sauvignon Blanc stands as the winery's defining expression and a benchmark for the Adelaide Hills, in continuous production since the 1990 inaugural vintage. The M3 Chardonnay, sourced from the high-elevation Lenswood, Piccadilly, and Lobethal sites, has set the standard for Adelaide Hills Chardonnay for over two decades. The single-vineyard Balhannah Vineyard Shiraz and Lenswood Vineyard Chardonnay represent the next tier of site-specific exploration. The Pinot Noir, sourced predominantly from the Lenswood vineyard using Burgundy clones 777 and MV6, completes a tightly focused, estate-driven portfolio.

• Sauvignon Blanc: 36 consecutive vintages since 1990; hand-picked, stainless steel fermentation, no oak, lees maturation, early bottling
• M3 Chardonnay: sourced from Lenswood, Piccadilly, and Lobethal; whole-bunch pressed to French oak for nine months of primary and malolactic fermentation
• Single-vineyard releases include Balhannah Vineyard Shiraz (north-facing block, 500-litre French oak puncheons) and Lenswood Vineyard Chardonnay (455-500m elevation, the coolest estate site)

Shaw + Smith owns four Adelaide Hills vineyards, each selected for distinct terroir expression. The Balhannah Vineyard (35ha, 340-380m) surrounds the winery and is planted predominantly to Sauvignon Blanc and Shiraz on free-draining sandy loam over red clay with quartzite, shale, and ironstone pebbles. The Lenswood Vineyard (20ha, 455-500m, planted 1999), located 10km northwest of the winery, is planted mainly to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir on brown loams over clay with broken shale on the ridges. The Piccadilly Vineyard is the highest and coolest site, planted in 2020 to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir at over 10,000 vines per hectare. A fourth vineyard at Lobethal contributes fruit to the M3 Chardonnay blend.

• Balhannah (35ha, 340-380m): free-draining sandy loam over red clay, quartzite, shale, and ironstone; Sauvignon Blanc and Shiraz
• Lenswood (20ha, 455-500m, planted 1999): brown loams over clay, broken shale on ridges; Chardonnay and Pinot Noir; highest of original estate sites
• Piccadilly: highest Adelaide Hills site, planted 2020 at over 10,000 vines per hectare; Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in north and south-facing aspects

Shaw + Smith remains independently owned and family-controlled, managed by founders Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith MW alongside a leadership team that includes Joint CEOs Adam Wadewitz (chief winemaker) and David LeMire MW (head of sales and marketing), and Group Viticulturist Murray Leake. The next generation has also joined the business, with Ella Shaw and Mathilda Hill-Smith coming on board from 2019. In 2011, Shaw and Hill Smith personally acquired the celebrated Tolpuddle Vineyard in Tasmania's Coal River Valley (planted 1988), producing single-vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. In early 2021 the same four principals purchased a Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale property to create MMAD Vineyard, a project focused on old-vine Grenache (planted 1939), Shiraz (1941), and Chenin Blanc (1964).

• Tolpuddle Vineyard, Coal River Valley, Tasmania: 20ha planted 1988, purchased 2011 by Shaw and Hill Smith; produces single-vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir made by Adam Wadewitz
• MMAD Vineyard, Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale: acquired early 2021 by Martin Shaw, Michael Hill Smith MW, Adam Wadewitz, and David LeMire MW; old-vine Grenache (1939), Shiraz (1941), and Chenin Blanc (1964)
• Michael Hill Smith: Australia's first MW (1988), winner of inaugural Madame Bollinger Tasting Medal, Decanter Power List 2009/2011/2013, AM awarded 2008; Adam Wadewitz named WINE magazine Winemaker of the Year 2022