Lucy M Rouge 2022
The Wine
Mourvèdre (40%), Merlot (35%), Syrah (15%), plus Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The Mourvèdre component is soured from the Watkins vineyard in Langhorne Creek, the Merlot from the Magpie Springs site in the Hope Valley, the Syrah from another site with oceanic influence in the Adelaide Hills (the Quartet vineyard in Dingabledinga where the soils are red clay), the Pinot Noir is from the Deanery Vineyard, and the Chardonnay comes from the Cemetery Block.
Anton’s Notes: Vin de table does not mean the lowest level of French classification! It is a wine that sits proudly on your table every night, welcoming you home like your cat and dog do. As you sit in that well weathered chair, pop the cork and pour into a cup plugging glee and say cheers to the end of another fucking day! Santé!
The Details
Variety - Mourvèdre, Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
Country - Australia
Region - South Australia
Sub Region - Adelaide Hills
Extra - Cork
Year - 2022
Volume - 750ml
About the Wine Maker 
Anton van Klopper’s commitment to making wines without any additions and his unwavering, unapologetic attitude have made him a pinup boy of natural wine—not just in Australia, but internationally. His craft of natural wine is a straightforward exercise: it involves vinifying grapes, and grapes alone, without any additions whatsoever. Few debates in wine have been so charged or divisive but Anton’s approach remains on course.
Despite Anton’s wide renown, this is a super-small operation. The Lucy M vineyard and winery sit in the Basket Range, a picturesque pocket of the Adelaide Hills, where Anton also grows vegetables for The Summertown Aristologist—his nearby restaurant and cellar door (run together with Commune of Buttons). Anton also sources fruit from vineyards both in and around the Basket Range, which are rented and tended by him and his friend Jasper Button (all have gradually been converted to organic viticulture.)
Anton’s formal wine education has taught him to understand what he doesn’t want to do. He admits that it has taken time and plenty of practice to make completely unadulterated wines, but the risk is worthwhile. These are complex, raw and mind-bending wines to taste. They are the product of a multitude of techniques, with natural ferments including some that are aged in large-format oak and concrete eggs. All preceding to bottling without fining or filtering. They are unapologetic for what they are and that’s exactly how Anton intends it to be.
