Our Story
Here at Willunga 100, we take great pride in our award-winning McLaren Vale wines. Our small and passionate team have created an exciting and vibrant range that truly showcases the magic of our region.
Before our first vintage in 2005, we explored the region and came across plots of 50-year-old Grenache vines. At the time, most Grenache was destined for blending. We decided this had to change, so we made these vines our focus and gave them the attention they deserved.
McLaren Vale has great geological diversity from sub-region to sub-region, and the soils are among the oldest in the world estimated at over 500 million years. This, along with the mediterranean climate and old vines, combine to produce low yields and stunning, concentrated fruit.
Where do we get our name? We take our name from the historic ‘Hundred’ of Willunga that was established in 1839, only three years after the settlement of South Australia. At the time, 100 households were needed to occupy an area in order to qualify for a place on the map, this was called a ‘Hundred’. Today, the Hundred of Willunga is where much of our fruit comes from.
The tree featured on our bottles is an old River Red Gum that stands tall over the vineyards. It was well over a hundred years old when the first vines were planted in Australia in the 1840’s.
Skye Salter
Skye Salter is a passionate and established winemaker who has spent much of her career working in South Australia for wineries such as Hardy’s Tintara, Penny’s Hill, Wirra Wirra, Shaw & Smith and Project Wine.
Skye took time to broaden her experience overseas, working vintages in Burgundy and Languedoc-Roussillon in France, and Canada’s chilly Okanagan region.
After many vintages living the nomadic winemaker lifestyle, she decided put down roots in Port Willunga with her husband, and fellow winemaker Charlie Seppelt.
Skye was a judge with the McLaren Vale Wine Show in both 2019 and 2020, and the 2020 recipient of the Wayne Thomas Scholarship which scored her a place at the Australian Wine Research Institute in their Advanced Wine Assessment Course. She was also was recognised alongside her husband for their brand Paralian Wines as 2020 finalists for ‘Top Winemakers’ by the Young Gun of Wine Awards.
Her drive, impressive experience, and extensive knowledge of the McLaren Vale region is a great asset to our team.