The 'two hands' are Michael Twelftree and Richard Mintz who formed the company in 1999 with the clear objective of making the best possible Shiraz based wines from prized Shiraz producing regions within Australia. Michael Twelftree, initially from a construction background, spent a number of years exporting Australian Wine to the USA and Asia. Richard Mintz a chartered accountant, was formerly C.E.O. of one of Australia's leading Cooperage's in the Barossa Valley, South Australia. With Twelftree’s contacts and wine savvy approach and Mintz’s management skills and business acumen, the two old friends decided to make some wine together.
In 2000, they started with just 17 tonnes of fruit from the McLaren Vale and Padthaway wine regions.
From the beginning the wines were very well received at home and abroad with a healthy stream of reviews culminating in, this year, being voted ‘Best New Producer’ in the 2003/2004 Penguin Good Australian Wine Guide by Huon Hooke and Ralph Kyte-Powell.
Why do we do the things we do ? From the beginning, we have set out to build a wine company that is different in its approach, one that is innovative and not afraid to think outside the square. We want to put some fun back into wine.
In its simplest form, it could be said we squeeze the grapes and put them in a bottle. However, in practice there are many different steps and countless hours involved, from vineyard, through winemaking, tasting, blending and maturation in order to make consistent, well-made wines. With regards to our winemaking style, we concentrate our efforts on sourcing the best fruit from the best Shiraz vineyards in Australia, working closely with our growers on achieving the full potential of each individual site.
At Two Hands we are very lucky in that we love what we do and hope this is communicated through our wines and the Two Hands philosophy. We hope our new cellar door and winery at Neldner’s Road, Marananga in the Barossa Valley, will come to be regarded as one of the highlights of the region, in addition to giving our customers a place to meet and taste with us.
Lastly, why do we do the things we do ? The answer is simple. Achieving our best, gives us a sense of excitement, satisfaction and pride in our daily work.
• Quality, without compromise is central to the Two Hands philosophy, driving all the decisions from fruit and oak selection to packaging and promotion.
• We seek to differentiate ourselves; to be unique, fun and innovative in our business approach whilst maintaining a high degree of professionalism and integrity.
• It is our aim to make all the wines to a ‘Garden Series’ level, and de-classify accordingly.
• This is achieved by sourcing the best parcels of fruit available to us from six prime regions within Australia, with small batch production a major factor in contributing to the complexity and personality of the finished wines.
• It is our intention that the fruit be the primary feature of any Two Hands Shiraz with oak playing a supporting role.
• By capping annual production at 10,000 cases we will remain a small boutique producer, to maintain consistent price points in all markets, and not increase prices unjustifiably.
Proprietor – One Hand - Michael TwelftreeMichael came to the wine industry from a construction background having spent years attending wine tastings and collecting the wines of the world. In 1998, he established his own Australian wine export company and after three successful years of selling other people’s wine, he and business partner Richard Mintz decided to start their own operation.
From day one, Michael’s role has been multi-faceted. He heads up the marketing side of things and is constantly nutting out new ways to keep the ideas fresh. He is eagerly involved in all aspects of the production process and has successfully overseen the construction of the new Two Hands cellar door and winery in the Barossa Valley at Neldner's Road, Marananga.
Proprietor – The Other Hand - Richard MintzRichard was a disenchanted chartered accountant by training with an M.B.A. from Adelaide University whos passion for wine started when he was appointed Chief Executive of one of Australia's leading cooperages. In early 2003, Richard left the cooperage to devote himself wholly to Two Hands Wines. He is active in all areas of the business from handling many of our long term projects to supporting international distributors, liaising with growers and even getting his 'two hands' dirty during vintage.
Winemaker - Matthew WenkOn graduating from Roseworthy with a degree in Oenology and honours in yeast microbiology, Matt worked as assistant winemaker at Nepenthe Vineyards, in the Adelaide Hills with intermittent vintages in the Hunter Valley, Languedoc and Sonoma Valley. Over time, Matt became winemaker and production manager working with senior winemaker Peter Leske.
In addition to this, he worked closely with contract clients and their wines, such as Tim Knappstein of Lenswood Vineyards. In 2002, after five years in the Adelaide Hills he was offered the position of head winemaker with Two Hands Wines. In 2002 Matt was a recipient of the Shaw and Smith/Len Evans Tutorial Scholarship and has recently completed a winemaking study tour of France, Italy and Spain.
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