Coby Ladwig
Australia
Rising star from the deep South of WA!
- His silky winemaking skills have helped the stunning West Cape Howe, Singlefile Wines and Rockcliffe wineries garner coveted 5-Star Halliday ratings, and, he’s also been named as a finalist for the Young Guns of Wine awards.
But, it was only very recently, when Coby summoned up all his courage to strike out on his own, that things really began to get, ahhh, Naked - began to really make sense!
Yep, when you helped Coby become a liberated Naked winemaker, able to handcraft small-volume boutique wines exclusively for Angels, that’s when another dream took shape and started to fly!
- The first ever RT by Randal Tomich wines to get exclusively Naked are his delicate Pinot Noir and crisp, moreish Chardonnay, both grown on the Adelaide Hills vineyard his family has farmed for three generations. Hand picked, boutique quantities...all thanks to Angel backing!
- Randal's passion is clear - home is where the heart is. He approaches each of his pristine single vineyard wines "with a love and understanding of the land, treading softly and farming sustainably to create balance and harmony in life."
- Randal's father spent a life time learning hard earned secrets of soil quality - the ultimate key to premium winemaking. Randal hasn't just followed in his father's inventive footsteps, he's taken it to a new level! He's invented genius equipment and techniques promote the vineyard's health, achieving a 60% saving in both fuel costs and time.
- Two heads are better than one, and when life long passion (John) meets life long winemaking skill (Dan), the result is unimaginably unique and tasty wine that sings like the hidden hills it came from!
- 95% of wine in Australia is machine harvested. Not at Montvalley! Every single drop is hand-pruned and hand-picked, so there is little wonder the vineyard upholds it's reputation for delivering the most pure Hunter Valley fruit to the winery every year.
- Whether it be their elegant Chardonnay, flavour-packed Shiraz or classic Semillon, filling your glass with Montvalley wine is an experience truly exclusive to Naked. Drift away to your happy place with John and Dan's gorgeous wine, grown in a hidden slice of Hunter Valley heaven.
- Steve's passion and varied experience have led him to focus on new century wine styles that speak uniquely of his gorgeous home terroir in and around Orange, NSW.
- The complex possibilities of Chardonnay and the brooding just-another-sip qualities of Merlot have been the premier wines for Steve's portfolio at Naked. He is championing incredible cool climate wines; the styles currently taking NSW by storm!
- Steve's day job is part of an award-winning team, rolling and climbing between barrels for one of the region’s most recognisable brands. His exclusive boutique Made by Mobbs label is especially for Angels!
- In 2015, we put the power in your hands to vote for the first ever Angel chosen winemaker. It took just 4 hours and 16 minutes for Angels to give Kym Carr the thumbs up.
- Kym's story was one of incredible talent, utter heartbreak and unwavering determination... As a young winemaker, Kym had a winemaking world at her feet. She was winemaking for award-winning wineries Vasse Felix and Deep Woods Estate, leading to a nomination for young winemaker of the year in 2006.
- A few years later, Kym's life was monumentally changed by the passing of her younger sister. Her sister's final wish was that she carry on with life, making the most of each day by working towards her passion.
- Now a mother of two, Kym reached out to Naked as she still harboured dreams of jumping back into the wine game to create her own boutique label, packed with unique wines that are happily just a little far left of field for the big wineries.
- With 15 years experience, this young talent has reached highs of selling his wines across three continents and regularly travelling the globe as a flying winemaker. All this experience has armed James-Paul with an incredible breadth of knowledge. Making blends like GSM is now one of his biggest joys, as its more an art than a science when trying to build structure.
- His original dream wine company took a turn for less authentic sell, compromise, conform habits due to pressure from his corporate investors, so James-Paul made the decision to walk away. Now he is thrilled to pour all his energy back in to his core passion - hand crafting minimal intervention, cool-climate Australian wine that is truly unique.
- Kicking off with Naked, James-Paul is most eager for the chance to communicate directly with the people who buy and enjoy his wine - a truly powerful and unique platform for any winemaker! To keep cool through the rollercoaster ride of winemaking, his personal favourites to drink are an elegant Shiraz and dry Riesling.
- In 2012 Glen, a former research scientist, met Andrew, a hospitality guru and head restaurant Sommelier, at a wine tasting. They've been crafting (and arguing about) wine together ever since. In 2014, they stumbled upon derelict Mary's vineyard, 10 picturesque hectares of Shiraz and Viognier vines in Queensland's Granite Belt. Together they have nursed the vines back to health using organic practices, elbow-grease and TLC.
- Their exclusive 'La Petite Mort' label might seem a little macabre, but if you seek the true meaning of the phrase, you'll find that nothing could be further from the truth! It's about enjoyment- letting go of restraints and revelling in something new and maybe a little titillating! The boys take pride in crafting each wine to tell it's own regional story.
- As small producers from a small region, the Naked model gives the team the opportunity to propel the region's wines onto the national stage. Despite almost a century of winemaking history, Queensland produces less than 1% of Australia's wine. So, with the backing of wonderful Angels, it's high time we shout about these incredibly boutique wines!
- This inventive husband and wife team are bringing their delicious Fuzzy & May label to Angels, and we're thrilled to bits at Naked HQ! Their unique wines have impressed from day dot when they invited some lucky Naked HQ folks up to their gorgeous cellar door.
- Damien and Jodie have honed their craft at a wide array of Hunter Valley based wineries - think Brokenwood, McGuigans, Briar Ridge and Wandin Valley. They also picked up amazing old world vintage experience in Campania, Italy.
- The first ever Semillon the pair produced in 2010 won both best current vintage Semillon and current vintage white wine at the Hunter Valley Wine Show! With Angel funding and support, it's only up from here as they can now access top class fruit & winemaking resources to keep improving year in year out.
- Naked funding will allow Paul’s expertise to be enjoyed by more than a few hundred people - before he became Naked, Paul created miniscule amounts of wine (in some cases as little as 40 dozen for one wine).
- Previously working for big wineries like Houghtons and Goundreys, in 2009 Paul turned his attention to creating his own, highly boutique wines from the oldest vineyard and cellar door in Denmark (WA).
- His first year as a go-it-alone winemaker saw his winery listed as a James Halliday Top 10 best new winery and Dark Horse winery. Paul was a man with experience, talent, and absolutely no money for grapes. Now thanks to you he has the support he needs… which means you’re in for a treat!
- HINT: Click the PLAY tab on the left to see Paul introduce himself!
- Ben Rector is out to show the potential of the lesser known vineyards of WA. With 20 years experience across some of Australia's premier winemaking regions, he knows exactly what to look for in grape growing quality, no matter the climate.
- The Pemberton and Geographe regions of South West WA are Ben's main focus. His aged release reds have all sold out in record time, and his flair for Chardonnay is undeniable.
- Ben takes great pride in his artistic licence, always ensuring that his wines go above and beyond. Angel feedback is gold dust, and the support he has received has allowed Ben to increase his output astronomically. All this in two short Naked years...what will he do next?!
