Small-Batch McLaren Vale Family Wines
Hastwell & Lightfoot was started in 1988 by Mark & Wendy Hastwell (front centre) and their mates Martin and Jill Lightfoot (retired). Together, our two families planted our first vineyards in the deep sandy slopes of Foggo Road. Now under the leadership of the Hastwell family's second generation, we tend to forty acres of vineyard and four acres under olive in our certified sustainable vineyard.
Beyond crafting McLaren Vale icons like Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache, we've been pioneers in producing wines from alternative grape varieties native to Spain and Italy for more than twenty years. We're passionate about varieties that are well-suited to our growing conditions in McLaren vale (e.g., Fiano, Vermentino, Tempranillo, Barbera, and more) and therefore more sustainable overall.
Guided by a focus on precision, our winemaker James Hastwell strives to produce bright, fruit-forward wines with lively acidity, smooth tannins and judicious use of oak that showcase the premium McLaren Vale grapes grown on our sandy slopes. These attributes yield fresh and vibrant wines that pair exceptionally well with food.
It's through these varieties and winemaking style, that we believe Hastwell & Lightfoot wines represent the best of what's possible in a modern McLaren Vale.
Meet Our Team
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Mark Hastwell
Founding Partner, Vigneron & CEO
Currently Drinking:
2017 38 Days
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Wendy Hastwell
Founding Partner
Currently Drinking:
2024 Fiano
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James Hastwell
Winemaker
Currently Drinking:
2019 Once Around the Sun
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Trinity Hastwell
Strategic Advisor, Accounts & Marketing
Currently Drinking:
2023 Barbera Rosé
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Nicole St. Pierre
General Manager & Winemaking Support
Currently Drinking:
2022 Barbera
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Oliver Budack
Venue Manager & Sommelier
Currently Drinking:
2024 Grenache Blanc
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Clare Baldwin
Cellar Door
Currently Drinking:
2024 Vermentino
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Hugo Hastwell
Winery Dog
Currently Eating:
Your Platter Scraps
Crafted with Precision
Winemaker, scientist or engineer? To know our Winemaker, James Hastwell, is to know the lines between these three professions is blurry.
From an early age, James developed a passion for rigorous engineering principles and a reverence for the scientific method. He could often be found as a child crafting forts out of scrap metal, tinkering with motors, building radios, and driving tractors across the vineyard he helped plant when he was 10 years old. Rather than playing make-believe, you'd find him reading manuals to learn how things work — from refrigeration systems to antennae design to car engines.
Through these activities, he developed a fanatical passion for precision and craftsmanship — an astute focus on quality that drives every aspect of his approach to winemaking, and Hastwell & Lightfoot wines, today.