Bulman Wines

Mark Bulman is an Aussie native, first-generation winemaker. After time working in other cool climate wine regions like New Zealand and Germany, he returned home in 2009 to set up shop in the Barossa Valley. Mark is obsessed with all things Grenache and has been long before it was cool to be.

The desire to produce his own single varietal Grenache was inspired by a trip to Gigondas in the Southern Rhône, a prize that he received after being awarded the Jimmy Watson trophy in 2017. Here, fuller-bodied, punchier versions of Grenache with higher alcohol and more extraction are favoured. Mark’s vision was to turn that image of the grape on its head, and this trip was to be pivotal in refining his signature winemaking style in the future. To create elegant, precise wine with delicate, yet defined fruit concentration. His wines show extraordinary layers of complexity and yet retain the intricate varietal features all at once.

Named after the growers themselves, we have recently added his two single-site bottlings to our collection. Gary’s Vineyard is based in Blewitt Springs in McLaren Vale, producing herbal, spicy wines, with notes of sage and ginger. Glen’s Vineyard was first established in 1857 and is in Springton, Eden Valley. This is a tightly wound wine, with fresh aromas of rhubarb, blood orange and white pepper. Both wines undergo a similar process in the cellar: avoiding oxygen to retain the variety’s fingerprint, and extended macerations and maturation in sandstone amphora.