JC's Own

JC’s Own is the solo venture of Jaysen Collins. We know Jaysen very well, through his Massena wines that he produces with his friend, Barossa veteran and Vinorium favourite, Dan Standish. It’s fair to say that Jaysen follows a creative style of winemaking, interfering as little as possible and allowing the grapes to do the work for him. This five pack contains his latest vintage releases to arrive at The Vinorium and includes a mix of Grenache, Shiraz, Marsanne and GSM.

• 1 x JC's Own Greenock Shiraz 2019
• 1 x JC's Own Angaston Foothills Grenache 2019
• 1 x JC's Own Ferine Grenache 2020
• 1 x JC's Own Freestyler 2020
• 1 x JC's Own Rock: It GSM 2019

Jaysen Collins - "I spent a few years living in the eastern foothills of Adelaide and would regularly grab a beer at the pub at the top of the hill, watching the sunset move across the city to the coast. I used to pass a newish vineyard on the way there, but never gave it much notice. Now twenty years later, after seeking out a new pinot vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, I found myself back at the same pub after sampling or picking grapes at this vineyard. A little full circle moment for me.

Leading up to harvest, I had been ruminating on a style of medium bodied pinot that reflected the vivid intensity the sun gives shimmering off the ocean. I always chase brightness in wines, so high altitude fruit suits this as a start – box ticked. I had imported a few concrete fermenters for the clarity and energy they give to Grenache. As Grenache ripens after pinot, i had a chance to ferment this wine in cement, to see if it would give the same vitality. The style is pretty much as I intended - is it the vineyard, is it the fermenter – a bit of both? Pull a cork and decide for yourself."

Jaysen Collins - "Being a Barossa guy at heart, I’ve always worked with varieties that fit in this landscape, think Viognier, Marsanne, Riesling, Semillon. So, for the past decade or more I’ve been ageing these broader white varieties on less for nearly a year - I love the texture it builds and the body and character it gives.

I wanted to push this ‘sur lie’ technique a bit further and I needed a variety that would have the balance of acidity and structure that would handle extended lees ageing in barrel. Chardonnay was the obvious choice, and with great vineyard sites in the Adelaide Hills under an hour away, there was no reason not to take a punt and have a go.

For me this example of chardonnay shows a bit of my Barossa breeding, a bit more oxidised, structured and full bodied than the normal hills examples, but the zippy acidity that interplays with toasty lees characters was exactly what I was looking for."

Jaysen Collins - "I spent a few years living in the eastern foothills of Adelaide and would regularly grab a beer at the pub at the top of the hill, watching the sunset move across the city to the coast. I used to pass a newish vineyard on the way there, but never gave it much notice. Now twenty years later, after seeking out a new pinot vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, I found myself back at the same pub after sampling or picking grapes at this vineyard. A little full circle moment for me.

Leading up to harvest, I had been ruminating on a style of medium bodied pinot that reflected the vivid intensity the sun gives shimmering off the ocean. I always chase brightness in wines, so high altitude fruit suits this as a start – box ticked. I had imported a few concrete fermenters for the clarity and energy they give to Grenache. As Grenache ripens after pinot, i had a chance to ferment this wine in cement, to see if it would give the same vitality. The style is pretty much as I intended - is it the vineyard, is it the fermenter – a bit of both? Pull a cork and decide for yourself."

Jaysen Collins - "Being a Barossa guy at heart, I’ve always worked with varieties that fit in this landscape, think Viognier, Marsanne, Riesling, Semillon. So, for the past decade or more I’ve been ageing these broader white varieties on less for nearly a year - I love the texture it builds and the body and character it gives.

I wanted to push this ‘sur lie’ technique a bit further and I needed a variety that would have the balance of acidity and structure that would handle extended lees ageing in barrel. Chardonnay was the obvious choice, and with great vineyard sites in the Adelaide Hills under an hour away, there was no reason not to take a punt and have a go.

For me this example of chardonnay shows a bit of my Barossa breeding, a bit more oxidised, structured and full bodied than the normal hills examples, but the zippy acidity that interplays with toasty lees characters was exactly what I was looking for."

Jaysen Collins (winemaker) - "Vermouth, the name derived from the German 'Wermut' for wormwood, was usually made to cover up some flawed wine. Add some aromatics and a bit of spirit and all is made right again. I wanted to try it on the opposite spectrum, make the best white wine I could, source some premium herbs and spices and have a bash at it. This dry Wermut is made from premium Marsanne, grown on the western ridge in the Barossa Valley. The wine is wild fermented and aged on lees for texture and body.

97+ Points - Stuart McCloskey “A mere 552 bottles produced which, and save for our small offering, the remainder of his barrel is sold out. The bouquet is fascinating and I am scratching my head to pinpoint the exact aromatics (given the kaleidoscopic range on display). Citrus, yuzu, salt / saline, minerals fall into breathtaking jasmine. Vivid, immaculate and so, so pure… As planned, there is noticeable phenolic grip but the overriding texture glides on a sheet of silk. The flavours range from a delicate floralness, a little green apple, citrus peel, pangs of grapefruit, chalk and a lovely, warming sense of freshly grated ginger which lasts for minutes. The palate feel is outstanding, fresh and beautifully balanced. So vivid and full of energy… This beauty served with a large bowl of fresh west coast langoustine and lemon mayonnaise would be nirvana. Do not overchill. Drink from now to 2028. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware.”

Winemakers Note: I grew up across the road from a famous old school winemaker who was known to be one of the best blenders of his generation. So, for years I followed this ideal in the wines I was making. For a hands-off winemaker, you actually feel like you are doing something!
One day pondering life, the universe and everything I thought about why I hadn’t challenged this notion. Grenache and friends work well together - I’ll just pick them within a few days of each other, chuck it all in one fermenter and let the ferment rock it in its own way.
So, my theory is that the different varieties bring something complimentary, but they also bring something individual - so equal but opposite reactions in the ferment. I then remembered my high school physics and worked out it’s actually the same way a rocket works. Go figure.

Winemakers Note: I grew up across the road from a famous old school winemaker who was known to be one of the best blenders of his generation. So, for years I followed this ideal in the wines I was making. For a hands-off winemaker, you actually feel like you are doing something!
One day pondering life, the universe and everything I thought about why I hadn’t challenged this notion. Grenache and friends work well together - I’ll just pick them within a few days of each other, chuck it all in one fermenter and let the ferment rock it in its own way.
So, my theory is that the different varieties bring something complimentary, but they also bring something individual - so equal but opposite reactions in the ferment. I then remembered my high school physics and worked out it’s actually the same way a rocket works. Go figure.

Exclusive to The Vinorium

Jaysen Collins (winemaker) - "I grew up across the road from a famous old school winemaker who was known to be one of the best blenders of his generation. So for years I followed this ideal in the wines I was making. For a hands off winemaker, you actually feel like you are doing something. One day pondering life, the universe and everything I thought about why I hadn’t challenged this notion. Grenache and friends work well together – I’ll just pick them within a few days of each other, chuck it all in one fermenter and let the ferment rock it in its own way. So my theory is that the different varieties bring something complimentary but they also bring something individual – so equal but opposite reactions in the ferment. I then remembered my high school physics and worked out it’s actually the same way a rocket works. Go figure."

Exclusive to The Vinorium

Jaysen Collins (winemaker) - 'I started this JC's Own project in 2015 with this wine. I started making wine based on a love of grenache but had moved away from this in the wines I was making. I was trying saperavi, tannat, primitivo, barbera - the list goes on and on.

The grind of making wine to a style and a market had slowly worn down my passion for the industry. So I kicked myself in the bum and set out to make a wine just for me - hence the JC's Own. 

I like grenache that is a bit funky, gassy and reductive, a bit more along the line of village Beaujolais. So I picked a vineyard I'd been using a bit earlier, went with 100% of the bunches and just started foot treading it to see where it would end up. I'd seen some street artwork in my travels in Spain, got a friend to knock up a label based on my recollection, so for me this was a bit orginal (or orginale for the Iberian connection) in its concept.'

97+ Points - Stuart McCloskey “Another domestic sell out with only 576 bottles being produced. This is our second bottle in two days as it fascinated the hell out of us – bottle one was consumed throughout a day as the flavours developed (we forgot to write our notes if truth be known). I hate to say ‘this will suit a certain type of wine drinker’ as I feel this is disrespectful. However, and for the very first time (perhaps the ‘only’ occasion), this is a Pinot Noir for all lovers of bright, enthusiastic Grenache. The bouquet is epic and so different to most Aussie Pinot Noirs. Wild, savoury, lavender, sweetly spiced, dehydrated strawberry, dusty earth and orange peel. In short, the bouquet is heroic. The palate is savoury, incredibly satisfying, filled with juicy, spiced fruits juxtaposed with woody herbs. Overall, it is alive with waves of freshness – the sorbet-like blood orange finish is a dream. Ludicrously good and will convert non-Pinot Noir fans across to the dark side. Drink from now to 2030. Served using Zalto Burgundy glassware.”

Winemakers Note: I cut my winemaking teeth in the heavy red soils of the north west of the Barossa, where Greenock is the jewel of the crown in my opinion. My winery is here, the pub does a good burger and by chance there’s some pretty good shiraz vineyards knocking about.
A few vintages ago I came across a vineyard just on the north of the Greenock township that hides behind some big gum trees. It runs down a small hill facing east, with lean soils, cooler afternoons, tiny yields, small berries - how asleep had I been to drive past this vineyard for several years? But I’m definitely alert now!
I like shiraz that is big on fruit intensity but is more supple and svelte on the palate, powerful yet velvety, structured but sensual - I could go on but I think I’ve conveyed my point.
So, this is a rare single site treat from my part of the world and a true connection to my beginnings in making wine.

Winemakers Note: I cut my winemaking teeth in the heavy red soils of the north west of the Barossa, where Greenock is the jewel of the crown in my opinion. My winery is here, the pub does a good burger and by chance there’s some pretty good shiraz vineyards knocking about.
A few vintages ago I came across a vineyard just on the north of the Greenock township that hides behind some big gum trees. It runs down a small hill facing east, with lean soils, cooler afternoons, tiny yields, small berries - how asleep had I been to drive past this vineyard for several years? But I’m definitely alert now!
I like shiraz that is big on fruit intensity but is more supple and svelte on the palate, powerful yet velvety, structured but sensual - I could go on but I think I’ve conveyed my point.
So, this is a rare single site treat from my part of the world and a true connection to my beginnings in making wine.

Exclusive to The Vinorium

97++ Points - Stuart McCloskey "The perfume is simply glorious and unfurls with coffee, chocolate, blackberry, dark cherry, raspberry, leafy / herbal notes, sweet spice, clove, warm earth following a downpour, liquorice and a dusting of white pepper. The palate is supple, with satiny fruit effortlessly sailing across my palate. There is richness but it’s handled judiciously – minerality striking a firm cord. This is a grown-up, sophisticated Shiraz which is immensely pleasing. Dark raspberry sweetness juxtaposed wonderfully with the French oak and lithe tannins. This is beautiful. Really beautiful and in all honesty, has taken me by surprise. The spice develops as do the flavours (plums) which expand with each passing minute. This is full of charisma and will only get better (drink now to 2035). Ensure to decant for 2-4 hours. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware. A standout Shiraz.”

Jaysen Collins (winemaker)  "I cut my winemaking teeth in the heavy red soils of the north west of the Barossa, where Greenock is the jewel of the crown in my opinion. My winery is here, the pub does a good burger and by chance there's some pretty good shiraz vineyards knocking about. A few vintages ago I came across a vineyard just on the north of the Greenock township that hides behind some big gum trees. It runs down a small hill facing east, with lean soils, cooler afternoons, tiny yields, small berries - how asleep had I been to drive past this vineyard for several years? But I'm definitely alert now! I like Shiraz that is big on fruit intensity but is more supple and svelt on the palate, powerful yet, velvety, structured but sensual - I could go on but I think I've conveyed my point. So this is a rare single site treat from my part of the world and a true connection to my beginnings in making wine." 

Exclusive to The Vinorium

Mike Bennie (The Wine Front) "Jaysen Collins from Massena, well, he is his own man, but that’s his day job, doing a side project here. Or is Massena the side project? No matter. Some great wines emerging from this label, reminiscent of Standish in some respects, power but elegance, shaped by tannins, and the like, but wholly its own thing too. The last JC’s shiraz wine reviewed here was 2016 and from Stonewall, this from Greenock and 2017. Bold, brash, assertive red of booze-soaked stewed berries, sweet spice, earthy savouriness, brined black olives with a match between the fog of scent and wall of flavour. A freight train through the palate but finds graphite-licked tannin plumes and good shape with a surprisingly fresh and buoyant finish. Yes, a big red, but finds a groove, indeed, carves one out and leaves a lingering train of autumnal but sweet flavours. It’s a pretty darn epic wine here."

Stuart McCloskey “By far one of my favourite annual releases, as I am fascinated by the wacky blend (Old Vine Chenin Blanc and Crouchen, Angaston; Sauvignon Blanc, Adelaide Hills; Chardonnay, Krondorf; Pinot Gris, Adelaide Hills) and the textural feel too, the wine provides glass after glass of uncompromised satisfaction. The grapes are lovingly hand harvested, foot treaded and left on stalks and skins for 24 hours. JC ages the wine on the lees for 11 months and bottles unfined and unfiltered, hence a little cloudiness. Bring everything together and you are presented with a textural beauty which will gain complexity over the coming 3-5 years, but there is no harm in drinking this wine now as it’s so irresistible. I adore texture and I love wines that do not conform – The caveat being that I am not a fan of daft / wacky wines which are created to disrupt. More often than not, they are produced for social media and rarely succeed. For me, JC is a brilliant winemaker with his natural skill for white wines being his ultimate gift. This man can produce bloody amazing wines which are thrilling, sensuous and just outright delicious. The nose is a riot – I actually find myself unable to put the glass down. There’s a touch of oxidation (perfectly acceptable) along with a savoury mélange of hay, wild grass, a milky chalkiness, perhaps a little bruised apple and sweet spice. The palate feel gets my juices flowing – waxy and grippy - my cheeks puckering a little. Savoury, with that fresh grassy character. This is stunningly explosive on the palate. A riot of… Actually, I am struggling to be succinct as there is so much going on. In short, and following a very long tasting note, this is simply a must have. It’s a joy and will be the only wine to serve in the garden this year. Drink now to 2025. Served using Zalto Universal glassware.”

Winemakers Note: I love Grenache, I love its versatility and its drinkability. I was mostly drawn to getting involved with the process and leaning to more textural, structured and savoury versions. Then one day I got to thinking, what about just doing nothing and let the grapes do the work. So, I chucked a few bins of hand-picked grenache grapes into a tank with a bit of co2, sealed the lid and came back several weeks later. When I lifted the lid, I was hit with a whole lot of gassy funk, but in a really good way. It was wild and feral but mostly intoxicating. So, for a few weeks after I just jumped on top of these bunches, breaking them up, in real terms to build structure, but mostly to get lost in the ferine like smells that filled the air.

Winemakers Note: I love Grenache, I love its versatility and its drinkability. I was mostly drawn to getting involved with the process and leaning to more textural, structured and savoury versions. Then one day I got to thinking, what about just doing nothing and let the grapes do the work.
So, I chucked a few bins of hand-picked grenache grapes into a tank with a bit of co2, sealed the lid and came back several weeks later. When I lifted the lid, I was hit with a whole lot of gassy funk, but in a really good way. It was wild and feral but mostly intoxicating.
So, for a few weeks after I just jumped on top of these bunches, breaking them up, in real terms to build structure, but mostly to get lost in the ferine like smells that filled the air.

Jaysen Collins (winemaker)  - "I love Grenache, I love its versatility and its drinkability. I was mostly drawn to getting involved with the process and leaning to more textural, structured and savoury versions. Then one day I got to thinking, what about just doing nothing and let the grapes do the work.

So I chucked a few bins of hand-picked Grenache grapes into a tank with a bit of CO2, sealed the lid and came back several weeks later. When I lifted the lid I was hit with a whole lot of gassy funk, but in a really good way. It was wild and feral but mostly intoxicating. So for a few weeks after I just jumped on top of these bunches, breaking them up, in real terms to build structure, but mostly to get lost in the ferine like smells that filled the air."

Winemakers Note: Old vine Barossa grenache vineyards are a rare treat. Walking amongst the old bush vines gives me such a wonderment of what has transpired in the years gone by to get to this moment in time. It’s like I am breathing the air of times past - it can be truly something quite moving and somewhat magical.
I’ve been working with Barossa grenache since my first vintage and whilst versatile, it can easily become overly sweet and some people can even call it lolly water. But not this special site - no way josé. It gets cool air draining from the Eden Valley across the red sands, so I’ve found it leans more toward complexity and structure, which is what pushes my buttons.
How do I treat such a special site - pretty simply is the answer. 100% whole bunches get a foot treading over several weeks, I press it to large oak barrels and bottle it unfined and unfiltered. That means when I taste this wine I’m still caught up in the magic from the vineyard that has transpired for well over a century. I’ll wipe the tear from my eye as I have another glass.

Winemakers Note: Old vine Barossa grenache vineyards are a rare treat. Walking amongst the old bush vines gives me such a wonderment of what has transpired in the years gone by to get to this moment in time. It’s like i am breathing the air of times past - it can be truly something quite moving and somewhat magical.
I’ve been working with Barossa grenache since my first vintage and whilst versatile, it can easily become overly sweet and some people can even call it lolly water. But not this special site - no way josé. It gets cool air draining from the Eden Valley across the red sands, so I’ve found it leans more toward complexity and structure, which is what pushes my buttons.
How do I treat such a special site - pretty simply is the answer. 100% whole bunches get a foot treading over several weeks, I press it to large oak barrels and bottle it unfined and unfiltered. That means when I taste this wine I’m still caught up in the magic from the vineyard that has transpired for well over a century. I’ll wipe the tear from my eye as I have another glass.

Jaysen Collins (winemaker) - "Old vine Barossa Grenache vineyards are a rare treat. Walking amongst the old bush wines gives me such a wonderment of what has transpired in the years gone by to get to this moment in time. It’s like I am breathing the air of times past – it can be truly something quite moving and somewhat magical. 100% whole bunches get a foot treading over several weeks, I press it to large oak barrels and bottle it un-fined and unfiltered. That means when I taste this wine I’m still caught up in the magic from the vineyard that has transpired for well over a century. I’ll wipe the tear from my eye as I have another glass."