Unsung Hero: Why Philip Rich thinks James Thomas' Heroes is one to watch

Until about six months ago, I had never heard of Heroes. Tucked away in the Otway Hinterland near Birregurra, James Thomas has been quietly flying under the radar, crafting exceptional wines at his Heroes Vineyard since 2016.

I was introduced to James and his wines by my friend and fellow Halliday team member, Marcus Ellis. James was happy for me to review the wines on the proviso that I visit the vineyard to see what he was doing. So about four months ago, Marcus and I caught a train from Southern Cross Station, where James picked us at Geelong station for the hour-long drive to the foothills of the Otway National Park.

James's path to this remote corner of Victoria began with a surfing trip. Originally from the UK, he was working in the yachting industry delivering luxury boats across the Mediterranean and Caribbean when he and a mate decided to spend a year surfing the Australian coastline. They travelled from the Gold Coast to Gnaraloo in Western Australia, working occasionally in vineyards on the Mornington Peninsula and in Margaret River for petrol money. “I was only intending to stay a year, but I met my future wife Eloise," he explains simply.

James Thomas with his pup, Seamus.

A vintage at Pettavel near Geelong in 2005 got him hooked. With encouragement from winemaker Peter Flewellyn, James returned to university to study oenology, eventually landing a role at Bannockburn in 2006. Under Michael Glover, he developed a philosophy centered on terroir and minimal intervention. “He was, and remains, a great thinker, and would constantly challenge ideas and push boundaries,” James recalls. “Without those five years at Bannockburn, I doubt I would have become quite as hardcore in my approach." 

In 2011, James left Bannockburn and returned to England, where he spent three years establishing Knightor Winery – a specialist sparkling house in Cornwall – and making their first three vintages. He returned to Australia in 2014, partly because Eloise struggled with the English weather, and became winemaker at Clyde Park in Geelong for three years.

In 2016, he discovered Heroes entirely by accident. The vineyard, planted in 1999 and for sale at the time, was in remarkable condition. “The owner showed me around and I was totally staggered,” James recalls. “The vines were in such good balance, not being irrigated, and green grass growing happily between the rows!”

Just 180 dozen of the "truly exceptional" Heroes Pinot Noir are produced.

What excited James most was that, although the vineyard is only 30 km outside the Geelong GI, it's much cooler with higher rainfall. To put this into context, Heroes used to have shiraz, but after six years with the wines barely reaching 12.5 per cent alcohol, or not getting ripe at all, James grafted it all over to pinot. The Otway hills, he explains, "create a blanket of clouds that often linger into the day, helping take the edge off the harsh Australian sunshine and promoting even, slow ripening – increasingly valuable in our warming climate."

The soils are sandy clay loams over highly penetrable clay and weathered sandstone, with roots extending deeper than two metres, making unirrigated viticulture possible. "A big part of why I was so keen on this vineyard was seeing this natural balance," James says. "I loved the idea of being unirrigated and still having perfectly balanced canopies and moderate fruit levels. When I first saw the vineyard, I felt the vines were achieving all this naturally." 

James’ approach, too, has been uncompromising. He pulled out all irrigation lines in the first year, converted to organics, adopted zero-till management, and switched to cane pruning with meticulous shoot thinning. “It's a soil-first approach to vine management, with good biology being our foremost goal,” he explains. The results are yields that are relatively low at between 0.8 and 1.4 kgs per pinot noir vine.

Subtle evolutions have occured over the past eight vintages, including picking slightly earlier.

In the winery, James practices what he calls “a very slow and patient approach of standing back and listening to the wines”. No fining, no added acid, no packet yeasts, no tannin additions – just natural ferments and minimal sulphur. “I knew if I'd tricked up the wines in those early vintages, they would have potentially looked better, but they would have been less true to themselves,” he reflects.

Over eight vintages, subtle evolutions have occurred. He's picking slightly earlier now, preserving acidity while trusting tannin ripeness at lower alcohols. Whole-bunch use has decreased marginally and extraction has shortened, but with more frequent plunging to build structure.

This rigorous approach – both in the vineyard and winery – has produced wines of singular quality. He also makes the well-priced Anti Heroes range from vineyards he manages or purchases fruit from, with the same level of detail and care.  

The Heroes Vineyard is about 30 km outside of the Geelong GI.

And while James Halliday reviewed Thomas' first two vintages, giving half of the 2016s and 2017s 95-point scores, he stopped sending wines to critics since. After nearly a decade fine-tuning both the vineyard and his wines, I get the feeling he's confident this is the right time for them to find a wider audience.

It has helped that Brae, one of Australia's greatest restaurants, and which is only a 10-minute drive away, champions the wines. And while there's a small cellar door open on weekends from December through April (daily during January school holidays), Heroes remains very much off the beaten track.

I was blown away by the entire range of 2024s. From the dry and off-dry rieslings to the barrel-fermented sauvignon blanc and chardonnay to the truly exceptional pinot noir, these are wines worth seeking out. That they range from $40 to $75 for the pinot – of which there are only 180 dozen – is a bonus. Like the protagonists in the Bowie song that gave Heroes its name, James and Eloise have found where they belong.

Join Halliday Wine Club to drink the very best of Australian wine 

Are you an explorer, enthusiast or collector? No matter the Halliday Wine Club plan you choose, each month we'll deliver two bottles of 95+ point wines direct to your door. From $89 per month. You can skip, pause or cancel anytime. Join now.