'WA in a bottle': Subsea Estate rises from the deep

Where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet off Augusta’s coast, a new chapter in Margaret River’s wine region unfolds beneath the sea.

Brad and Jodee Adams, the innovative force behind Rare Foods Australia (RFA), are diving deep into their latest venture with the release of ‘Subsea Estate’, a wine label that marries their maritime heritage with Margaret River’s renowned viticulture.

For Brad, the ocean runs deep in his blood. As a third-generation fisherman, his father, Terry, pioneered commercial wild abalone diving in Flinders Bay during the 1960s.

After completing aquaculture studies in Tasmania and spending twelve years as a commercial abalone diver, Brad and his wife Jodee revolutionised the region’s aquaculture landscape.

In 2009, they developed the ABITAT, a sophisticated artificial reef system for designed abalone cultivation. With this innovative idea, they established the world’s first commercial abalone ranch, marking a significant milestone for sustainable seafood production in the area.

“The ocean has always been more than just a workplace for us,” RFA Founder and Managing Director Brad Adams reflected. “It’s a source of endless possibilities, whether growing abalone or ageing wine.”

With the sea running through their veins, this new chapter has the RFA team very excited, if not a little surprised.

“I’m just a fisherman, and I have to say, all those years ago, I never thought I’d be in the wine business. But here I am talking about the ‘fruity bouquet’. It’s wild!” Brad laughed.

Embarking On A Subsea Adventure

‘Subsea’ – The name conjures images of a midnight-blue underworld at the ocean’s depth, somewhere far below the sea’s surface, where the world sways and moves in a different rhythm from the one we know above.

A submerged space where magic happens and the perfect place to make wine, according to Brad’s wife and RFA co-founder Jodee Adams.

The notion of ocean-matured wine sparked when Jodee watched a documentary about shipwreck-recovered wines.

“She turned to me and announced her ‘crazy’ business idea,” Brad recalled.

“She said, ‘Let’s try some ocean cellaring!'”

Over a few drinks on the deck, the spirited couple pitched the idea to their good mates from Glenarty Road Winery, who loved it and quickly jumped on board!

Their initial co-experiment in 2020 proved transformative.

Two hundred bottles of sparkling wine on lees, placed beneath the waves, emerged with exceptional taste and a distinctive “Ocean Signature”, a natural aquatic coating created by their underwater journey.

The alluring beauty of the wine hooked these entrepreneurial ocean lovers, leading to the emergence and development of the Subsea Estate brand.

“After our success with the ocean cellaring, we began to get excited about the different methods of ageing wine in the ocean,” Brad explained.

“The idea of the new wine label started bubbling, and we did a great deal of research on underwater wineries around the world to find answers on how we could sustainably produce wine on a large scale.”

After several years of research, Brad and Jodee discovered Winereef, a forward-thinking French wine company on the Basque Coast.

“We discovered this amazing guy, Emmanuel Poirmeur, famous in France for his innovative approach to wine, who had developed a subsea winemaking system using patented vats,” Brad said.

Emmanuel Poirmeur developed groundbreaking technology that enabled wine to mature underwater through a secondary fermentation process.

This innovative method uses the ocean’s pressure, constant movement, and environmental conditions to create wines with unique flavours and identities unseen on land.

When Emmanuel and his partner Miguel Montouro visited Augusta in November 2022, Brad noted, “It was like meeting a kindred spirit, someone who understood and loved the ocean.”

An instant partnership and friendship formed and plans were immediately made to trial subsea wines from Margaret River in Winereef vats.

Following this initial meeting, local winemaker Simon Hanley joined the venture, bringing his extensive expertise and boundless enthusiasm to the innovative project.

For Simon, it’s a surfing winemaker’s dream.

“I grew up in Augusta, and if anyone had told me as a kid I’d combine winemaking, the ocean, and diving into one role, I would have laughed. But here we are, and it’s amazing!”

Maritime Winemaking

In May 2024, Subsea Estate established its underwater cellar, securing 21 Winereef vats of Margaret River Shiraz and Semillon at 18 metres depth in RFA’s 413 ha ocean lease off Flinders Bay.

This beautiful part of the sea was transformed into an underwater cellar, where instead of oak barrels filled with wine, quietly nesting and maturing, vats or ‘mini tanks’ tethered to the seabed sway with the tides and swell of the ocean.

The project’s careful design reflects RFA’s commitment to ocean conservation, with the vats attracting new marine habitats and sea life.

“From a sustainability perspective, we’re eliminating the need for climate-controlled warehouses,” explained winemaker and RFA’s Ocean Cellar GM, Simon Hanley.

“But it’s more than energy savings; we’re working in partnership with the ocean.”

“We want to work with the ocean. Not just use it, we’re very conscious of our impact,” he added, highlighting Subsea Estate’s environmental consciousness, which extends beyond wine production with plans to align with broader ocean conservation initiatives.

While environmental harmony is a remarkable benefit, the team is most excited about the groundbreaking Winereef vat concept and its transformative influence on winemaking.

For Simon, the magic lies in the unique fermentation process and the magical motion of the ocean.

“This is the project’s most exciting part,” he noted, describing how the underwater environment creates constant pressure and movement” conditions you don’t get on land.”

Large swells regularly pass through their underwater winery, keeping the wine and yeast in continuous motion and suspension.

This natural movement achieves what winemakers traditionally do through weekly hand stirring while the ocean’s pressure accelerates the breakdown of yeast cells, releasing complex flavours.

“Most wine will never have that kind of exposure to yeast,” Simon explained.

“With white wine, you’ll get a lot more body, richness, and those delicious brioche characters that people love.”

The benefits extend to red wines, too, where the yeast acts as a natural fining agent for tannins, producing softer, more fruit-driven wines.

From The Seabed To Bottle

Recently, Subsea Estate’s diving cellar hands recovered the inaugural trial of 13,000 litres of oceanic wine.

After six months of underwater cellaring, the southern hemisphere’s first subsea wine emerged, carrying the maritime magic within its layers.

“We pulled the commercial trial out only a few weeks ago and were blown away!” Brad and Jodee said.

“We’ve created something truly extraordinary.”

“This is a truly unrivalled, innovative winemaking method to produce remarkable wines of adventure for consumers,” he said. “Wines made in harmony with the power of the Southern Oceans.”

Unlike traditional wines that tell the tale of terroir, Subsea Estate wines speak of ocean rhythms and the seasons of the sea.

“Summer and winter bring significant differences,” Simon explained.

“There’s less wave energy in Augusta’s summer months and warmer temperatures compared to winter’s cooler, dynamic oceans.”

These seasonal variations now drive their new explorations and trials of how different immersion times and conditions influence each wine’s character.

With the release of the first Subsea Estate wines this week, consumers can now dive into a bottle and discover the beauty of the south west’s unique maritime influence for themselves.

Subsea Estate is a brand for the people and the region, with the sole purpose of introducing a new wine experience that is uniquely WA.

It is a pure, fun wine yet refined brand that ‘people can align and connect with.’

“This is WA in a bottle. It’s 100 percent Margaret River region wine. It’s something everyone owns,” Simon said.

“What makes this brand different is that while generations of families often own wineries, the ocean belongs to everyone, and it’s there for all to love and enjoy.”

For Brad and Jodee Adams, this venture unites everything special about their region.

“We’ve got all the right ingredients: the people, the subsea system, skilled divers, the magnificent harbour, and the beautiful ocean. With Margaret River’s winemaking infrastructure just up the road, it’s amazing!”

Their commitment to community remains at Subsea Estate’s core.

“We’re going to support our best grape growers down here. It’s important to us that we’re all a part of this incredible journey together.”

With community at its heart and an adventurous desire to create new experiences for the region, Rare Foods Australia and Subsea Estate’s Augusta Marina headquarters have some exciting projects on the horizon. So watch this space…

And in the meantime, as the sun sets over Augusta’s coastline, somewhere beneath the surface, the next vintage of Subsea wines gently sways with the ocean’s rhythm.

Wines that offer a complete oceanic experience. An immersion into a different way of life and a different way of looking at things.

An expressive, experimental interplay of traditional winemaking and innovative thinking that will take you on a journey to the ocean floor, where you’ll find a tale of a wine cellar caressed by the currents and at the mercy of the sea.

“Wine is all about people and good stories; this has a great story, and we want everyone to be a part of it.”

Subsea wines are now available at the Cellar Door at Augusta Boat Harbour, Leeuwin Road, Augusta, open Monday – Friday or online at www.subseaestate.com