Geoff Thompson
Australia
Geoff's Wines
- Australia
- 13 wines
- 5 styles
An award-winning master blender from South Australia
The first winemaker in his family, Geoff got to grips with grapes in 2002 and left a promising career in photographic science to do something he was passionate about. Hard work and enviable talent saw him work his way up the wine-stained ladder to Senior Winemaker at the Tahbilk Group in Victoria, in charge of more than a million cases a year!
Building a reputation as a master blender, Geoff won a ton of gold medals and trophies for his wines - and developed an itch to branch out on his own, back in his McLaren Vale homeland. Angels helped him scratch it in 2013 when a phone call in a car park kicked off his dream to create wines under his own label for them!
With his winemaking wizardry and access to some of the best grapes in the country, Geoff has been wowing Angels with his sensational South Australian wines ever since. He’s caught the eye of the critics too. In 2022, his winery was awarded 4.5 stars in the iconic Halliday wine companion.
Vineyard Location
Geoff Thompson's Story
Geoff’s love affair with the grape was sparked by air ballooning over hills swathed in vineyards in his early 20's. He was so besotted, he gave up a career in science to devote his life to the noble art of winemaking.
Before he got Naked, Geoff had fine tuned his craft by climbing up the ranks to Senior Winemaker at the Tahbilk Group in Victoria, working with super premium fruit. But his favourite part of winemaking was always the people - their passion for what they do and their connection to the land, the process and each other.
In 2012, Geoff moved back to McLaren Vale where he grew up to make his own wine, his way. Since then, Angel’s have helped Geoff rocket from a tiny production to many thousands of bottles a year - he’s even taken on a new winemaker to give him a hand. As well as security, Naked gives Geoff a genuine sense of the wine lovers who enjoy something made just for them. So his next goal is creating a space for them to enjoy the world of wine. He’s looking to buy a winery, instead of leasing one, to get a cellar door up and running and give Grounded Cru a home.
Ask him has it all been worthwhile and he’ll tell you Naked is a much better option than the traditional route to market. “I didn't want to be supplying Coles and Woolies - it’s cutthroat. Naked gave me a different option and eight years on, I feel really lucky to be part of it”.
Geoff's Archangels
Tonight we drink, tomorrow we ride!
