Luke Tocaciu
Australia
Luke's Wines
- Australia
- 9 wines
- 4 styles
Award-winning Coonawarra winemaker proudly continuing his family legacy
Born and raised in Coonawarra, SA, Luke makes sensational wines that shout of his 'terra rossa' region, injecting his own vision and personality along the way. He's won numerous awards including 7 trophies, dozens of phenomenal Halliday ratings and a place in the Top 50 Young Guns of Wine.
As a kid, he earned his pocket money helping out in the family vineyards. It wasn’t long before he was bitten by the wine bug, and a degree plus vintages in South Australia and Sonoma (USA) soon followed. Ready to make his mark, he returned to the family business to develop drops alongside his Dad, local legend Patrick.
But in 2013, Patrick suddenly passed away, leaving the family bereaved and the winery without its chief winemaker and CEO. Not even 30 yet, Luke had to shoulder a ton of extra responsibility if the business was to continue. So Angels stepped in and gave Luke the assurance to continue his family legacy and keep making the wine he loves - which he does to this day.
Luke Tocaciu's Story
Born and raised on a vineyard in Coonawarra, Luke's love for winemaking started with simple jobs like pruning vines to earn a bit of pocket money. After nailing his winemaking qualifications at the University of Adelaide, he jumped at the opportunity to travel, making vintages in Clare Valley, Coonawarra, Barossa Valley and Sonoma (USA).
In 2010, Luke returned to his family's business to make wine alongside his Dad, respected local winemaker, Patrick. But his father’s sudden passing just a few years later left Luke with huge shoes to fill if the business was to continue.
Thanks to the Angels, Luke got the support he needed to continue the family’s winemaking heritage. He’s not just the winemaker, he’s also the company director meaning when he’s not up to his elbows in grape juice, he’s deep in the books, ensuring everything on the business front runs smoothly.
When Luke makes a wine, he believes it should represent the place it was grown, the climate and the season - and injects it with his own style and personality. Sometimes that’s a traditional approach, other times he gets inventive! One of his favourite things about making wine for the Angels is hearing what they think, and putting that to work for the next vintage.
Luke joined us with just one Naked wine. He’s grown his range to many more and even bought another vineyard in Wrattonbully and a cellar door in Coonawarra. This is the power of Angels!
