Jeanneret Wines - at Sevenhills in the Clare Valley

The trellised vines hug the valley for miles and on a brilliant autumn day like this, you'd be forgiven for thinking they produced bottled sunshine. But there's nothing like a vineyard to convey that sense of the passing seasons, and for Denis Jeanneret whether it was summer or on a crisp winter's day, there was nothing better than taking a stroll through the vines.

Denis came to Australia from Switzerland in the 1960's. By the 80's he'd found this patch of paradise in the Clare Valley. It was his haven from the stress of managing Watchmaking Factories scattered across the globe. For this Swiss watchmaker, wine was in the blood.

"I've been involved with the wine industry since I was four years old - drinking it!!"

"Since you were four - you had an early start".

"In Switzerland or in France, when you are a kid, when you are four, what you have to understand is that at most meals there is a glass of wine on the table for the others. As a kid you are allowed a little bit in a glass and you fill that with water and as you grow older you're allowed a little bit more in the glass".

But the real passion for these gnarled vines set against the rugged Australian bush, and the winemaker's craft, which he instilled in his son Ben, probably came from a sense of rebellion that only a Swiss watchmaker could really understand. He expressed it in the way he grew his grapes, free of the constraints of the trellis, free to grow wild on what's known as "bush" vines, with each available stem woven into a basket.

"Consider the watch industry. You're not allowed to side track, you have to be accurate, you have to be precise, you're talking in hundred of millimetre precision in everything that you do. So at the end of the day you need to.....Hah.."

"You need to rebel?"

"You need to rebel and then you give vent to your imagination. I think it's necessary, or at least I need that, I need to go wild a bit".

But Denis would always take time out to enjoy his craft.

"And we recommend it drinking with the blanket over the hill in the bush, on a warm spring or autumn day with a little fire going, but the second bottle is always better than the first".

"Hah, hah".

Sadly, Denis Jeanneret no longer enjoys the fruits of his labours. He died late last year from cancer. But his bush vines live on and his son Ben continues the Jeanneret tradition, weaving these dryland Cabernet Sauvignon vines into baskets of magic.

"Your dad was very keen on this, wasn't he?".

"Very passionate about it. This is Dad's block. Dad planted this block and tended it lovingly for years and years. Yes, it's something we'll try and keep up with and keep it looking good".

"Why was he so passionate about it?".

"That's a really good question. I think he thought as you come through the driveway and you drive up to the cellar, it would be nice to have a really pretty block of bush vines".

Denis Jeanneret was right - they make a wonderful statement as you enter the Jeanneret Winery off Jeanneret Road at Seven Hill.

The winery is open daily from 11.00am to 5.00pm.

For more information you can email info@postcards.sa.com.au.