Yesterday was our final day in France.

After two weeks travelling through Champagne, the Loire Valley, Chablis, Burgundy, Beaujolais and the Northern Rhône, we made one final stop before heading home: Saint-Joseph.

In many ways, it was the perfect place to finish.

Over the past two weeks we've travelled thousands of kilometres, met dozens of producers and tasted hundreds of wines. The goal wasn't simply to find great wine. It was to find producers who could become part of the Vintrepid portfolio for years to come.

For a long time, I've felt there was a gap in that portfolio.

We work with a lot of wines that sit on the lighter side of the spectrum. Beaujolais. Cabernet Franc. Pinot Noir from Burgundy. They're wines I love to drink, but I've always had a soft spot for Northern Rhône Syrah.

The wines have power, but also freshness.

They have depth, but also elegance.

For me, they're some of the most complete food wines in France.

Finding a great Saint-Joseph producer was one of the final pieces of the puzzle. Northern Rhône Syrah is one of the few major French wine styles we don't currently represent, and adding the right producer would help round out the portfolio.

Our first visit was with Domaine Verzier, where Maxime Verzier is gradually taking over from his father. Like so many producers we've met over the last two weeks, he's part of a new generation pushing quality forward while respecting what came before.

The domaine is Demeter-certified biodynamic and the wines were exactly the sort of style I love. Fresh, energetic and incredibly drinkable.

We tasted Saint-Joseph Rouge, Saint-Joseph Blanc, Crozes-Hermitage and Condrieu, and left genuinely excited about what they're doing.

Our second visit was with Benoît Roseau, a much smaller and more traditional producer. His cellar was one of the most rustic we'd seen all trip, but his wines have recently received serious recognition from critics, with scores placing him alongside some of the biggest names in the region.

The wines were outstanding.

Both visits were.

And that's often the problem.

Finding great wine is the easy part.

Choosing which producers to work with is much harder.

People sometimes ask how we build the Vintrepid portfolio.

The answer is that we don't really choose wines.

We choose people.

The wine matters, of course.

But so do the vineyards.

The farming.

The philosophy.

The personality.

The long-term vision.

These aren't decisions for next year.

They're decisions for the next decade.

When we bring a producer into the portfolio, we want to grow together.

That's why so much work goes into these trips.

For six months before boarding the plane, I was researching producers, reading articles, chasing recommendations and building lists.

Then comes the real work.

Walking vineyards.

Tasting wines.

Meeting families.

Trying to understand who these people really are.

Looking back, I'm incredibly happy with what we've achieved.

We came to France looking for Champagne.

We found it.

We came looking for Chablis.

We found it.

We wanted to strengthen Burgundy and Beaujolais.

We've done that too.

And now we're exploring opportunities in the Northern Rhône.

More importantly, we've met people whose values align with our own.

Over the last fourteen days we've met young families, ambitious growers and passionate winemakers trying to build something meaningful.

People with children.

People with mortgages.

People worrying about the weather, cash flow and what the future might bring.

In many ways, they're not that different from Jess and me.

The stereotype of French wine is grand châteaux and old-world luxury.

The reality is hardworking families trying to build something that lasts.

That's probably been the biggest lesson of the trip.

When Vintrepid started two and a half years ago, we imported two pallets of wine from Yohan Lardy.

Today we work with producers across France and, after this trip, we'll likely welcome several more into the portfolio.

But growth has never been the goal.

The goal has always been to build something we're proud of.

One producer at a time.

One relationship at a time.

One bottle at a time.

Looking back, the trip achieved exactly what we hoped it would. We found exciting opportunities in Champagne, selected a new Chablis producer, strengthened relationships in Burgundy and Beaujolais, and explored potential partnerships in the Northern Rhône.

As much as I've loved every minute of this trip, I'm ready to go home.

Fourteen days is a long time away from your family.

I'm looking forward to seeing Jess and the kids, sleeping in my own bed and beginning the next stage of the journey.

Because now the real work starts.

The wines need to be selected.

The orders need to be placed.

The containers need to be shipped.

And over the coming months, many of the discoveries from this trip will begin finding their way into future Club Vintrepid Discovery Packs and onto restaurant wine lists across Australia.

I can't wait to share them with you.

Thanks for following along.

It's been quite a journey.

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Over two weeks we've travelled through Champagne, the Loire Valley, Chablis, Burgundy, Beaujolais and the Northern Rhône.

Every region was different.

Every producer had a different story.

But one thing connected them all: passionate people trying to make better wine and build something that lasts.

That's what we came looking for.

And I'm happy to say we found it.

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