Dr. Irina Santiago-Brown and Dudley Brown are partners in life, wine, and a shared belief that things can and should be done differently. Irina grew up in Brazil and came to Australia in her 30s to study sustainability and viticulture, eventually earning a PhD and creating the Sustainable Australia Winegrowing program. She’s a serious powerhouse: smart, driven, and endlessly curious about soil health, regenerative farming, and how to make better wine by first taking care of the land. Dudley’s path was less academic but just as intentional, having walked away from a corporate job in the US to pursue winemaking from the ground up in the McLaren Vale. Together, they’ve built Inkwell as a place that reflects them both.

Inkwell is a small-scale, low-intervention winery in McLaren Vale, run by winemakers Dr. Irina Santiago-Brown and Dudley Brown. The winery operates with minimal equipment, using native yeasts, no additives or corrections, and avoiding fining or filtration. Sustainability is central to everything they do: from eliminating tillage and growing permanent cover crops, to building their cellar door from repurposed shipping containers and welcoming wildlife into the vineyard. In 2023, Inkwell became the first ROC®-certified winery in the country, a major milestone that reflects its commitment to soil health, biodiversity, carbon reduction, and social responsibility. This is a winery with a strong conscience, challenging conventions, and setting new standards for Australian wine.