Many years ago Jason Searle was visiting Bass Philip, where he helped out in the vineyard and the winery on weekends. He came across a tall lanky fellow by the name of William Downie. During the ensuing work and tastings over lunch,William and Jason realised that they shared some common ideals for wine. A friendship was forged whilst following each other through viticulture studies. A passion for wines with denition of place and were interesting, was often the bonding agent. Life’s crossroads approached for each, and they both sought experience and knowledge on distant shores. After vintage in Italy Jason returned to keep working on a part-time basis with vineyards whilst William’s star was on the rise making a name for himself as one of Australia’s brightest young winemakers. Firstly at De Bortoli and then creating the William Downie range of Pinot Noir wines, all this whilst spending the majority of the year in Burgundy.

As Jason began planning to put some ideas into place and start making some wines, William, now back in Australia, put forward the idea of making them together. Save Our Souls was born. The intention was to make some aordable wine that was removed from the shadows of typical ‘New World’ wine making practices. Vineyards were sought for sourcing fruit. A friendly winery with a few spare tanks, and a bit of space that could accommodate them, was discovered and the journey began. Seven vintages later Save Our Souls produces ve varietal wines and a Rosé. Fruit is sourced from several dierent vineyards spanning both the Yarra Valley and the Mornington Peninsula. Wine making practices remain aimed at producing savoury, textural wines that speak of place and oer something interesting.