Golden straw with a slight green tinge. The nose is all sea spray and crushed almonds, with white peach and a touch of honeysuckle underneath. On the palate, it's textural and generous: think ripe pear and toasted hazelnut, rounded out by a saline, almost oyster-shell minerality. The finish is long and savoury rather than sweet, with a gentle grip that makes you want another sip. If you've ever wondered what a sea breeze would taste like bottled, this is close.

Steve Tierney has spent his whole life around the vineyards of the Limestone Coast. He grew up watching harvest trucks roll through town every autumn, and by the time he'd finished his oenology degree at the University of Adelaide, he was already several vintages deep working the region's limestone-rich soils. Years later, he's still there, still finding new ways to work with the fruit he knows best. Strange Friends is a bit of a joking name, but serious wine - what happens when you put two grapes together that have no business sharing a bottle? Vermentino brings the saline, sea-spray freshness it's known for in coastal Italy. Fiano adds texture and a nutty, honeyed weight underneath. Neither variety is common in Australia, and pairing them together is even less so, which is exactly the point. Each variety is fermented separately, cool and slow, to hold onto the aromatics before blending. The fruit comes from two cool, elevated sites, where the maritime breeze keeps the grapes fresh right through to picking. The result is a wine built for people who like their whites lively, food-friendly and a little unexpected. That's the whole idea behind Strange Friends: good things happen when you stop worrying about the rules.