Michael Twelftree is not your typical wine proprietor. First of all, he has none of the swagger and attitude that so many of his colleagues seem to adopt these days. On the contrary, Twelftree is a down-to-earth guy who just wants you to enjoy his wines. Secondly, he was not born into this life. In fact, Twelftree didn’t even start drinking wine until he was 26 years old — positively ancient in a business where most are exposed to wine at a much younger age.

Lastly, Twelftree can’t quite recall how this all started. He was attending a mate’s bachelor party with a good friend, now his Two Hands partner, Richard Mintz. The next morning, the phone range and Michael answered in somewhat of a post-celebratory fog.