Anything written about organic and biodynamic winegrowers and their wines can be found here!
“In the new world, everyone talks about winemakers, like they’re heros,” says Hans Herzog, owner and vigneron at Hans Herzog Estate in Marlborough, New Zealand, “but we should be talking about the vineyard, and winegrowing, because that’s where wine really comes from.” Hans thinks of himself as a vigneron, a French term for someone who … Continue reading A Whole New World – Hans Herzog Estate, Marlborough N.Z.
The Kalleske family arrived in South Australia in 1838, four years after the state was established by the creation of the Foundation Act of 1834. Fifteen years later, in 1853, the family set down their roots in the village of Greenock, in the Barossa Valley, and established a mixed farm consisting of sheep, pigs cattle, … Continue reading Innovative Pioneers – Kalleske Wines, Barossa Valley S.A.
An infinite streak of bright blue stretches out over bush green hills, valleys, gullies and pockets of red terracotta earth. Contrasting against the enormous sky, equally impressive white, grey, and black sentinels hang silent in the air, providing this familiar scene with a sense of awe, calm, and a hint of warning. They drift over … Continue reading Obscured By Clouds – Part 1 – FBW/R – V.14 – H.V.
4am – The alarm finally goes off. I wake up instantly because I’ve not really been sleeping. I’ve been drifting in and out of consciousness with faint coloured images of red, white, and green shuffling through my mind for the last five hours, because it doesn’t truly trust my alarm to sound at the correct hour … Continue reading Early Start Early Finish / Vintage 2014 – Hunter Valley
Bloody good, if you ask me. In 2013 I had the distinct privilege of speaking to so many passionate winegrowers and makers throughout Australia (and New Zealand) all because I wanted to find out if more bottles like Castagna’s Genesis Syrah existed across this wide brown land. What I found was not only are there … Continue reading Happy 2014! – How Good is the Aussie Wine Scene?
“Mum used to say ‘quality, not quantity’”, says Vanya Cullen, managing director, and chief winegrower at Cullen Wines, in the Margaret River sub-region of Wilyabrup, Western Australia. Promised to pioneers as the land of milk and honey, Margaret River was anything but that in the early years right after the Second World War, as ancient, … Continue reading ‘Quality Not Quantity’ – Cullen Wines, Margaret River, WA
Three scientists walk into a bar. A neuroscientist, a biochemist, and a cardiovascular physician. They order a bottle of red Burgundy, and after a few hours “spent solving the worlds problems”, and being enamored with the red juice inside, they decide to plant a vineyard, run it biodynamically, and make wine from it… haha! Having … Continue reading The Science of Winemaking – Lethbridge Wines, Geelong.
“Our universities teach us to make sound wine, rather than great wine,” says Julian Castagna, owner and winegrower at Castagna wines in Beechworth Victoria. “They (the universities) don’t want us to make mistakes,” he continues, “but the reality is, you have to make mistakes. You have to push the envelope to make anything that’s great…” … Continue reading This Is Australia… Castagna – Beechworth
May, 2012. Having quit my job at the BBC, and swapping it for a full time gig in a wine bar just down the road, I was asked by, my boss, to attend the first ever Real Wine Fair, in London. I was to attend, as a representative of the west London bar, Albertine, and report back, … Continue reading An Origin Story… Genesis – The Wine Idealist Is One Year Old
Driving along a rough dirt road, up towards the cusp of the Great Dividing Range, clouds streak and roll over lush green hills, casting some parts in shadow, making the silver rock boulders shimmer and shift colour from black to grey to comic book blue, and back again. It has rained recently, and all the … Continue reading Executing Organic Aspirations – Cobaw Ridge, Victoria
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