When did you realise you wanted to become a winemaker?

As a late teen I had keen interest in chemistry, and a passion for nature and art. The three seemed to amalgamate or collide in my early twenties.

Please tell us about your career so far.

I studied at Charles Sturt University in Wagga and have been in the industry for more than thirty years. Like many, I’ve done Northern Hemisphere harvests, with a few in France’s Bordeaux and Languedoc as well as California in the US. Most of my experience has been in the Yarra Valley with twenty-five vintages there. I have been the winemaker for St Hubert’s since 2006.

What do you love most about being a winemaker?

I love the excitement, anxiety and challenge of the vintage period. Grapes arriving, ferments bubbling away, dirty hands and a different crew to work with. I enjoy the variety of each year as no two vintages are identical, as well as the thrill of trying to organise the chaos!

What is your favourite wine, and what food do you typically pair it with?

My favourite would have to be a good sparkling – traditionally Champagne – but there are awesome Aussie ones out there too. All you need are friends and family; something to celebrate is a bonus!

Is there a specific process you follow when developing a new wine?

I guess there are two main approaches – either developing a wine to cater for a market or make a wine and hope there is a market for it. To be honest, I prefer the latter! Sometimes it is the little things, even things you think may be a mistake, that make for good – and interesting – wines.

Is there any vintage you’re particularly proud of creating? Why?

2021 was just a glorious Yarra Valley vintage, so plenty of lovely wines from that pack. There are plenty of tasty wines I’ve had a hand in, both past and present. Hopefully from these, there are plenty of enjoyable moments for others out there.

How does the local climate/soil affect the wine you make?

Our soils here are often heavy and shallow with bedrock close to the surface. As our post-flowering period coincides with our drier and warmer months of January and February, we often end up with bolder wines with darker characteristics. This is especially true for our lower yielding vineyards on the slopes that produce more concentrated wines. For this reason, in my experience so far, I feel it best to be careful with extraction and I try to use the stems as much as possible to bring freshness and a more elegant tannin – also in the whites.