What was the turning point that made working with wine the right choice for you?

 I moved to Margaret River at 19 chasing surf and following a job. I saw all these grapevines scattered around the place and became curious, so I took a part-time job in a winery to see what the fuss was all about. I think I was chasing a cute girl at the winery too. That helped.

Worst Job in the winery?

Luckily I don't get to do any of the bad jobs anymore. But to look back... I'd say the worst job is not in the winery, but in the vineyard: pruning vines in the rain and hail and wind and cold. Nothing pleasant about it.

Most untrusted grape variety? Why?

You'd think cabernet would be easy from Margaret River, but it is so fickle when it comes to where exactly it's grown and the subtle vintage variations here. It needs to be managed a lot better than some people think. And in the winery, sometimes you put a blend together on the bench and think 'wow, that rocks', and you go back the next day and it looks second-rate. But the opposite is true of course.

Other than that, Merlot.

Wine you wish you had more of in your cellar?

(cliché coming...) I wish I had more top-notch Burgundy (read: I wish I could afford more)

Wine you've always wanted to try but still haven't?

There's no singular wine I'm hankering for, but I love looking at a line-ups. So I guess if you offered me a shot at a vertical of La Tache, or Leeuwin Chardy, or Pichon Lalande I'd be happy to turn up!

If you could make an experimental wine, what grape would you use and what stye of wine would it be?

At the moment I'm keen on some alternate varieties. I'd love to be knocking out a nebbiolo, or tempranillo. Or vermentino or fiano. No idea about the 'how' yet - I'll work that out when I come to it!

Other than that, I'd love to get involved in a bio-dynamic project to see what really can be achieved with simple philosophies. I think there'd be an enormous satisfaction associated with the effort.

If you weren't a winemaker what would you be?

Sober.

Wine region you'd most like to visit?

I haven't taken that big, long European trip I've been thinking about for twenty years, but when I do I'll make sure I include northern Italy, Burgundy and Rhone, and most of Spain. Is that specific enough? ;-)

What was the last wine you had a bottle of?

We had a bottle of 2006 Alex Gambal Volnay a couple of nights ago. A mate imports it and I think it's all sold out, but I managed to snaffle a sixpack. Geez, it's good. Equal parts subtlety and power, equal parts seductive and raw.

Worst mistake you've made at work?

Nothing worse than blending the wrong wines together. Luckily I haven't done it! Hmmm... maybe bottling a wine with the wrong label once. Costly, but repairable.

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