Vininspo! podcast

I didn’t realise how off-the-beaten path the Osicka family vineyard was until I took the beaten path out of Heathcote and went off it for a considerable time before rolling into this vine-strewn refuge in the bush. The whole thing lulled me into profound contemplation: the sacred vault-like feel of the cellar, the lilting cadence of Simon’s voice, the subtle sustained notes of these wines. A bobbing procession of kangaroos conjured from the scrub woke me from my reverie on the dirt track back. Uprooted from far-flung Velké Bílovice, the Osicka name felt baked into the very soil of Graytown.Paul Osicka Wines was established in 1955 by the first Paul Osicka in this story: Simon’s grandfather Pavel, who fled Europe and settled in Australia. My first encounter with the wines came when Simon’s father was at the helm and before Simon joined him full-time in 2010. Paul Jr. died nine years later, and Simon and his partner in viticulture and in life, Alison Phillips, continue to carry the torch for this special place.I visited Simon after the curtain came down on a few days of judging at the Heathcote Wine Show. It was an enjoyable, eye-opening experience, and I was keen to bring Simon’s affinity with the region to the Vininspo! audience.Shiraz accounted for 49% of the Heathcote crush in 2025, and it is the main focus at Osicka. There’s also a long history of Cabernet Sauvignon, an exciting newer chapter with Grenache, some Riesling on the side and other stuff to come. Simon and I talk about all of these varieties and their place in the region’s tapestry.There’s plenty of insight on the lay of the land across Heathcote, a larger and more diverse region than many realise. Vines were first planted here in the 1850s, and Simon speaks of one Baptista Governa, an Italian immigrant who arrived in Nagambie in the 1870s and planted vines in Major’s Creek at Graytown some years later.In 2002, Heathcote became a recognised Geographical Indication, and these days there are around 40 wineries and 70 vineyards. The vineyards extend some 90km from north to south, with the northernmost sites beyond Colbinabbin and the southernmost around Tooborac. The latter sits on the cusp of the very cool Macedon Ranges, which favour Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The township of Heathcote is located in the southern third of the GI, and Graytown is 30km away on its eastern limit, over halfway to Nagambie.Based in Tooborac, Adam Foster of Syrahmi is name-checked as a ringleader of the Heathcote vignerons’ Shiraz benchmarking sessions. J.L. Chave, where Simon worked a formative harvest, Domaine Jamet, Yves Cuilleron, M. Chapoutier, Pierre Gonon, Pierre Gaillard and Stéphane Ogier are among Northern Rhône royalty referenced here.Tellurian winemaker Tobias Ansted, Will Dredge of Red Edge and Luke Lomax of Heathcote Estate and Devil’s Cave are among those who might attend those Syrah love-ins. All three of them helped out with stewarding at the show. Other Heathcote winemakers mentioned include Emily McNally, daughter of Jasper Hill founders Ron and Elva Laughton; Liam Anderson, son of Wild Duck Creek founder David Anderson; Mark Hunter at Sanguine; Ian Rathjen of Whistling Eagle; and the father-daughter duo Madeleine and Mario Marson of Vinea Marson.When talk turns to Cabernet Sauvignon, I mention the Cabernet Cartel tasting hosted by former Vininspo! podcast interviewees Rob Mann and Julian Langworthy. You can read more about in this piece, which includes the Clare icon Wendouree and the Ansted & Osicka Balgownie 1970 Block Cabernet Sauvignon, which Tobias and Simon make from a storied but imperilled vineyard planted by Stuart Anderson at Maiden Gully in Bendigo.Simon’s good friend Rob Mann of Corymbia also crops up in this story about the Marks family of Gembrook Hill. Andrew Marks is the third man in this cerebral, boundary-pushing circle of friends and he, too, is discussed in my conversation with Simon. Rob was also part of the crop of Hardys superstars and their mentors, all of whom have turned up before on this podcast: Peter Dawson, Tom Newton, Paul Lapsley, Ed Carr, Paul Carpenter, Alex Mackay, Mark O’Callaghan, Glenn Barry, Charlie Seppelt, Fran Austin, Ross Pamment and Larry Cherubino. Stephen Pannell (S.C. Pannell), Steve Flamsteed (Decades), Anna Flowerday (TWR) and Sue Bell (Bellwether) have all been guests on the podcast, and you can also read this profile of Kerri Thompson of Wines by KT.Back in Victoria, Jen Pfeiffer of Pfeiffer Wines in Rutherglen—best known for her spectacular fortified wines—was an exceptional chair of judges at the Heathcote Wine Show. A bottle of Tahbilk’s 1927 vines Marsanne sparked an interesting conversation at the judges’ dinner, and Alister Purbrick of Tahbilk, not far from Paul Osicka Wines, turns up towards the end of this conversation with Simon.Finally, you’re not expected to know what a quincunx is. It’s an arrangement of five things in a square or rectangle with one at each corner and one in the middle—think of the five pattern on dice. The Osickas discovered the planting configuration in the Handbook on Viticulture for Victoria, a practical manual prepared by the pioneering viticulturist François de Castella. The Grenache that inspired Simon was a Châteauneuf-du-Pape from Domaine de Marcoux, should you wish to seek it out. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit edmerrison.substack.com/subscribe

David Bicknell’s unceremonious axing from Oakridge came as something of a bombshell. The Yarra Valley estate’s owner, Endeavour Group, had announced a couple of months previously that it was selling up. But it seemed improbable that the man who’d led it for a quarter of a century and put it on the map as a trophy magnet for site-specific, cool-climate wines would be tipped out.Given his reputation for forthright opinions and headline-grabbing wines, Dave has hitherto remained a somewhat private person. Indeed, I had never met or spoken to him before lining this interview up. His public profile has risen since news broke of his departure, but it seemed odd to me that very little of what I knew had come straight from the horse’s mouth.Among myriad accomplishments, Dave was dux of the Len Evans Tutorial in 2005, was crowned Gourmet Traveller WINE Winemaker of the Year in 2017, co-founded the influential Pinot Massif workshop and has chaired countless wine shows, including the National Wine Show of Australia.He joined Oakridge in 2002 and led it to countless wins on the wine show circuit. In the wake of the regal trailblazers of the Yarra Valley—the likes of Mount Mary, Yeringberg, Yarra Yering and Wantirna Estate—the likes of Oakridge and Giant Steps seemed to go toe-to-toe in elevating appreciation of the Yarra’s potential to express exceptional vineyards. Sites like Henk, Hazeldene, Willowlake, Lusatia Park and Funder & Diamond seemed to become household names thanks in large part to these efforts.In this episode, Dave and I talk about Oakridge’s trajectory with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon. Adrian Rodda (A. Rodda, Beechworth), Tim Perrin (Port Phillip Estate/Kooyong, Mornington Peninsula), Marty Singh (Precipice, Yarra Valley) and Tim Dexter, son of Mornington Peninsula vigneron Tod, are among team members singled out in our chat.In episode 11, Steve Flamsteed spoke about his student days living with Dave and his viticulturist wife, Nicky Harris (the other half of Bicknell F.C.). Steve is another co-founder of Pinot Massif, and there is plenty more background on this workshop in his episode. The rise of Giant Steps in tandem with Oakridge was in part driven by this rivalry between the best of friends.Not for the first time on Vininspo!, Steve Webber of De Bortoli is given due credit here for his mentorship. You’ll find more about the crop of talent at this Yarra estate in my interview with former alumnus Sarah Fagan. From Dave’s Roseworthy days, Pat Iland garners a special mention. He is serially credited among my interviewees, turning up in conversations with Ginny Willcock and Julian Langworthy, among others. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit edmerrison.substack.com/subscribe

Kelby James Russell had the air of the whizzkid about him when I first met him, and that’s clearly what he was. It was Melbourne, 2015. Riesling Downunder, a now-defunct triennial trade event, had rolled into town. With it came winemakers from Clare, Eden Valley, Great Southern and Canberra. A couple of Alsatians were there, and Germanophones aplenty from the Mosel, Rhine and Danube. And among them, a sole, studious-looking American.Red Newt was the label Kelby was pouring—one of relatively few Finger Lakes estates I was familiar with. He wasn’t loud, and nor were the wines. But both were captivating. What struck me most was that, without apparent effort, he seemed calmly confident of holding my attention in that crowded room. He duly succeeded.It was great to get up to speed on Apollo’s Praise, the winery Kelby founded on Seneca Lake in 2023 with his wife, Julia Hoyle. (The wines are not yet imported into Australia; it would be wonderful to see that injustice rectified!) Julia is winemaker at Hosmer Winery on Cayuga Lake. Kelby tells us a bit about what’s so special about Julia, and a lot about what’s special about the Finger Lakes as a place to grow wine.Peter Bell is the name of Kelby’s first wine mentor in the region from his time at Fox Run Vineyards. Red Newt Cellars, where Kelby made his name, was founded by David and Debra Whiting in 1998, and is also on Seneca Lake.During his early vintages in the southern hemisphere, Kelby speaks affectionately about his time at Yalumba in South Australia’s Barossa Valley. Louisa Rose, winemaker and head of sustainability at Hill-Smith Family Estates, was one of those he met there, as was now-retired Kevin Glastonbury. Peter Gambetta, meanwhile, has been a frequent visitor to the Finger Lakes, Kelby tells me.Speaking of outside influence, we name-drop Pfalz producer Koehler-Ruprecht and Franken grower Hans Wirsching when we talk about the Scheurebe grape variety. The variety was long thought to be a cross between Riesling x Silvaner, but subsequent DNA analysis refutes Silvaner’s involvement, suggesting a wild vine sampling is the other part of the equation. Scheurebe is regarded as a highly successful grape for its performance in cool climates and its flavour/structure profile. (Dr Georg Scheu did the work, and “Rebe” is German for vine.)The Germans also come up on the subject of the international ideas exchange — the kind that takes place at FLXcursion, the Finger Lakes Riesling Wine Conference. This effectively took the place of Washington State’s Riesling Rendezvous. The Australian equivalent morphed into Riesling Downunder, which was last held in 2018. International Riesling Symposium in the Rheingau, meanwhile, is ground zero.Kelby describes the Knoll—the single-site wine that made his name—as being Grosses Gewächs-style. This refers to a textural, dry style of Riesling from a grand-cru site in Germany. Knoll is also, coincidentally, the name of an exceptional Austrian producer known for ripe, multi-dimensional, dry, aromatic white wines. If you’d like to know more about the other Prädikat styles Kelby mentions, a good place to start is this chat with Erni Loosen.Finally, the name Apollo’s Praise comes from a glee named Glorious Apollo. If you want to hear notes whistling over your head like ghosts, here’s the version I checked out to witness the complex, harmonious heights Kelby and Julia’s wines aim to scale. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit edmerrison.substack.com/subscribe

For a long time, I’ve been intrigued by Eugene Qiao’s brain—one I’ve picked on several occasions, not least for a reality check and a unique perspective on Italian and Australian wine culture. A Chinese student destined, seemingly inevitably, for medical career, somehow turned up in Barolo and entered the fold of a family where thinking differently is the norm.This conversation with Eugene makes for a nice complement to episode 35, which featured Giuseppe Vaira. She gives an outsider’s take on the customs and people of Piedmont, as well as its wines. There are plenty of new areas to probe and opportunities to delve deeper.I especially enjoyed Eugene’s take on cuisine, climate change, alternative varieties and the versatility of Nebbiolo—including a thoroughly informed impression of how Australia is travelling with this beautiful grape.A little context will help, starting with the Vaira family tree. It was Giuseppe’s father, Aldo, who interviewed Eugene for her role. With his wife, Milena, Aldo founded G.D. Vajra in 1972. It takes its name from Aldo’s father, Giuseppe Domenico Vaira, even though he did not work in the wine industry. (The family name is written with an ‘i’; a printing error in the early days led to the adoption of the ‘j’ styling.) It was, in fact, on the farm of his grandfather, Carlo, that Aldo had his first taste of vineyard work. These days Giuseppe and his siblings, Francesca and Isidoro (Isi), head up the business. They are all mentioned in our conversation.Isi is given credit for the way he assisted Eugene early on, especially thanks to his devotion to Piedmont’s lesser-known indigenous varieties. We talk about his pet project, a vineyard in Farigliano, where this is a focus. The commune lies within the production area of Dogliani DOCG (a Dolcetto appellation), where the Vaira family’s Monterustico wines are grown.Some of the grapes mentioned are the red varieties Freisa, Slarina and Chatus and the white grapes Nascetta, Bian Vert, Manzoni Blanco, Rossese Bianco and Baratuciat. You’ll find these in blends such as the G.D. Vajra Rosso, Luigi Baudana Dragon Bianco and Monterustico Bianco.Nebbiolo features heavily—how could it not?—and among the variations, we speak about the Italian regions of Valtellina and Alto Piemonte, the light, juicy red style the family produces under its Claré J.C. label, and Australian exponents such as Patrick Underwood (Little Reddie), Tess Brown (Vignerons Schmölzer & Brown), Pete Graham (Domenica; read more here) and Stephen Pannell, whose Protero wines are grown in the Adelaide Hills. Steve speaks very affectionately about his time with the Vaira family in episode 30.The G.D. Vajra Barolo vineyards we discuss are Coste di Rose, Bricco delle Viole (both in the commune of Barolo) and Ravera (Novello), while the blended Albe wine is from three sites in Barolo (Coste di Vergne, Fossati and La Volta).Food’s an important subject, too—always, and especially in Piedmont. Apart from the hong shao rou (red braised pork belly) and jaozi dumplings of Eugene’s homeland, the local specialities of carne cruda (raw meat, especially from the Fassona breed of cattle), baccalà (dried and salted cod), finanziera (offal stew) and tajarin al tartufo bianco d’Alba (egg pasta with white truffle) are all on the menu. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit edmerrison.substack.com/subscribe

Subscribe to this Substack and follow on Instagram so you never miss a story!Liam McElhinney’s astonishing show-circuit success at Lowestoft once seemed to me like lightning from a blue sky. The land of the long white cloud had seen it all before—twice over—but I was oblivious. The irreverent, self-effacing bloke I met during the Covid years, who spun a tragicomic tale of lording it up in a Tassie mansion during lockdown while his wife and kids were sequestered in New Zealand, wasn’t obviously a wine wunderkind grown old and wise. But that’s Liam, I guess; one of the most easy-going hard-workers you could meet.This was an enjoyable conversation with a charismatic raconteur. As is always the case, there is plenty of depth, though—both in detail and in the up-and-down, cut-and-thrust of an ambitious go-getter with an open, original mind. And succeeding, mind you, in an agricultural pursuit that is rarely, if ever, straightforward.When Liam and I first crossed paths, he was in Melbourne with Julian Langworthy, who gave a cracking interview—similarly lighthearted with several serious lessons—for episode 26 of the Vininspo! podcast. Liam and Jules are kind of distant cousins within an Australian family winemaking tree, which itself could do with some untangling, not least so you can get to grips with some of the brands mentioned.That family business is called Fogarty Hall Fine Wine Estates. One of its founders, Peter Fogarty, appears in the chapter where Liam is lured to Tasmania. In 2019, Fogarty and a partner, Rod Roberts, acquired the assets and business of the collapsed contract facility Winemaking Tasmania, rechristening it Tasmanian Vintners. Liam became chief winemaker of this new entity.Fogarty Hall’s Tasmanian portfolio now includes the brands Ossa (founded by Rod Roberts and his wife Cecile), Thalia, Strelley Farm and, most famously, Lowestoft. Liam was sitting amid the grandeur of the 1840s-built Lowestoft homestead on the banks of the Derwent River when we recorded the podcast. This label, in particular, has brought Liam head-turning show success, including the prestigious Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy in 2023.The unrivalled variety—and quality—of grapes that Liam works with in his role has fast-tracked him to being an authority on this small island’s remarkably varied terroirs. We talk about these climatic variations, especially in the Derwent Valley, Coal River Valley and East Coast.On the mainland, Fogarty Hall owns Deep Woods in Margaret River, where Julian Langworthy has made his mark as one of the most decorated winemakers of his generation. Lake’s Folly (Hunter Valley), Dalwhinnie (Pyrenees) and Evans & Tate (Margaret River) are among the wineries in the same stable.Turning back the clock to Liam’s Kiwi days, he mentions formative encounters with Cloudy Bay founding winemaker Kevin Judd, now of Greywacke, and Jane Ferrari, long-serving brand ambassador for Yalumba in the Barossa. The Central Otago pioneers mentioned are Rudi Bauer (Quartz Reef), Grant Taylor (formerly Gibbston Valley, later establishing Valli) and Lois Mills of Rippon.In Hawke’s Bay, Warren Gibson and Trinity Hill are discussed at length with Bilancia’s Lorraine Leheny in episode 44. John Hancock also crops up there, and there’s also an overlap in my conversation with Kym Milne MW for episode 41. The same, in fact, goes for Craggy Range visionary Steve Smith MW (episode 16).Looming large in Liam’s Marlborough years are the figures of John and Brent Marris. Brent played a lead role in launching the Delegat brand Oyster Bay before building up Wither Hills, which was eventually sold to the drinks giant Lion Nathan (now Lion).The Ned is the name of the next Sauvignon Blanc brand to go viral at Marris’s hand, with Liam integral to that growth. Waihopai is the subregion linked to its point of difference, coming to prominence after the Wairau and Awatere valleys.From The Ned, Liam progressed to te Pā, teaming up with its founder, Haysley MacDonald. And one more person who should be acknowledged is Liam’s long-suffering wife, Gemma Lyons. Gemma works for Ossa, but I first came across her during her time with Wairau River, another Marlborough family estate I had the pleasure of working with. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit edmerrison.substack.com/subscribe