Growing up on a Vineyard

What is it like to grow up on a Vineyard ?

Our daughter, Gabrielle shares her perspective on growing up on a Vineyard.

When I tell people that my parents own a winery and that I grew up on vineyard, they usually think that it was a glamorous upbringing, with idyllic scenes of vineyard. At points it was like that, but the majority of the time it was just growing up on a farm – at this farm we grew grapes – and the 10 acres where the cellar door, winery and main vineyard are, was my playground.

I was recently cleaning up an old hard drive and stumbled across a collection of photos from my childhood of the vineyard which prompted me to think about some of my favourite memories of growing up and I will share a few.

One thing I used to love was going out on the tractor with Dad. I’m sure there are photos of me sitting on his lap on the old blue tractor. He used to let me ‘steer’ and do a loop around the vineyard. Things have changed now though, as last time I was home I drove the tractor when we were putting the nets out in the vineyard.

Making Wine

Gab & Mark making Semillon — Dad & Daughter

When I was in school, I used to get the occasional day off at the start of the year to stay home and help with picking grapes and helping dad in the winery. Then during school holidays Mum and Dad gave me jobs to do in the vineyard to earn a little extra pocket money. In fact, one vintage Dad let me help make the Semillon, so I got a few days off to be there for all the important bits of the wine making process and would go down to the winery after school each day to check on my wine. Other jobs I did in the vineyard included leaf plucking, pulling out the canes after pruning and tying down the baby vines to the wires.

The No. 1 rule from Dad when we were young was that we weren’t allowed to wear thongs out in the vineyard. This was to keep us safe as sometimes snakes and lizards were hiding in the longer grass. This rule is still something I follow when I go home and when I’m in long grass or a paddock where I can’t quite see everything on the ground, I’m extra cautious about where I’m stepping.

You’d think that growing up on a farm, I would have a decent tolerance for spiders and not be scared of snakes or lizards. I don’t. I’m still scared of spiders, especially after seeing some creepy ones – or as Mum would say ‘beautiful’ – in the vineyard. Snakes and lizards also still make me jumpy. There were a few times where I was walking from the cellar door across to the house and there was a snake on the driveway, laying in the sun. I immediately ran back to the cellar door to get Mum or Dad to deal with it.

and Now…

A side effect of growing up on a vineyard and having a winemaker as a Dad has been that I’ve seemingly always had knowledge about grape varieties, the characteristics of wine and been able to explain the process of making wine as well as what would be happening in the vineyard at certain times of the year. It’s a skill that has come in handy as I’ve grown older and gotten into drinking wine and now get to have more in depth discussions with Dad about the world of wine.

Gab in Yarra Valley — Gabrielle in the Yarra Valley

At the time of writing this, I’m living in Melbourne, where I have lived for the past 3 years while I completed my first degree at the University of Melbourne and worked part time in the wine industry. I unfortunately haven’t been able to travel home to WA for over a year due to Covid-19 but look forward to the chance to see my family and the vineyard again.

Vintage Experience 2021 – Walk & Talk

Immerse yourself in a Vintage Experience 2021 – Walk & Talk

Take a walk in the Vineyard with our winemaker, Mark. Sample the grapes and gain an understanding of how we decide when to pick them. Learn what the words “baume” and “brix” mean. Taste the flavours of the grape before they become wine.

Mark will then take you into the winery where it will all be happening. A peek into the world of a winemaker amidst the season we refer to as ‘vintage’ or in Italian, ‘la vendemmia‘.

There will be wines in tank and at different stages of the wine-making process. Get to have a sneak peek and early taste of 2021 vintage wines. Mark might even tempt you with some barrel tastings of the 2020 reds.

This will be a small group experience, lasting about 1.5 hours. (Limited to 10 persons per session)

When

Saturday 27th February 2021 – Starts at 11am

Sunday 28th February 2021 – Starts at 11am

Cost – $30.00 per person

Bookings are essential.

After your Vintage Experience you are then welcome to taste wines at the Cellar Door and restock on some favourites.

You are also invited to order a grazing plate or bring your own picnic to enjoy with a bottle of your favourite wine outdoors in our lawn area.

BOOK HERE

The Wine Dogs of Vineyard 28

Dogs are often the first to greet you at the cellar door here in Australia, and we thought we’d tell you a little more about the wine dogs of Vineyard 28.

In the beginning

In New Zealand, Pippa grew up with a Boxer dog named Bruno. He was the babysitter, making sure she didn’t get up to mischief as a small child. Apparently, they were often caught sharing a biscuit or two. Mark was never a dog person until he met Pippa and him being allergic to cats meant they were ruled out as a family pet option. So, when Mark & Pippa bought their first house, like many, they started out with dog before they got to the kids.

Garvin, a border collie/kelpie cross, commenced life as a pup in suburban Box Hill, Melbourne, having left all his family back in country Swan Hill. He was named for Willie Garvin, the trusty side kick to Modesty Blaise. Modesty Blaise was a British featuring a fictional character of the same name, created by author Peter O’Donnell and illustrator Jim Holdaway in 1963. The strip followed Modesty Blaise, an exceptional young woman with many talents and a criminal past, and her trusty sidekick, the aforementioned Willie Garvin, and their adventures.

Mark has a collection of these comics in his library. Garvin took to city life reasonably well as he had a huge quarter acre block and was walked every day. Garvin and Mark went to dog obedience school, where he was ranking as top dog of class until his last day when something got the better of him and he missed a command in his final test.

Garvin was a well-traveled dog, spending many weekends on the road, back and forth between Melbourne and the Victorian wine regions. He also flew West on holidays with the family, traveling in a cage in cargo, and then settling in for the long drive to Australind. Never once needing a toilet stop until he reached his final destination and the backyard at Mark’s folk’s place.In 1997 he moved with us to Western Australia to become our number one wine dog. He took to country life very easily and learnt very quickly not to tangle with the local reptiles. However he still got up to mischief in the house as one evening he ate a whole chocolate cake off the kitchen bench! Pip had made a cake for the kids to take to a school cake stall the next day, and left it to cool before icing. When she returned to the kitchen, it was to a floor decorated with chocolate cake crumbs and a guilty dog.

Along came Jasper

Moving forward to 2006 there was a family decision that it would be good to add another dog to the mix (and the kids wanted a puppy) The idea was that Garvin could mentor and knock the new dog into shape, making sure he understood life on a vineyard and how to work a cellar door. Jasper arrived in the April of 2006, a locally bred Red Cloud Kelpie (just like Red Dog). There was only the two of them in the litter, and we often say he was very fortunate that we chose him. His brother ended up in Tom Price, and to this day Jasper has never liked very hot weather.

Sadly, Garvin had a stroke later that same year at 13 years old. It was a sad day for us all to say goodbye. Especially for Mark, as Garvin had always been his best mate and shadow.

As many of you know, Jasper has gone on to have a great life here at the vineyard. During his younger years, he hated the rain. He loved being in the vineyard with Pip when she was pruning, but if it rained, he’d dive between her legs to get the benefit of her raincoat. Vintage has always been a favorite time of year for him with a crew of workers to tag along behind and all those grapes to be stolen from the crates, and of course morning tea.

He has always enjoyed the company of other dogs. It would be remiss of me not to mention our other honorary vineyard dog, Kippa, who often has sleep overs with us when her family are away. Many a customer has fallen into the trap of throwing a stick for Kippa at the cellar door, not realising that she can keep the game up all day!

Jasper has been the cellar door concierge all his working life, and in recent months has mostly retired from these duties, preferring to sleep his days away on his favorite couch. He is most definitely in his twilight years, but we still see glimpses of the puppy in him when he grabs his tug-toy out of the basket to play!

ABC – Anything but Chardonnay

Why do we grow mostly Italian Varieties ?

Mark’s Answer: ABC – Anything But Chardonnay

Whenever Mark is asked why we grow Italians? His answer is often literally ‘ABC, anything but Chardonnay’ and not because he dislikes Chardonnay, far from it. There are some great Chardonnays out there to enjoy. Instead Mark enjoys the challenge of growing something different, producing unique wines and sharing them with those amongst you curious about wine.

There is something like 10,000 grape varieties in the world, 3,000 or so in Italy alone, and most people would only be able to name 5-6 at best.

30 years ago, you would find Mark & myself roaming the Victorian countryside looking for elusive, unique wines. This was a time when Brown Brothers and a few other smaller wineries were starting to experiment and beginning to plant lesser known varieties. It was these ventures that encouraged our curiosity about wine, beyond the world of Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet.

How did we stumble upon the Italians?

We were on holiday back visiting family in Western Australia 25 years ago, when we stumbled upon the Three Hills label produced by Erl Happ, and in particular a grape variety we’d never heard of – Nebbiolo. It was so different, sort of like Pinot to look at, but a different shade of red, and tannic and dry, with a rich palate. This led us on a journey to find out more about this grape and where it came from.

Move on a few years and we had decided to move back to the West from Melbourne, leaving behind the corporate world, and look to raise our then 18 month old Bailey with family around him. We had discussing the dream of having our own vineyard and making wine, and the move to the West made this a reality when we purchased our 10 acres on Bagieau Road, establishing Vineyard 28.

In all honesty, we didn’t know much about growing grapes. We knew lots about drinking wine and all the styles, and what it was like to be on the other side of the cellar door counter. In 1997 we started planning; we’d plant a vineyard first, sell fruit to make some money and then build a cellar door and make wine. The grape glut of the latter 90’s – early 2000’s squashed that idea fairly quickly. Selling grapes wasn’t going to be viable, so we revised our plans and dived in to winemaking and building a cellar door.

A few conversations with Erl on how Nebbiolo grew resulted in us planting our first block in 1999. From there on, as they say, it’s history. The love affair with Piedmontese varieties began and we started investigating what other grapes we could grow from that region.

It was a lot of fun trying different wines, researching what could grow here and it still is today. Our vineyards doesn’t stand still. There are always new things to be learnt whether it is about the clone of a particular grape we are growing, the way we are making wine, or a shift to another variety that appeals more to the wine consumer. A great site we can recommend to learn more about lesser known grapes is Vinodiversity.

Present times

Today we grow Arneis, Fiano, Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, Muscat Petit a Grains Rouge, Brachetto and Cabernet Sauvignon on our coastal property at Vineyard 28. In the hills above Harvey at the Wildwater Vineyard we grow, Pignoletto, Barbera, Montepulciano, Dolcetto and Muscat Petit a Grains Rouge.

2021 is our 24^th year in the wine industry, from a very small beginning in 1997 – 11 years of making wine onsite, and 16 years for our Cellar Door operation. Each year is an adventure as we’re never quite sure what the climate and elements have in store for us. We are now preparing to embark on our 2021 vintage journey – from picking the grapes to crafting the wine- and look forward to seeing our wines enjoyed by our loyal customers.

The man behind ‘Bagieau’ Road

Where did the name ‘Bagieau’ come from ?

Bagieau Road has been our home and the home of Vineyard 28 for 23 years now. However, it is only in the past few months that we’ve learned about the origin of how it probably got its name.

My name is Gabrielle, Mark and Pip’s daughter, and I’ve just finished my undergraduate degree in history at the Uni of Melbourne. As part of my final history subject I was tasked with completing a research project on a topic of my choosing. Having been separated from my family and home this year due to border restrictions, I wanted to research something to do with my home. Mum suggested looking into how Bagieau Road got its name. All she knew was that it was likely to have been named for Alexander Bagieau whose name is inscribed on the Yarloop War Memorial.

Who was he?

Alexander Bagieau moved to the Yarloop area from the Eastern States in 1912-1913 and was living and working as a jarrah hewer near Hoffman Bush Landing. When World War One began, he was part of the first wave of enlistments in September 1914, along with many men from the South West. He was assigned to the ‘B’ Company of the 16^th Battalion and trained at the Blackboy Hill Camp up in Perth.

From there, Bagieau’s battalion was moved to Melbourne and then onto Egypt to join up with the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force for the Gallipoli campaign. The 16^th Battalion suffered many losses during their time at Gallipoli, having held some of the most dangerous posts such as Pope’s Hill and Quinn’s post. During the August offenses, Bagieau was shot through the chest and transferred back to England to recover, where he met his future wife Celia James.

However, he didn’t recover fully from his injury, so was returned to Australia. During his time back home, he stayed with the Scott family in Yarloop and also attended the first ANZAC celebration. Having regained his strength, he returned to England in late 1916, received further training in bombing and married Celia. Bagieau was then involved in an accident at the bombing school where a grenade went off accidentally and wounded his face. He recovered quickly and a few months later found out he and Celia were expecting their first child.

Having recovered from his injury, Bagieau was then transferred back to the 16^th Battalion who were stationed in France in September 1917. He joined them in Ypres, Belgium and the Polygon Wood battle, where he was killed in action.

Despite consulting the historic geographic data held by Landgate and cancelled public plans held by the Western Australian State Records Office, no evidence has surfaced that proves the road was named after him. However, it is more likely the case that the road was known locally or informally by this name and when formalised, the origins were left out of the records.

So, next time you take a drive up Bagieau Road to Vineyard 28, you’ll know the story behind our unusual road name.

Wildwater Sparkling Pignoletto

2019 Wildwater Sparkling Pignoletto

On Saturday 14th November we proudly launched our first Sparkling wine, the 2019 Wildwater Sparkling Pignoletto, in the company of our lovely customers and family.

Winemaker Mark regaled our visitors with the tale of how he was first introduced to the world of Sparkling Wine or ‘Bubbly’ as he calls it. Way back in the 1970’s Mark worked his way through University as a kitchen hand at the old Parmelia. At the end of one evening’s work there was a bottle of Champagne not finished, and he was offered it to take home. It would have been either a Veuve Clicquot or possibly a Pol Roger he thinks, but whatever it was, he loved it, and from then on made sure he got the unfinished bottles after his shifts each weekend. And so, the love affair with ‘bubbles’ began.

It was a couple of years ago during a visit to the research block of vines at Wokalup that Mark discovered this grape called Pignoletto. After a bit more research, he found out that it originates from the Emilio Romagna area in Italy. It takes its name from ‘pigna’, the Italian for pine cone, on account of its small, tight grape clusters. When he learned the Italians used it to make a sparkling style wine, we were in. Another block at the Wildwater vineyard was prepared and grafted over to Pignoletto in 2018.

The 2019 Wildwater Sparkling Pignoletto takes its name from the vineyard where the grapes are grown. Our lovely friend and local artist Yvonne Chapman was commissioned to create the artwork for our label. It showcases the terroir of the Wildwater vineyard – its landmark towering gum tree which is in the middle of our Pignoletto block and the guinea fowl who live amongst the vines.

How is the wine made?

Winemaker, Mark, used ‘methode traditionelle‘ for this wine. The grapes were harvested on the 16th February 2019, whole bunch pressed and fermented to dryness in stainless steel. The resultant base wine was bottled and underwent secondary ferment on lees for 14 months, before being disgorged and corked in July 2020.

The resultant wine is a crisp, bright sparkling – think granny smith apples and crunchy green pear slices – this is our Pignoletto.

How do you purchase the Wildwater Sparkling Pignoletto?

Head on over to our Buy Wine page or just click here and it will take you to the right page. But don’t wait too long. This vintage was our very first and there is only a limited supply with our Cellar Club members receiving preference.

Sparkling Pignoletto Release

2019 Sparkling Pignoletto Release

Saturday 14th November 2020

at the Cellar Door

3.00pm to 5.00pm

Bookings essential – Click here to Book

The afternoon will commence with a glass of the 2019 Sparkling Pignoletto.

This is our first production of a sparkling wine using our Pignoletto grapes which are grown in the Harvey Hills at our Wildwater Vineyard.

The label has been created specially for us from a commissioned painting by local artist Yvonne Chapman and friend of Vineyard 28. It showcases the Wildwater vineyard, its landmark towering gum tree and the guinea fowl who live amongst the vines.

Pignoletto originates from the Emilio Romagna area in Italy. It takes its name from Pigna’, the Italian for pine cone, on account of its small, tight grape clusters.

Think crisp green apples and crunchy green pear slices – this is our Pignoletto.

Winemaker Mark, will chat to you about the wine, tell you the story of the label and encourage you to sample it alongside some canapes.

You will also be able to sample the 2020 releases of our Sauvignon Blanc, Arneis, Dolcetto and Dolcetto Freddo.

A grazing table laden with canapes, cheeses, olives, and our awesome locally made artisan crackers will be on hand to enjoy with your wine.

On Saturday 14 November 2020 at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Bookings essential. BOOK HERE

Bunbury Wine Wander

Vineyard 28 at Bayview Bar, Bunbury

Saturday 7th November – 12 noon to 4pm

Ready to wander?! ⁠

We’re thrilled to announce that we’re a featured winery in the Bunbury Wine Wander, an exciting new event that sees eleven Geographe wineries paired with Bunbury CBD venues for the ultimate, self-guided tasting adventure!

You’ll find us at Bayview Bar, Bunbury, serving tastings of three different but equally delicious Vineyard 28 wines – you’ll also be able to purchase some delicious gourmet snacks and meals at the venue.

Happening on Saturday 7th of November, it’s designed for groups of friends to explore and enjoy together!

But you’d better grab your tickets soon because they’re selling fast – head to

@bunburywinewander or www.bunburywinewander.com

to secure your spot now.

Winter – Pruning Season 2020

Winter is our pruning season

Autumn in the Vineyard — *Autumn view of the vineyard*

As the autumn months come to a close the vines transition from all their glorious amber colours to looking quite bleak as all the leaves fall to the ground. The next change for our vines comes with pruning season. From late June through to August is the time we give our vines a big haircut, setting them up ready to burst in Spring and start working on the next vintage of grapes.With tw o vineyards now comprising of almost 22 acres of vines it takes a little longer than it did a few years ago. The majority of our vines are spur pruned, but the Nebbiolo is always cane pruned. Our younger vines, those that we’ve just grafted in such as the Fiano, Montepulciano and Barbera are also cane pruned, as in these first few years of growth it is all about establishing good structure.

Why do we prune ?

Grapevines are perennials. They shoot away in Spring, grow and develop over the Summer, are harvested in the late Summer, then die back over autumn and winter, to begin the cycle again the following Spring. We prune the vines because if we didn’t we’d have naturally bushy trees, with a mess of leaves and branches. Pruning and training our vines, helps us keep them organised and focused on growing grapes.

As the saying goes, ‘Great wines are made in the vineyard‘.

Spur Pruning

Muscat - before pruning — *Muscat Vine – before Pruning*

Muscat Vine after pruning — *Muscat Vine – Spur pruned*

You’ll mostly look out at our vines in winter if you visit and see that they’ve been spur pruned., but what does this mean? The before and after photos of our Muscat vine illustrate this or you. In simple terms we cut off all the current years fruiting canes back down to ‘two bud spurs’, keeping the original cordon and trunk structure in place. We count the number of spurs on each side of the vine, and this way we are able to control the amount of fruit each vine produces. Typically each, spur will grow two fruiting canes and each fruiting cane will produce up two bunches of grapes. Our many varieties produce different bunch weights. From there we do the math – number of vines x number of bunches x average bunch weight = estimate tonnage of fruit per grape variety.

Cane Pruning

Nebbiolo Vine - cane pruned — *Nebbiolo -Cane Pruned*

On the other hand our Nebbiolo is a little different. These vines get a big haircut each year, and are cane pruned. The cordons get removed each year and we reduce it back to two of the best fruiting canes to lay down for the next vintage. The canes are cut to a specific length determined by how many buds we believe the vine can cope with. Generally we work on 8-10 buds per cane, which equates to approx 16 to 24 bunches of fruit per vine. But as we focus on quality over quantity, approx 30% of this fruit is dropped just prior to veraison.

Pruning 2020 – Gallery

Winter morning in the Vineyard — Winter morning here at Vineyard 28

Pip and her pruning hat — Pip & her pruning hat

28 Parrots in the Fiano — ’28’s in the Fiano

Jasper in the Vineyard — Jasper in the Nebbiolo

Winemaker Mark Pruning — Winemaker, Mark with his Dolcetto

Wildwater - Montepulicano block — Wildwater – Montepulciano

Wildwater Muscat & Turkeys — Turkeys at Wildwater

Top 10 Wednesday Wine Facts

Top 10 Wine Facts as ranked by Jasper

For more than a year our trusty cellar door concierge Jasper has been sharing his knowledge of all things wine with his “Jasper’s Wednesday Wine Fact” on Facebook. Sometimes they are quirky pieces of information, and other times quite factual. We’ve reviewed the rankings and as determined by engagement from our Facebook followers, here are the Top 10 Wednesday Wine Facts that you all enjoyed.

Here we go…

The colour of wine is determined by how much contact the grape juice has with the grape skins. This also impacts the amount of tannins in a finished wine. Rose for instance is mostly crafted by controlled and limited contact with the skins of red grape varieties.
Wine grapes are of the vitis vinifera family, and there are apparently over 10,000 different types.
A 750ml bottle of wine contains the juice of approximately 600 to 800 grapes.
There are 11 different bottle sizes. Wow! From the 187ml ‘Piccolo’ up to the ‘Nebuchadnezzar’ which holds the equivalent of 20 standard bottles. (A standard bottle being 750ml) Check out Wine Folly for all the detail.
Not everyone likes wine. Some are even afraid of it. The condition is known as “Oenophobia“.
There is a right way and wrong way to hold a wine glass. Wine glasses should be held by the stem, so that way the hand does not raise the temperature of the wine. The stem exists for a reason!
The dark green wine bottle was an English invention. Sir Kenelm Digby (1603 to 1665) was responsible. Prior to this wine was kept in goat skin bags.
The oldest wine cellar is located on the Titanic. When divers went down to the wreckage they surprisingly found most of the bottles intact.
Grape varieties do not determine how sweet a wine is. Winemakers do. It all depends on whether they ferment all the sugar and convert it to alcohol. In the case of Moscato, they don’t, leaving what is known as residual sugar, giving it sweetness.
How does a traditional sparkling wine get its bubbles? The wine is still when it’s bottled, but then yeast and sugar are added to the mix which create the carbon dioxide (the sparkle) as they interact over the next 12-15 months.