Interview Gary Mills, Jamsheed, Victoria

Tags

Gary Mills, Jamsheed, Paul Draper, Ridge Vineyards, syrah, victoria, Yarra Valley

Name: Gary Mills

Winery: Jamsheed

Town/Country: Melbourne Victoria

self-taught winemaker

Which spot in your vineyard is the most special and why?

I don’t own any of my own vineyards and instead have long-term relationships with my growers.  Standing in the middle of the Garden Gully vineyard, planted sometime in the late 1800’s, and looking at a treasured piece of Australian viticultural history makes me feel very humble and proud to be able to continue that story.

If you link the dots in your life, which experience was the most crucial relating to how you make your wine today?

A five-week internship with Ridge Vineyards in Santa Cruz, USA that turned into a 2 year full-time position.  Paul Draper taught me pretty much everything I know about winemaking.

“all I know about winemaking is from Paul Draper”

What kind of music do you enjoy listening to when making wine in your cellar?

A mix of indy garage punk, country and soul.

Name a regional dish from your area, which matches best with one of your wines.

Black Berkshire Pork chops and Beechworth Syrah

loyal companions

Name a restaurant from your recent travels around the world, which changed the way you thought about food and why?

Giro Giro, Kyoto Japan. Incredible deconstructed interpretation of traditional Japanese Kaiseki.  Brilliant, thoughtful food in a superb atmosphere.  Just make sure you take a lot of cash – don’t get stuck with your credit card like I did.

If your wine would die, who or what would it come back as (person/animal)?

Elvis!

Syrah from varying Yarra Valley soils

Interview Stephane Ogier, Ampuis, Rhone

Tags

ampuis, cote rotie, michel ogier, rhone, seyssuel, stephane ogier, syrah

Name: Stephane Ogier

Winery: Domaine M & S Ogier

Town/Country: Ampuis, France

“the leading craftsmen from steep hillside
vineyards” Robert Parker

Which spot in your vineyard is the most special and why?

Here, in Côte-Rôtie, we are very lucky to have a mosaic of terroirs. Each one has its own history, its own characteristics, and its own taste. It is this richness that makes the identity of Côte-Rôtie and its particularity. So it is too difficult to choose one spot, it is the plurality that is the most special and exciting. And what I prefer is revealing in my wines the specificity of each terroir.

Steep granitic vineyards

If you link the dots in your life, which experience was the most crucial relating to how you make your wine today?

I was very lucky to travel a lot before coming back to the family wine estate. I spent some years in South Africa, which was really exciting, but I think the most crucial experience was my 4 years in Burgundy.  It is in Burgundy that I learned about the subtlety between a Village, a Premier Cru and a Grand Cru and it helped me a lot to classify my terroirs today.

What kind of music do you enjoy listening to when making wine in your cellar?

I always listen to music that makes me happy and gives me positive energy! I usually listen to radio actually in the cellar, with very eclectic choices, from pop to classic music.

Name a regional dish from your area, which matches best with one of your wines.

We are very lucky in Ampuis to be surrounded by legendary restaurants, since the region (quite close to Lyon) is the cradle of French Gastronomy. Mythical chefs like Fernand Point who ran La Pyramide restaurant (one of the first 3 Michelin stars in the 50s) made Pigeon legs and supremes, agria fondant potatoes with cocoa, dressed with Tonka bean sauce.

Name a restaurant from your recent travels around the world, which changed the way you thought about food and why?

La Pyramide restaurant, with today’s Chef Mr Patrick Henriroux, who is a magician to sublimate our wines with its cooking.

blind folded during work

If your wine would die, who or what would it come back as (person/animal)?

This is a difficult question to answer! I think it could come back as a horse, because it is a very fine and elegant animal, but with a strong character, the perfect alliance between strength and elegance.  In Europe, the horse is associated with power and richness, but it is also known as a great friend for humans, as the wine I think!

Syrah from Seyssuel, as good as Cote Rotie at half the price