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Riverina & The Barossa - Emma Norbiato - Calabria Family Wines
116 Plays4 years ago
In the first episode of Fine Vines and Wine we get to know Emma Norbiato, chief winemaker at the amazing Calabria Family Wines in both Riverina and The Barossa. We hear how she worked in Italy at 21, won the Australian Women in Wine Award and gets to experiment and try new things when it comes to the wine making process. She believes that a bottle is made better by who you drink it with and the memory that is created.
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Fine Vines and Wine' Podcast
00:00:07
Speaker
Hi everyone and welcome to Fine Vines and Wine.
00:00:10
Speaker
I'm your host Karis Pixie and each week I'll be giving you all an insight into the behind the scenes of our favourite beverage, wine.
00:00:18
Speaker
I'd love for you to use this podcast platform as a winery guide for your next weekend away, exploring everything Australia has to offer.
00:00:26
Speaker
You never know, you might discover a new spot or two to visit.
Acknowledgment of Traditional Custodians
00:00:30
Speaker
I acknowledge the Kadigal and the Wiradjuri people, traditional custodians of the land that we recorded today's podcast episode on.
00:00:38
Speaker
I pay my respects to the elders past and present, for they hold the memories, the traditions, the cultures and hopes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across the nation.
00:00:48
Speaker
Welcome to the very first episode of Fine Vines and Wine.
00:00:51
Speaker
How exciting.
Emma Norbiato: Career and Passion in Wine
00:00:52
Speaker
And to kick it all off is Emma Norbiato, Chief Winemaker at Calabria Family Wines and one part of Hear Me Roar.
00:00:59
Speaker
Thank you so much for joining me today.
00:01:01
Speaker
I know it's a very busy time at the moment, so I really appreciate it.
00:01:05
Speaker
Hi, Clarice.
00:01:05
Speaker
Welcome.
00:01:06
Speaker
Thank you for having me.
00:01:07
Speaker
I'm honored to be part of your first podcast.
00:01:10
Speaker
Thank you so much.
00:01:11
Speaker
I'm so excited to learn more about Calabria family wines.
00:01:14
Speaker
Let's jump into some questions.
00:01:16
Speaker
What was your defining wine moment?
00:01:19
Speaker
I don't think I have a real defining any dropping moment, but there's been a couple of instances throughout my career that I think ignited my passion for wine.
00:01:29
Speaker
And I remember when one of them is when I first started university.
00:01:34
Speaker
So I was like about 18 or 19 years.
00:01:37
Speaker
And I enjoyed cooking and I didn't really know much about flavours in wine.
00:01:41
Speaker
I remember the first time we did sensory analysis at uni, I was like, wow, this is really interesting and really cool.
00:01:48
Speaker
We're tasting the nicidity and saltiness and sweetness and all different parts of our palate in wine.
00:01:55
Speaker
And I was like, it really got me thinking about every time I tasted something about nailing those flavors.
00:02:01
Speaker
parts in my palate and appreciate all the flavours.
00:02:05
Speaker
Yeah, that was really cool.
00:02:05
Speaker
And then another time, I remember I worked at Penfolds for a little while when I was early in my career.
00:02:11
Speaker
I remember one Friday, Thursday afternoon, for no reason, my boss said, oh, we've just got grained on the Mexican, can I have a taste?
00:02:18
Speaker
I was like, what?
00:02:18
Speaker
Oh, wow, that's amazing.
00:02:19
Speaker
Yeah.
00:02:19
Speaker
So,
00:02:23
Speaker
It's been some really great experiences.
00:02:25
Speaker
I've travelled a lot with my job and not just this role.
00:02:28
Speaker
So there's been lots of moments, I suppose, throughout it where being in the wine industry has really had some highlights, some really great stories and, yeah, lots of great moments.
Working in Tuscany: Italian Wine Culture
00:02:42
Speaker
Where's your favourite place that you've travelled to in terms of wine?
00:02:46
Speaker
In terms of wine, yeah, I worked in –
00:02:49
Speaker
Italy when I was about 21 or 22 and I worked in Tuscan and I worked with this fantastic female winemaker, her name is Francesca Arquint and she wanted to work desperately with an Australian winemaker, she loves Australia so she employed me against the will of her bosses and we made like a lot of Sangiovese, so Brunello di Montecino was where I was working
00:03:17
Speaker
And that was fantastic.
00:03:18
Speaker
Like you don't just learn about the wine industry but about their culture and so much to learn when you're travelling and working somewhere else.
00:03:27
Speaker
So, yeah, that was fantastic.
00:03:29
Speaker
Oh, my God, definitely.
00:03:30
Speaker
It sounds amazing.
00:03:31
Speaker
I'd love to travel and do sort of
00:03:33
Speaker
more wine regions other than Australia.
00:03:35
Speaker
I feel like my wine love happened in Australia, so I haven't had any other experiences, but no, it'd be amazing to go somewhere else.
00:03:43
Speaker
And even like I'm originally from England and back in England, they're sort of getting into the winemaking industry as well.
00:03:49
Speaker
So that would be really cool to see.
00:03:51
Speaker
It's a great profession for traveling because it is on a world platform and you can do vintages all over the world.
00:03:58
Speaker
And I couldn't speak Italian, but I could work in a winery there.
00:04:01
Speaker
Oh, wow.
00:04:04
Speaker
Yeah.
00:04:05
Speaker
So you were still speaking English when you were working there or did you learn a little bit?
00:04:09
Speaker
I learned a little bit and Francesca could speak English and I learned the winery language like buckets and yeast and tank and all that stuff.
00:04:19
Speaker
I got very quickly lost in a conversation.
00:04:21
Speaker
So how long have you been working in
Reflecting on a 22-year Winemaking Career
00:04:23
Speaker
wine?
00:04:23
Speaker
Because you said you were working there when you were 21, so I'm guessing it's been a while.
00:04:27
Speaker
Yeah, I just had to do the calculation then.
00:04:30
Speaker
So I...
00:04:32
Speaker
from school to uni.
00:04:35
Speaker
And then from there, I went straight to the wine industry.
00:04:39
Speaker
I started working straight away.
00:04:40
Speaker
So it's 22 years that I've been working in the wine industry.
00:04:45
Speaker
Oh, wow.
00:04:45
Speaker
That's amazing.
00:04:46
Speaker
And you're still loving it.
00:04:47
Speaker
Yeah, I am.
00:04:48
Speaker
Because every year is different.
00:04:50
Speaker
Like every season is different.
00:04:52
Speaker
Every vintage is different.
00:04:53
Speaker
And every year, I can honestly say I learned something new, which is great.
00:04:58
Speaker
You never stop learning.
00:04:59
Speaker
And I think the second you think, yeah, I've got this under control,
00:05:03
Speaker
Mother Nature throws you another curveball or the market changes or, you know, I never thought we'd be experimenting with low alcohol wise 20 years ago when we got started.
00:05:13
Speaker
So...
00:05:14
Speaker
we're always learning.
00:05:15
Speaker
So I do still love it a lot.
00:05:17
Speaker
Yeah, no, definitely.
00:05:18
Speaker
Yeah, I feel like the alcohol industry has just come so far, especially with wine.
00:05:22
Speaker
Like you were saying, with like low alcohol and non-alcoholic and like boxed wine kind of having a comeback again, it's all sort of changing, which is great to see as well.
00:05:32
Speaker
So what's your most memorable moment that you've experienced during your
Winning the Australian Women in Wine Award
00:05:36
Speaker
wine journey?
00:05:36
Speaker
I'm sure there's more than one, but... It's going to sort of sound like I'm blowing my own trumpet here, but
00:05:42
Speaker
I'm not.
00:05:43
Speaker
It's just an honest answer to the question is in 2016, I was a finalist and I won the Australian Women in Wine Awards.
00:05:52
Speaker
Yeah, and at that point in time, I wasn't the chief winemaker here and I was working part-time.
00:05:58
Speaker
I've got three kids and they were all little at that time.
00:06:01
Speaker
Yeah.
00:06:02
Speaker
I was a finalist and I thought, oh, this is amazing.
00:06:05
Speaker
And I was up against some really great, amazing other women as finalists.
00:06:11
Speaker
And I won the award, which was, I was like the, yeah, it was great.
00:06:18
Speaker
So that moment, I still remember that moment when
00:06:21
Speaker
They said that I was a winner.
00:06:22
Speaker
I was like, oh, my God, are you serious?
00:06:24
Speaker
Did someone make a mistake here?
00:06:26
Speaker
But that moment was great because it gave me a lot of confidence.
00:06:30
Speaker
Coming out of that, a lot of younger women that I'd met throughout my time in the industry came forward and said, hey, I've always thought that you've done a really good job and I've looked up to you.
00:06:41
Speaker
And I kind of thought, wow, actually, there's a lot of people that have looked back in me, so it was quite nice.
00:06:46
Speaker
So someone nominated me and gave the...
00:06:50
Speaker
reason why and then the board got together I think they did a bit of research on checking referees and perhaps tasting wines and then the board of the Australian Women in Wine Awards
00:07:02
Speaker
for the winner so there wasn't I didn't really have to do anything um oh awesome yeah which was even better but it was more uh them uh with their research I suppose um coming to the conclusion that they did that's amazing so I kind of feel like that's so nice that they could see that and appreciate all the work that you've done and sort of could then um celebrate that as well because I've heard um there's other competitions like familiar competitions where they have to
00:07:31
Speaker
try like different wines and do blind tastings and stuff so I wasn't sure if it was similar to that yeah there's loads of different platforms for being applied for that kind of stuff in Australia but for this one yeah I didn't have to do anything but there's other things like the little Ben Evans tutorial for example you have to sit through a pretty grueling week in that
00:07:56
Speaker
to come out of tasting, to come out the other end as the duck switches.
00:07:59
Speaker
But for me, in this instance, it was, yeah, I didn't have to do anything.
00:08:04
Speaker
It was great.
Hear Me Roar: Supporting Women in Wine
00:08:05
Speaker
So talking sort of about memorable moments, you were part of the collective Hear Me Roar, which I found really, really interesting.
00:08:14
Speaker
I had like a little look on the website and was disappointed that I hadn't heard about it before because I really wanted to buy the wine too.
00:08:21
Speaker
Do you have any future plans for this?
00:08:23
Speaker
Is there another wine release coming soon or anything like that?
00:08:27
Speaker
Jane Thompson, who's the founder of the Australian Women in Wine Awards, if that's her thing, and she had this idea to get four female winemakers to donate a couple of barrels of wine that made this.
00:08:43
Speaker
wine called in raw and when that was sold the proceeds um went towards um providing another female in the industry an opportunity that they hadn't been able to come across or afford previously so there's 37 000 sitting in a bank account um oh wow yeah which is great everyone that was involved donated which was great um
00:09:08
Speaker
And there was lots of applications.
00:09:11
Speaker
And so the applications were, you know, I am an OBO.
00:09:15
Speaker
I've never worked in Tasmania, for example, and I really would like to do that for those reasons.
00:09:20
Speaker
Then that's how the application process went, but they all involve travel.
00:09:24
Speaker
So COVID came, no one can travel.
00:09:27
Speaker
So the money's just sitting there waiting until travel can resume and the board can come up with
00:09:35
Speaker
you know, whoever is lucky enough to get the money.
00:09:39
Speaker
And they've also got quite a good pay it forward.
00:09:42
Speaker
So you can't just cut them on and go off on your merry way and do whatever you like.
00:09:47
Speaker
And you've sort of got to commit to mentoring.
00:09:50
Speaker
We're doing something in the industry to push women
Work-Life Balance at Calabria Family Wines
00:09:54
Speaker
forward.
00:09:54
Speaker
So what's one of your favourite things about working with Calabria?
00:09:57
Speaker
Yeah, look, what's good for me about working here is
00:10:03
Speaker
I have a lot of autonomy in what I do, so I can certainly just get along and do my job without too many interruptions.
00:10:14
Speaker
There's not a lot of red tape.
00:10:16
Speaker
But it's also a very supportive company in terms of I have three children and my husband on high.
00:10:25
Speaker
You know, it's a bit of a juggling act, so they're very supportive in terms of
00:10:30
Speaker
you know, flexible hours and working arrangements and stuff like that.
00:10:35
Speaker
So while I've been here, I've had two lots of maternity leave and I've worked every combination of part-time and full-time and weekends and they've just always managed to fit it in and make it work for me.
00:10:49
Speaker
It's really lovely that I can still do my role, be a cheap winemaker.
00:10:54
Speaker
One of the things that I love about Calabria is that they have such a wide range of wines.
Innovation in Winemaking at Calabria
00:10:59
Speaker
It all tastes amazing.
00:11:00
Speaker
Plus, whenever they launch something new, it's always so, so good.
00:11:04
Speaker
What process goes into creating a new range?
00:11:06
Speaker
Are you involved in that?
00:11:09
Speaker
Also, are there any other plans to launch something different?
00:11:11
Speaker
Because I know that you've just launched the boxed wine.
00:11:15
Speaker
Are you looking at doing non-alcoholic or low-alcoholic wines?
00:11:19
Speaker
we've always got new projects on the go.
00:11:21
Speaker
So there's a couple of ways to answer this question.
00:11:24
Speaker
The first thing is Andrew Calabria, who is one of the owners or Bill's son.
00:11:29
Speaker
So Bill is the owner.
00:11:30
Speaker
Bill's son, Andrew, he's a real entrepreneur.
00:11:33
Speaker
So he's, Emma, we've got to make this new crazy fandangle wine, get your team together and project happening on that.
00:11:40
Speaker
And so because of his drive and his passion,
00:11:44
Speaker
There's always new projects on the go.
00:11:47
Speaker
Some of them are like low alcohol.
00:11:49
Speaker
So we've done some research and we've got a couple of recipes, boys ready to know what we can and can't do should we want to launch low alcohol or some, you know, laden Moscatos or whatever it is that Andrew wants us to do.
00:12:05
Speaker
And secondly, the second stream of that is that a lot of winemakers are very creative.
00:12:11
Speaker
So there's some people in the team that I work with that are really creative and interested in making skin contact or pet nap wines and things like that.
00:12:20
Speaker
So every year there's always a couple of winemaking trials where some of the team will
00:12:27
Speaker
leave a Treviano on skins or, you know, do something that's not the norm and we might make, you know, a small quantity of that and then show it to Andrew and Andrew will say, oh, no, I don't really want to go with that or I do want to go with that and we might create a new product that way.
00:12:43
Speaker
So it's good that we can enable a bit of creativity within the winemakers and
00:12:48
Speaker
Those projects don't always get off the ground, but we certainly keep having a go.
00:12:54
Speaker
And then, yeah, sometimes, you know, Andrew throws us a project and it may or may not work.
00:13:02
Speaker
So there's always innovation here.
00:13:05
Speaker
Talking again about Banterbox, which is the boxed wine, and sort of boxed wine is making a bit of a comeback because I do remember the first time I had boxed wine was when I first moved here.
00:13:16
Speaker
I was 18.
00:13:18
Speaker
and I used to mix it with lemonade because it was so disgusting it was sort of a thing you just drink to get drunk and then go on a night out um it's the process of creating a box wine similar to in a bottle or is there some differences because I mean we had banter box on the weekend we had some friends over and
00:13:34
Speaker
it was amazing.
00:13:35
Speaker
Like it tasted exactly like how it does out of a bottle, but obviously there's more.
00:13:39
Speaker
So that's great as well.
00:13:41
Speaker
Bill's motto and Michael and Andrew have always been to over deliver.
00:13:45
Speaker
What we're putting into Bantabox needs to over deliver in its market.
00:13:49
Speaker
And it is, um, very close or similar to what goes into bottles.
00:13:54
Speaker
So for us, it's not the, um, dumping ground of whatever doesn't work.
00:13:59
Speaker
It's its own, um, point bespoke made.
00:14:02
Speaker
We're making this much, um,
00:14:04
Speaker
Shiraz or Pinot Vigio or whatever it is for their box and it's a very thoughtful process to make that.
00:14:12
Speaker
It's certainly not, I used to work in a large winery making cask and it was like, oh yeah, bottom of the rung, we'll just put it down there and forget about it.
00:14:18
Speaker
It's not like that here.
00:14:19
Speaker
It's a thoughtful driven process to make that wine as we would where it being our top end iconic.
00:14:27
Speaker
So there's no difference
00:14:29
Speaker
No differentiation, no distinction.
00:14:30
Speaker
So it's the same wine that you would use in bottles or it's made slightly differently?
00:14:36
Speaker
No, it is made the same, but it might not always be the exact same blend, but it is made the same.
00:14:42
Speaker
Okay.
00:14:42
Speaker
Probably because of tank sizes and that kind of stuff, it might not always be the exact same as what's in bottle.
00:14:49
Speaker
Okay.
00:14:50
Speaker
but the exact same blend or wine but it's certainly made the same if that makes sense it might not be the exact same grapes for example but it's made the same way yeah no that makes sense I'm going to skip forward a couple of questions and then go backwards do you have a favorite range from the Calabria family wines collection and why a couple of different wines that I love from our collection for different reasons so we've got Shiraz Karignan in the
00:15:20
Speaker
St Petrie range and that's a really lovely wine.
00:15:25
Speaker
It's very small.
00:15:27
Speaker
The Carignan comes in from the Barossa and we often have to like hand plunge it and you know it really gets back to like traditional winemaking and so that's really cool.
00:15:40
Speaker
But then in the Three Ridges range there's a
00:15:43
Speaker
Grenache, Mavedra and Asherah.
00:15:46
Speaker
There's lots of different wines, but in that range, they really over-deliver.
00:15:51
Speaker
So, for example, that's what we drink at home quite often.
00:15:56
Speaker
I take to people's places and they never under-deliver.
00:16:00
Speaker
People always love them.
00:16:02
Speaker
And in that range, we've got a Chardonnay, which I love.
00:16:05
Speaker
got a Grenache which is really medium-bodied and I love that and same with the Levedra they're just really interesting layered textural wines probably the Three Bridges range would be my pick to be honest.
00:16:16
Speaker
What do you think the wine industry will see more or less of in 2021?
00:16:20
Speaker
I mean obviously 2020 was a massive year with the bushfires and then also COVID hitting.
00:16:26
Speaker
I think because of COVID you know this is just me with a gut feel there's
00:16:32
Speaker
a few more feel-good purchases coming from consumers, like they might choose to shop local now or, you know, sustainable or do something that feels like they're giving back because of the sort of reset that happened with COVID in the world, perhaps.
00:16:50
Speaker
So I think the push for Australians to drink Australian wine could be stronger, which will be great, and also Australians to drink
00:17:00
Speaker
to make a purchase that they feel good about.
00:17:03
Speaker
They're supporting their own industry.
Future of Wine Post-COVID-19
00:17:06
Speaker
And then I also think within the wine industry, we're evolving very quickly.
00:17:10
Speaker
So I wouldn't be surprised to see an increase in things that you don't normally see in wine.
00:17:18
Speaker
Like if you, for example, as I said before, when I first started, I would never have dreamt that low alcohol or zero alcohol wine would be a thing.
00:17:27
Speaker
But now...
00:17:28
Speaker
There's examples out there and they're growing.
00:17:31
Speaker
A lot of people are drinking kombucha and that, you know, kind of sector is growing really rapidly.
00:17:38
Speaker
What does that mean for the wine industry?
00:17:41
Speaker
I think perhaps we need to become a bit more innovative in that space and go, this is not just a Shiraz, this is interesting because of these reasons.
00:17:49
Speaker
Or, you know, you feel good when you drink kombucha because you feel like you're doing something right for yourself.
00:17:54
Speaker
So what wine makes you feel good when you purchase?
00:17:56
Speaker
So I think that part of the wine industry we haven't really focused on.
00:18:02
Speaker
It hasn't been a part of us for a while, but I do think that that is an opportunity if someone can nail it.
00:18:08
Speaker
Yeah, no, definitely.
00:18:09
Speaker
Because I feel like now I find that I always want to buy, when I'm buying a wine, I'll always buy something a bit different or something that I've never had before and never experienced because I want to try something new.
00:18:21
Speaker
And I think a lot of people are doing that.
00:18:23
Speaker
Yeah.
00:18:24
Speaker
Yeah, it's kind of cool to see people like going out of their comfort zones and not just getting like their standard Shiraz or their standard Pinot Grigio or their standard Rosé and going for something like a Pet Nat or an orange or a skin contact wine.
00:18:37
Speaker
Even I think eels will see more alternate varieties in play.
00:18:41
Speaker
Like, you know, people might want to try something other than Shiraz or whatever.
00:18:45
Speaker
We've got a Montecuchano in our Bendergots range, which is just an interesting, you know, it's a not too expensive platform.
00:18:54
Speaker
introduce someone to Monte Cuciano that's never had it before.
00:18:58
Speaker
So if you don't love it, you haven't paid $50 a bottle for it, which is, I think, a good starting to look in that direction a little bit.
00:19:07
Speaker
Yeah, no, it's a great way for people to try stuff because, I mean, the banter box is $13.99, so it's
00:19:12
Speaker
Yeah, the perfect way.
00:19:13
Speaker
And if they don't like it, then it's not the end of the world, but it's a good way to try.
00:19:17
Speaker
And also to get their friends to try it too, because I guess with a banter box, it's sort of, it's something you use to celebrate or it's something you take to a barbecue.
00:19:24
Speaker
So it's a great way for a whole heap of people to try something.
00:19:27
Speaker
And then some people might love it and then go and buy a $50 bottle, but some people might like something else.
00:19:32
Speaker
So, you know, I think that's a great way to try a new wine.
00:19:35
Speaker
What wines are you drinking right now?
00:19:36
Speaker
Is there anything that you're loving at the moment?
00:19:39
Speaker
From our range...
00:19:41
Speaker
And we've got a rosé in the Richland range and we've got a rosé in the Piedia Moor range.
00:19:46
Speaker
And over summer in our climate, they are just fantastic by the pool and sitting outside and there's a lot of barbecue kind of weather.
00:19:55
Speaker
So I would say rosé at the minute.
00:19:57
Speaker
Yes.
00:19:58
Speaker
And probably pretty.
00:19:59
Speaker
rosé into autumn it would probably be chardonnay.
00:20:03
Speaker
Is there a particular chardonnay that you drink?
00:20:05
Speaker
I'm not a massive fan of chardonnay.
00:20:07
Speaker
I do like the Kings of Prohibition chardonnay.
00:20:10
Speaker
That's actually one of the only ones that I like but I am a bit funny about it with especially the super oaky ones so if there's one you can recommend.
00:20:18
Speaker
That's great to hear about Kings of Prohibition.
00:20:21
Speaker
I like the Tree Bridges Chardonnay, but it has got a bit more oak than Kings of Prohibition.
00:20:27
Speaker
But we still try and make it reasonably paired at back.
00:20:30
Speaker
It's not overting anyway.
00:20:32
Speaker
So that's my pick.
00:20:34
Speaker
I'd be interested to know if you like it.
00:20:37
Speaker
As well, what wines are you not really enjoying at the moment?
00:20:40
Speaker
Are there any styles that you sort of tend to avoid a little bit?
00:20:44
Speaker
I'm really easygoing.
00:20:45
Speaker
There's not many wines that I won't...
00:20:47
Speaker
appreciate um or enjoy there's always a wine for every occasion so though i might not be drinking a heavy charade now but i will be in winter so there's not many wines that i um
00:20:59
Speaker
stealing from that's good no i find that before i started this whole wine journey i was very against chardonnay very against sauv blanc but as i'm like getting more into it like for example last night my friend and i had a couple of glasses of an organic semi on which normally i'd be like oh no i definitely won't have that we'll have a bottle of rose but i was like pleasantly surprised so no i think it's a good way to be i need to be a bit more open and try different ones i completely agree and as you go along with
00:21:27
Speaker
journey and you learn to appreciate every wine that's out there and you stop and you think what was this winemaking trying to do or there is something in every wine that you can appreciate I do believe that what's your favorite food and wine pairing yeah I'm a little bit funny like this I'm not very strict with food and wine parents and I just think like if you're having pasta and you feel like champagne then do it and I think if I look back and think about
00:21:55
Speaker
you know, my history and moments in wine, it's actually been about the occasion and the company.
00:22:00
Speaker
So I'm a very strong advocate for if you have a great wine in your cellar, don't wait to drink it next time there's an occasion like you're
00:22:09
Speaker
have a child's christening or 20th but whatever it is it can be a saturday night is an occasion whatever it is just drink it because wine's made to drink so i don't get really i personally don't get wound up in um food matchings and pairings and timelines and stuff i'm like if you feel like drinking it tonight then go for it there's no doubt sometimes you're having a steak and a red will go really well with it or if you're having it you know a
00:22:36
Speaker
something tie and a Riesling will go well with it.
00:22:38
Speaker
There's no doubt that that works well.
00:22:40
Speaker
And so there are those classic pairings that you probably just lean towards.
00:22:46
Speaker
But if there is something happening, I think wine's about the occasion.
00:22:50
Speaker
And that's what we make wine.
00:22:51
Speaker
It's about the occasion, bringing people together and creating those moments where, you know, you connect with your family or your friends or whatever it is.
00:22:59
Speaker
That's probably what I'm about a bit more anyway.
00:23:01
Speaker
You know, I love that.
00:23:02
Speaker
I think that's awesome.
00:23:04
Speaker
Do you have a favorite bottle that you've had at a specific occasion?
00:23:08
Speaker
When I worked in Italy, there was, I don't even remember the wine.
00:23:11
Speaker
It could have been from a cask or a carafe, but it was, we were sitting outside in Tuscany and it was up on a hill looking over the rest of the valley and
00:23:23
Speaker
I was with Great Company and the wine, it was a red wine and it was fantastic but it was all about the moment and the people that were there rather than that particular wine itself.
00:23:34
Speaker
And then we've got within my family, my dad's favourite wine was Grenache.
00:23:40
Speaker
So every Christmas we open a Grenache and we've done that until there's no bottles left and that's fine.
00:23:45
Speaker
We don't have any left but
00:23:47
Speaker
We've enjoyed drinking them every year anyway.
00:23:50
Speaker
So that's probably a nice wine memory to have.
00:23:52
Speaker
So the last question that I have is from Calabria's extensive wine collection, what wine would you take to A, a dinner party, B, a barbecue, and C, save for a rainy day?
00:24:07
Speaker
For a dinner party, I would choose something from the Three Bridges range because that's quite a good crowd pleaser.
00:24:13
Speaker
I'm the one who's known as the Vibbers.
00:24:15
Speaker
So depending on the time of the year, it would be Grenache or Shiraz or Chardonnay.
00:24:20
Speaker
A barbecue would either be a roseo or a Prosecco.
00:24:24
Speaker
So the Calabria Park in Prosecco or the rose that I mentioned earlier.
00:24:28
Speaker
And a rainy day would probably be something St Patrice range, which would be the St Patrice Shiraz Karanian or the Grenache Shiraz Mabedra.
00:24:36
Speaker
feel like people always struggle when you are going to a dinner party and you're just like what do I take or a barbecue so it's kind of nice to hear what the winemakers would take and then give people some inspiration but I think the thing is that there's um wine can be so intimidating with what you just said what do I take to this person's party and people always say to me what do I take to a winemaker's house what wine do I take and I'm like it's okay there's there's no rules just take whatever you think you
00:25:04
Speaker
I think we need to break and build those intimidating barriers that exist and get people less intimidated about wine and worrying about the wrongs and the rights and just enjoy
Breaking Down Wine Intimidation
00:25:15
Speaker
it.
00:25:15
Speaker
Yeah, I agree.
00:25:15
Speaker
I feel like that's the same as well.
00:25:17
Speaker
Sometimes when you go into a bottle shop and something you always get and that regular one isn't there, I feel like people get really stuck and they're just like, oh my gosh, there's so much choice and it's so overwhelming.
00:25:27
Speaker
We kind of need to just, if you see the bottle you like, just go for it.
00:25:31
Speaker
Yeah, and there is a lot of choice.
00:25:33
Speaker
You're right.
00:25:34
Speaker
Thank you so much for coming on as well.
00:25:36
Speaker
I really appreciate you being the first guest and everything like that, especially during this very busy season.
00:25:41
Speaker
You're welcome.
00:25:42
Speaker
Well, it's my first podcast too, so hopefully.
00:25:45
Speaker
You did a very good job.
00:25:47
Speaker
Yeah, not too badly.
00:25:48
Speaker
Yeah, thank you.
00:25:49
Speaker
Thank you so much for listening.
00:25:51
Speaker
Please rate, review, subscribe and share with your friends.
00:25:55
Speaker
I'll see you next week for another closer look into the wine industry.
00:25:58
Speaker
Now go and grab that glass of wine.
00:26:00
Speaker
You deserve it.