One of some blogs recording the visits I made during my study trip in January 2024.
Andrew Thomas who came to the Hunter Valley from McLaren Vale made wine at Tyrrells but set up his own winery in 1997.
An aside – it appears to be as important to be called Andrew in the Hunter Valley, as it was to be called Michael O’Something at Kerry Group when I worked there in the 1990s. So I was actually visiting Thommo, who is shares winemaking with son Dan (and a truly adorable collie/retriever cross called Stevie Nicks). They specialise in single vineyard wines, and have long term contracts to buy grapes from specific vineyards, Thommo also owns part of the Braemore vineyard, where I picked some Semillon under the supervision of Ken Bray, the previous owner who still manages the picking crews.
Back in the winery it was all go. Not only were they making their own wine, but Boz, aka Reid Bosward from the Barossa, was their ‘guest winemaker’ – each year Dan works with another winemaker to produce a different style of wine from Braemore grapes (released as “Like a Version”). We (well they) loaded the press, pressed grapes, monitored fermentations and kept an eye on picking – it was another baking hot day and the picking crews were wilting. The frustration was palpable, as they weren’t going to get all the Semillon in, and a three day break over the holiday weekend was going to fundamentally alter the character of the grape. But then, if you’ve been making wine for decades you’ve seen it before, and can be philosophical.
There is actually a Hunter-wide move to produce more fruit forward, approachable Semillon which such grapes will suit, an effort to recruit people to the wine for the immediate enjoyment it offers, rather than asking them to trust it will be really fabulous in 5-10 years. At my tasting of Thomas Wines at the tasting room up the road, supervised by Brodie and Belinda, I tried the ‘Synergy’, made for early drinking with fresh green apple fruit and rich texture, and contrasted it with the minerality of the Fordwich Hill (grapes bought from the Margans, see below), the blossom and lime pith of The OC (from the Oaky Creek vineyard where the Brokenwood ILR comes from), and the zesty lime and talcy texture of the Braemore. Thomas Wines aren’t available in the UK, sadly, so I treasure the bottle I was given.
Margan Wines are in Broke Fordwich, the most westerly of the sub regions of the Lower Hunter. Andrew Margan (not just another Andrew, another ex Tyrrell’s winemaker) drove me up to view their vineyards which they bought from Lindemans 20 years ago, bordered by the Brokenback mountains to the southeast, the Wollombi brook to the west and the Wollombi forest to the northwest.
When I looked at Google Maps later I realised that behind us, over a ridge, was an enormous coal mine! Here the soil is volcanic, the result of a sill which flowed up and has weathered down over a limestone base. Andrew was testing Shiraz grapes for ripeness with the refractometer, and clearly they were ripe because by the time I left pickers were booked for Sunday. We passed some Semillon vines that hadn’t been harvested – Andrew explained that on this site botrytis affects the grapes ‘nobly’ most years, which makes them just about the only winery I have found that can reliably make a botrytised sweet Semillon.
In the winery Ollie, his son, took me around, tasting various ferments (including an Albariño), while in the barrel hall we tasted a variety of reds maturing in barrel – Ollie was very hot on tannins, wanting astringency without bitterness.
Over an absolutely delicious lunch with their wines, we were joined by Lisa Margan, Andrew’s wife, a fellow DipWSET, and she described the hospitality side of the business. Given the importance of tourism to wineries in the Hunter Valley (since the 1960s the valley has been a weekend playground for inhabitants of Sydney and the other conurbations along the coast), the tasting room experience and catering are crucial – particularly for a winery such as Margan which is towards the end of the tourist trail. At Margan sustainability is a big deal, they grown a lot of what they cook (including organic fruit and veg, and lambs!), and their rammed earth barrel hall was being prepared for a wedding party.
Margan’s wines are available through Tanners.