Profiles

Sam Miranda

SAM MIRANDA OF THE KING VALLEY

Sam Miranda - Owner & Winemaker

It's difficult to miss the beautiful blonde wood 'tower' that identifies Sam Miranda's illustrious vineyard on the Snow Road; in fact, it's become something of an icon in Oxley. As most important decisions are made in the North East, the concept for this architecturally designed cellar door came about over dinner and a few bottles of wine.

'Everyone in the North East loves food and wine,' emphasises Sam Miranda.

Simon Noble

RUTHERGLEN PREMIUM LAMB

Simon Noble - Co-owner

A lamb grower since stepping foot from university with an agricultural economics degree, Simon Noble sums himself up with two words - determination and innovation. Keeping up with the demands of food production has steeled him with a sense of purpose that weathers all sorts of change.

Adam Pizzini

RINALDO'S OF THE KING VALLEY

Adam Pizzini - Chef & Owner

Three years ago, Adam Pizzini saw all the joys of his youth come together in what he refers to as his 'ideal project'. Within what is essentially a corrugated iron shed, he whips up heaven-sent dishes and preserves from the vegetable garden running alongside his restaurant and even indulges in a spot of mushrooming whenever rainfall is abundant.

'Last week, we had ten ingredients on the menu that came directly from our veggie garden,' he proudly boasts. 'We have fresh peppermint tea available and I've been known to grab a torch and head outside to pick it in the middle of the night whenever supplies are low.'

Marion Hansford

THE PICKLED SISTERS CAFE

Marion Hansford

The best thing you'll ever find in a tin shed, The Pickled Sisters Café is one of those delightful surprises that makes the hunt up the highway worth your while.

Capitalising on the stunning surrounds of Cofield's winery, this unpretentious eatery - described as "quirky" in the words of its proprietor - serves up restaurant-quality food in a café setting. A quick scan down the menu reveals such mouth-waterers as gingerbread-crumbed confit of duck leg and roast saddle of Riverina lamb.

Stephen Morris

PENNYWEIGHT WINERY

Stephen Morris - Owner & Winemaker

In 1977, Stephen Morris chose Beechworth as the location for his new winemaking venture, believing the cool growing climate of the higher altitude to be perfect for bringing out the flavours in table wine. Not one to make any rash decisions, he then took another five years before he found the exact red soil-based land that is now home to Pennyweight.

Katrina Pizzini

PIZZINI WINES

Katrina Pizzini

In the 1950s, Roberto and Rosetta Pizzini packed up their three children in the Italian Alps seeking new opportunities on the fertile, North East Victorian terrain. As was the case with many emigrating Italian families at that time, they farmed tobacco before a crippling quota system in the 1970s saw them turn to a more lucrative crop - grapes.

Today, son Alfred Pizzini and his wife Katrina propagate Roberto and Rosetta's passion and commitment that sits at the heart of every glass produced under the Pizzini Wines label.

Ross Gehrig

JOHN GEHRIG WINES

Ross Gehrig - Winemaker

In terms of wine dynasties Ross Gehrig boasts from the fifth generation of Victoria's oldest winemaking family.

'Well, one of the oldest,' Ross corrects, not wanting to incite controversy. 'Give or take a year or two.'

When talking to Ross, he refuses to mince words and reveals a true blue personality that's as genuine as the product he creates. How did he end up in the family business? 'Probably stupidity,' he laughs. 'And a competitiveness to be better than my old man.'

Pat Ciccone

CICCONE ESTATE

Pat Ciccone

Ask Pat Ciccone if a life dedicated to wine was his first choice and he'll surprisingly admit attempting accounting - 'But, I realised I didn't like it at all,' he divulges, 'Unfortunately, I decided that at the end of my degree.'

Luckily for Pat, such a back flip proved anything but detrimental. The lure of the King Valley convinced this self-confessed country-boy-at-heart to head back from the big smoke and jump into an initiation in viticulture.

Ben Kraus

BRIDGE ROAD BREWERS

Interview with Ben Kraus

While gourmands will be familiar with the many wine tasting options available through Victoria's North East, not many realise a similarly enjoyable experience extends to beer.

'We're just like a wine cellar door, except with beer,' confirms brewer and owner Ben Kraus from Bridge Road Brewers, with an open invitation for people to drop in and sample their handcrafted ales in the timber-clad brewery.

Kel Boynton

BOYNTONS FEATHERTOP WINERY

Kel  Boynton

Kel Boynton is an inspiration. Responsible for opening the first winery in the Alpine Valley region, he and his team/family have weathered all manner of obstacles - fire, frosts and the fine balance of finances - to reach their 20^th year of business.

'He is the hardest worker I know,' says his wife and business partner, Janelle. 'Not much stops the drive and he is known by all the others in our business as having so much stamina. He builds, crushes grapes, digs holes for posts all day - from daybreak to after sunset. He just keeps going like a long-life battery.'

Helen Taylor

BLUE OX BERRIES

Helen Taylor

There's something so sensuous - so plump and juicy - about the humble berry, it's not really surprising that Helen Taylor and Wayne Pegler found themselves on a berry farm when making their 'tree change' nine years ago. Tourists are also attracted in the carloads to their household farm gates, where fresh berries can be collected by the kilo and all sorts of homemade berry concoctions are sold - jams, preserves, sauces and chutneys.

Paul Dahlenburg

BAILEYS OF GLENROWAN

Paul Dahlenburg - Winemaker

Not many Australian winemakers are granted the opportunity to work with vines established over 100 years ago but, for Paul Dahlenburg, his position over the last decade at Baileys of Glenrowan is a privileged one.

'I just love the place,' he says without a moment's hesitation. 'The grounds are surrounded by historic buildings and I get to work with wines like no other - from fortifieds crafted over several generations through to the excitement of creating vintage table wines.'

Stephen Jodie Goldsworthy

BEECHWORTH HONEY

Jodie & Stephen Goldsworthy

Sixteen years ago, Jodie and Steven Goldsworthy - a young couple aged 22 and 25 respectively - took the plunge into the honey trade with what Jodie describes as 'absolutely nothing'. Despite Jodie coming from four generations of bee farmers, she had no aspirations to ply the family trade; that is until Steven caught the sweet bug.

'A lot of people assume that there's a big company behind us because we're in the supermarkets now,' says Jodie, who is as hands-on with the business today as she was at their inception. She speaks ardently about her love of honey - so much so that she confidently tells us they prioritise product quality much higher than profit.

James Booth

BOOTH'S TAMINICK CELLARS

James Booth

'It becomes a part of you,' states James Booth on his decision to ply the family trade. 'When you've got that history, it's very hard to step away.'

Since the turn of last century - when Esca Booth discovered the richness of historic Glenrowan's granite soils - one Booth after another has continued the family's winemaking legacy. Only a few things have changed with technological progress - even vines from 1919 still stand - one of those being an orchard bursting with peaches, the pet project of James' father, Peter.

Eliza Brown

ALL SAINTS ESTATE & ST LEONARDS VINEYARD

Eliza Brown - CEO

Given Eliza Brown now sits comfortably as matriarch of her father's company - and was finalist in the 2007 Telstra Business Women's Awards, as well as named one of the Future Leaders of the Australian Wine Industry - you'd assume she was groomed for the position.

'My family talked about food and wine as far back as I can remember,' says Eliza in recalling memories of building cubbies and skipping through the vines of Brown Brothers' revered vineyard in Milawa. 'But I wanted to become a photographer... until I realised I was no good at it,' she humbly adds.

Thanks to the persistence of her father, Peter, talking up the North Eastern weather - 'more sunny days each year than Surfer's Paradise,' she states as fact - Eliza was coaxed back from the city. She commenced at All Saints Estate - the grandiose Rutherglen winery situated in a Scottish castle that Peter had purchased independently of the family business.

Patrizia Simone

SIMONE'S OF BRIGHT

Patrizia Simone - Chef / Restaurateur

Patrizia Simone describes her childhood as "unremarkable". Which is remarkable given she suspects she would have completed her chef's apprenticeship prior to her 15th birthday had today’s standards applied...