Little Reddie

A love of coffee led him to wine. In 2011, while working behind the bar in Castlemaine, his colleague and friend Jarad Curwood (Chapter Wine) nurtured the coffee, beer, and then wine passion. Jarad allowed him to pick some grapes from the vineyard he farmed. He fermented this fruit, 2012 Metcalfe Shiraz, in his dad's backyard. It was a rustic wine and caught the name Little Reddie, owing to the miniature barrel (resized to hold the miniature volume), and as an ode to the drought-hardy, introduced fish they were catching in the local waters.

Since then, he has studied in his own way. He worked for several years at City Wine Shop on Spring St, being educated thoughtfully by brilliant mentors. Victorian harvest experiences at Bannockburn (2013) and Gembrook Hill (2014) were extremely inspiring and nurturing.

He traveled well through Chianti, the Mosel, Burgundy, and the Northern Rhone in 2013 following up with three harvests (2016-2018) with Olek Bondonio in Barbaresco. Olek and Ali welcomed him into their family. He will never be far from a return to them. Nebbiolo remains, perhaps, his deepest vinous love.

He thinks of the conversations he's had with farmers, grapegrowers, fermenters, sommeliers, chefs, and other creatives as the catalyst to placing the next piece of understanding into the wine puzzle. He loves this process; it often involves wonderful travel and forms real and valuable friendships.