Barney Flanders in conversation
It’s Monday morning and whilst it’s cold, rainy, grey and very windy, my childish excitement for adventure and country haven’t been dampened. An easy drive down the highway, an hour later I turn into a quiet and misty vineyard. Curving around the skeletal wintery vines I park up outside a big green shed which is actually the winery.
After Barney brews up some coffee to warm the cockles we get into it…
So, where did it all begin?
Walter’s Wine Bar, which some may remember was one of 1990s Melbourne’s original institutions. I studied hospitality at uni and luckily knew a man who knew a man who got me the job! I was fortunate to try lots of wines, at the time Victoria’s own wine production was evolving so there were local wines and european wines; I still remember trying my first white Burgundy. My interest and intrigue grew so I went back to uni to study viticulture and started helping friends at wineries with their own vintages each summer. Then, as all winemakers do, the nomadic vintages followed; I did stints in California, France and Italy. My first role was in Alto Adige in Italy where I was lucky enough to run the winery, totally out of my depth, alongside an Italian chap whose English was equally as absent as my Italian!
Why Mornington Peninsula?
I moved back to Australia and I was really interested in the Mornington Peninsula. Back then there were only doctors, lawyers and dentists populating the land so I went down to mix things up. My first job was at Moorooduc Estate and I’ve not moved too far since! The Peninsula’s sub-regions vary hugely in soil profile, altitude and aspect creating the opportunity to truly represent a site’s potential.
Asking Barney which grape he prefers working with, Chardonnay or Pinot Noir he says, surprisingly, Chardonnay. Pinot Noir only grows where the conditions are perfect for it, Chardonnay is a little less picky and grows more prevalently which always means more varied, and sometimes surprising expressions of site.
So, tell me about Gargiste.
One of the vintages I worked was in Bordeaux, in France. At that time there was a new movement of winemakers, producing small but high quality wines outside the walls of the wealthy and famous chateaux, at home, in their garages no less! Having settled down on the peninsula, and with old world and new world experience in my pocket I decided to take the plunge and set up my own winery; under the Bordeaux inspired name, Garagiste; releasing my first wine back in 2006. As first generation winemakers the immense capital investment involved in running a winery was daunting but the chance to have total control over the entire process was really exciting. Today we have three vineyards, some are leased and others we share farm and my absolute passion and focus is in the vineyard.
What’s your philosophy in the vineyard and winery?
Everything I do in the vineyard is to optimise the vine and ensure the best crop possible in any given vintage; whilst I can’t control wind, rain and fire I can step in to increase adaptability in the face of Mother Nature’s whims. I’m not a certified organic producer, but I only intervene if absolutely necessary, with methods which strengthen the vineyard ecosystem. If I can get it right in the vineyard my role in the winery is more caring uncle than hands on winemaker; leaving the grapes to evolve under their own magic. In the winery all wines are fermented natural from locally found yeasts on the grapes, in the vineyard and winery. The three vineyards I farm are all very different, I work to create wines which express and celebrate those differences.
What does the future hold?
Right now, probably just survival! The closure of all bars and restaurants in Melbourne has hit small producer’s pockets hardest, that said, if covid has done anything it’s reinforced our need to innovate so we can improve year after year. I recently experimented with a parcel of grapes from a single site which I fermented in two different vessels: one stainless steel the other a big Italian concrete tank. The ferments were totally different in time, temperature and outcome: from the same I created two wines with hugely differing tannin and flavour profiles which was cool to see.
What are you drinking, when not drinking wine?
Gin. I love gin. We actually make our own gin, which is handy! Just like our wine we want the gin to reflect a sense of site so we infuse it with samphire, saltbush, fennel and seaweed all sourced locally from the countryside and the coast of Mornington. The gin is unfiltered and unfined with a marine green label, hinting at its inspiration. It’s called Balcombe Gin and the story is pretty cool. Balcombe is the family name of the original owners of The Briars, down in Mt Martha. Alexander Balcombe, whose father had dealings with Napoleon himself, planted 40 hectares of vineyard on the peninsula when he arrived from the Goldfields in the mid 1800s, sadly to little success. But today, The Briars has a small museum and wildlife sanctuary and its an important part of the peninsula’s history.
To buy wines direct book a tasting here, alternatively you can purchase them at the following wine shops:
City Wine Shop
Blackhearts & Sparrows