Matt Holmes in conversation
Our first day of freedom after many months being ringed into the city, I grabbed my surfboard and headed straight for the beach. Every Melburnian has a peninsula of preference and mine, without a shadow of a doubt is the Bellarine Peninsula. The beaches, the surf and the untouched bush just can’t compete with the green and pristine fields of the Mornington Peninsula.
En route I made a small detour to meet Matt Holmes, the winemaker at Bannockburn Vineyards. Hidden amongst the Golden Plains, I turned off onto Kelly Lane, a dirt track so vibrant in colour it reminded me of Dorothy’s yellow brick road! Arriving at the vineyard I followed the driveway through the vineyards, around the winery to a dam which nestles amongst the rolling vineyards around. In spring, with everything in full bloom it was a wonderful sight!
What a pleasant surprise after the unexciting Midland Highway, tell me more about where we are?
It’s not the most beautiful drive is it? The road to Ballarat would have been built in the gold rush, back when direct routes were more important than beautiful drives! It’s one of Victoria’s earliest wine regions, when Swiss immigrants started planting vines in the mid 1800s, sadly the region was devastated by phylloxera and left to decline. But it’s a beautiful region, once you get off the highway! Whilst we don’t have a lot on our doorstep we’re 20 minutes from Geelong, 45 minutes from Ballarat and other treats like Brae, and the Great Ocean Road literally rolls out from here all the way to Portland. We can even claim we’re only a couple of hours from Sydney thanks to Avalon airport just up the road!
How did Bannockburn Vineyards come to exist?
It’s the legacy of a gentleman called Stuart Reginald Hooper. He was in the grocery game, before Coles and Woolies took centre stage, you might still see the remnants of the ‘Hooper’s’ signs in some regional towns. But his real passion was wine. Stuart loved Burgundy, but this was back when Australia was enamoured with Bordeaux. Whilst all his friends would have been filling their hip flasks for the weekend footy with Bordeaux’s famous Chateau wines, Stuart was swigging DRC. And whilst other vignerons at the time were planting Cabernet and Merlot to keep up with the Bordeaux demand, Stuart decided to grow vines to create Victorian versions of his favourite French wines.
He settled in the Moorabool Valley and whilst Shiraz was planted first, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay followed soon after making Bannockburn was one of the first producers to grow Pinot Noir in Australia. I used to sell Bannockburn Pinot Noir back when I was a student in our local bottleshop; back then it would’ve been one of the few Australian Pinots available. Today we have two wines named after Stuart, the Stuart Pinot Noir and the S.R.H single vineyard Chardonnay. The business is still in the family, Stuart’s two daughters run it today.
How funny, so you’ve gone the full circle from selling Bannockburn Pinot to making it?
Yeah! I actually studied Chemical Engineering at university and I just worked in the local bottleshop to make some money. Whilst I worked there I got more interested in wine and I decided to switch over, and I guess the rest is history as they say!
When I think back to Canada, everything was so big and beautiful; there’s big lakes, glaciers and big mountains. There’s a lot of tourism, and likewise with Mornington. Down here though we’re just left to grow the grapes. And that’s what I think makes it so unique.
Let’s talk grapes, tell me about the vineyards here.
So we have 45 acres of vineyard in total, which is made up of 26 different vineyard blocks. One of them, the block by the dam is about to be certified as organic. It’s something we’ve wanted to do for a long time, and now more than ever, it’s important we do so the land can be passed on in better shape than we inherited it. That block is also our close planted block, which is a point of difference in our vineyards. What is most unique about the region though is the limestone soil; after almost 30 vintages I’m always shocked at the quality of the grapes we get. Compare it to Mornington; they have the same maritime influence as us but their wines are totally different due to the soil. Mornington wines are pure in their profile, ours have a dark and broody complexity owing to the soil.
I was a vineyard manager for a long time, and it’s hard to unlearn what you learn in the vineyard. So, even as a winemaker it’s all about getting it right in the vineyard. That’s why I think it’s so important to push for organic farming.
Stuart Hooper had the right idea then, planting vines here?
Yeah, it’s mad to think someone walked out into a sheep paddock fifty years ago, looked at it and decided it was a good place to plant some vines. It takes years to know if you made the right decision, which clearly he did. But that’s what makes viticulture and wine special. For me, it’s the most fun you can have in agriculture. It has the nuts and bolts of science, but there’s an added beauty to it which I don’t think you find anywhere else. I never grew up wanting to be a winemaker, it’s not really one of those professions is it? But I love the lifestyle, and look at today, it’s absolutely stunning! Why wouldn’t you want to be out amongst the vines. It’s been a wet spring, as you can tell from the dam, but the vines - and me! - are definitely ready for some UV!
Me: Here's to that, bring on the summer!
P.S What is the story behind the crest?
The halycon bird is from Greek mythology, it symbolises peace and prosperity, as does the fish. It was the original logo for Chas Cole Geelong, a wine importer which was bought by Stuart Hooper many years ago.
Depending on the season, a tasting with Matt will involve trying wines in the vineyard and if the timing is right some barrel tastings in the winery.
They have a host of wines that vary in price points: starting with their 1314a.d wines named after the Scottish war of independence; the Battle of Bannockburn, through to their single vineyard and late release wines.