Uncorked: Southern Rhone

Uncorked

Wine reviews by Kate Le Gallez

For the past few years, FLM’s wine reviews have been penned by the inimitable Gill Gordon-Smith. Her reviews were as approachable and invigorating as a crisp fiano on a summer’s day – her deep wine knowledge made accessible through evocative adjectives like ‘flirtatious’ and ‘smashable’. We thank her for her contribution.

Into this void steps: me. A wine reviewer of zero experience, but with a novice’s boundless enthusiasm for the task. As I took to the role, I recalled how research scientist Mango Parker explained that the ‘taste’ of wine isn’t only informed by what’s in the glass, but by our biology and our individual memory banks of tastes and smells. Each sip is a moment of sensory inspiration, both unique and universal. It made immediate sense to me – the enjoyment of wine is about the totality of the experience.

The four wines in this issue are a Fleurieu mixtape of Southern Rhoneinspired hits. Many of the grape varieties that thrive in the Southern Rhone region of France have likewise found fame here – grenache and shiraz/syrah chief among them – but lesser-known varieties are also finding their niche. Championed by trailblazers like Yangarra Estate and interpreted for Australian palates by these four innovative winemakers, these wines are firmly grounded in the Fleurieu experience.

Aphelion 2021 Welkin Clairette

Light in colour and a little bit fussy, the clairette grape variety peaked in popularity in France around the same time as Napoleon. While liberty, fraternity and equality have stayed the distance, many French clairette plantings have been replaced over time but they’ve found a Fleurieu stronghold. Louise and Rob Mack of Aphelion Wines knew little of this when Louise suggested Clairette as the name for their first daughter. When they then travelled together to France, Rob made it his business to try as many clairette wines as possible before coming home to make his own from Yangarra fruit.

The resulting wine is delicate and pretty, putting you in mind of a spring bouquet, but delivering fine acid and length on the palate. It’s a subtle wine that makes for a delightful start to the evening alongside a cheese plate with figs.

Hither & Yon 2021 Syrah

Brothers Richard and Malcolm Leask put people and soil first in all they do, in the firm belief that these priorities will pay them back in the glass. They carry on this conversation with their consumer beginning with the label for their first syrah, designed by Adnyamathanha and Dieri man Damien Coutlhard. Damien’s design tells of the ancestral spirit creators’ journey from Adnyamathanha Yarta through Nukunu and Ngaduri to Kaurna Yarta. Here, the Ampersand symbolises shared histories, shared experiences and seasonal movement across Country.

Made with fruit from Kangarilla, this syrah is richly purple in colour and sings of dark berries and pepper. Matured in 3-4 year old French oak puncheons and hogsheads for eight months, it’s an elegant, balanced wine which delivers delicious texture and freshness. The perfect wine for continuing the conversation begun by Malcom, Richard and Damien, perhaps over a slice of woodfired pizza.

Samson Tall 2021 Grenache Blanc Picpoul

They say opposites attract and that’s the theory Paul Wilson and Heather Budich were working on when they created their 2021 Grenache Blanc Picpoul. Both are Southern Rhone varieties, but where grenache blanc is full bodied and oily, picpoul is zippy and fresh – it translates to ‘sting the lip’ so you get the picture.

Samson Tall’s version brings together the first fruit from a new Blewitt Springs vineyard. While many grenache blanc wines are aged in oak, Paul and Heather have chosen to make this wine in an unoaked style. At first the grenache blanc jumps out of the glass, with peach and apricot the frontrunners. As you continue to mull over the wine, you see the freshness and acidity of the picpoul, adding a clean and crisp finish. It’s a wine that loves food, pairing well with our takeaway selection from Goolwa’s Thai Days.

SC Pannell 2019 Basso Garnacha

The Basso Garnacha takes a classic Southern Rhone variety – grenache – and plays with it, to deliver a low intervention, lighter-style red that demands it’s spot in your glass. First made in 2017, the 2019 version came courtesy of a dryer growing season with lower yields delivering good acidity.

It’s a wine that lures you in – at first whiff there’s a sense of fun and playfulness, but a more serious side is revealed on tasting with the red fruit flavours coming through to deliver a juicy, light-to-medium bodied wine with a finish as long as a summer sunset. To adopt a Gill-ism, it’s utterly smashable and would be great mates with a charcuterie board.

Sea Dragon

Story by Meghan Carr. Photography by Evan Bailey.

Only eighteen months prior, the inside of this 1950s abode was bare, gutted to the bones, with only the original cedar wood siding and wooden skeleton remaining intact.

Page left and above: Sea Dragon in Middleton oozed potential, the home’s 1950s charm lending itself to Evan and Kate’s ambitious vision for gutting and restoring their dream beach house. Woodcraft is beautifully displayed in Sea Dragon’s pergola, built by 35° South from salvaged cypress, sourced only a stone’s throw away from the couple’s home.

‘You couldn’t drop your bundle; you just had to keep it together,’ Evan Bailey says with laid back conviction, his eyes sparkling as he recounts the trials of selling a house, running a business, supporting the kids, and renovating a home – all while riding out a pandemic. His wife Kate Clark’s all-knowing smile betrays that he is (slightly) downplaying the enormous journey of converting the run-down beach shack, now affectionately called Sea Dragon, into a family home.

Seated around a wooden table in their open-plan kitchen-dining area, I cast my gaze around their welcoming home in quiet disbelief. Only eighteen months prior, the inside of this 1950s abode was bare, gutted to the bones, with only the original cedar wood siding and wooden skeleton remaining intact. Intrepid travellers, Kate and Evan were expecting their first son when the couple began the process of finding a South Australian town their travelling souls could happily call home. Middleton, with its local surf break and small community vibes, fit the bill.

As their small family grew in numbers, they began to eye off potential dream homes on their nightly walks around The Point. But finding a home in the sought-after old-survey area of Middleton is no easy task, so they got inventive. ‘We ended up sending out three letters to the three places we liked, and Peter, the man that owned this [house], was the only one that rang us,’ Kate says, her soft voice full of fondness for the process. ‘I think he liked the idea of a young family coming in and breathing new life into it. Which is what we did.’

With its overgrown gardens, pale green exterior and white trim, Peter’s two-storey house recalls a time when Middleton was a seaside town of holiday shacks, which today are being slowly edged out by the luxury holiday homes erected in their place. In dire need of deep renovations inside and out, the home’s charm revealed itself only to those with an ambitious vision. ‘We had our heart set on it because we loved the potential,’ Evan says. >

Above:Outdoor space is maximised for relaxation and entertaining.

After securing the keys in June 2020, Kate and Evan enlisted the help of an enthusiastic trio of Goolwa lads from 35° South Building Company. ‘We lucked out because they were available!’ says Kate, reflecting on the current trades shortage during the pandemic. Evan adds, ‘It must have been fate because we aligned perfectly with their team.’

35° South uses traditional wood-milling techniques to create bespoke elements. ‘Normally, when you buy timber off the shelf, it comes in select sizes, so it’s not very flexible, but when you have a whole log, you have the ability to do whatever you like with it,’ explains Tom Shaw, who project managed the renovation. Their craft is beautifully displayed in Sea Dragon’s pergola, built from salvaged cypress sourced only a stone’s throw away from the couple’s home. In testament to the excellent working relationship between owner and builder, 35° South gifted the couple an enormous slab of raw pine to be used as an outdoor table. ‘The three lads just rock up carrying this piece of timber!’ Evan exclaims happily.

The aim of the design was to renovate within the existing structure while maintaining the exterior’s charm. However, the home also needed a third extension to fit the family of five. ‘Our friends joke it was like the Once-ler house,’ says Evan, referring to the Dr Seuss character from The Lorax. ‘It’s kind of like that. It’s got extension on extension on extension,’ Evan laughs.

Opening up the top half of the kitchen became the epicentre of the expansion. ‘We knew natural light was what we wanted to build everything around,’ Evan says as he gestures to the sky-high kitchen windows, ‘just pumping in morning light, the feeling of space and something a bit different.’ The lush potted plants above the tall

Top: A room with a view. Bottom: 35° South’s traditional wood-milling techniques are teamed with beautifully crafted and designed cabinetry by Goolwa Kitchens, in both cool and warm tones. Pine floorboards have been lovingly restored to reveal their nuance and colour.

pink cabinetry highlight the clever minimalist design created with Goolwa Kitchens.

To preserve the seaside elements of the home, the couple retained what they could for the rebuild. The original green enamel sink has found a new home in the outdoor shower, while in the living area, the pine floorboards have been lovingly restored to reveal their nuance and colour.

The three bedroom home is beautifully appointed, yet modest. Two of Kate and Evan’s children Teddy and Blossom share a bunk bed and their youngest Rudy will someday share a room with another sibling. ‘Whether we outgrow the house or make it work…’ Evan trails off, seemingly undaunted by the possibility of another renovation – or four kids, it’s hard to say. Perhaps too daunting a project for some, it’s apparent the foundation of this renovation is the synchronicity and respect the couple hold for one another. ‘Kate is amazing,’ Evan says as he refers to how she took charge of shaping a second business last year, creating packages that blended photography and branding to keep the family afloat as their wedding photography business suffered through the pandemic’s twists and turns.

While the world has been full of unrest, Evan and Kate have been quietly building a haven. Every detail is meticulously curated to cocoon their family and friends. They’ve collected pieces for use in their home from their parents and from local Fleurieu shops including Dog Dragon and Little Road Studio, bringing warmth but eschewing clutter. Timber highlights and white shiplap panelling echo throughout the home injecting a nautical style and create a relaxed mood. >

Top left: A beautiful outdoor shower to leave the salty sea and sand out of the home. Top right: Salty, the family’s Bernedoodle puppy, winds down in style on a brown leather couch. Above him are two photographs from the original owners. Bottom: The couple have married their unique finds and art into a warm and welcoming environment.

In the living room, Salty, a Bernedoodle puppy, sprawls out on the brown leather couch, shattered from his morning run. Above him are two framed photographs: one of a beach tent and the other of a man performing a handstand on the sand, salvaged from a box of Peter’s old photos, dated 1924. ‘I just set them side by side and [thought] there’s something really nice going on there,’ Evan admits, his eye for detail religious.

Across the room is a life-size portrait of Jesus, wreathed in sunflower LED lights watching over Evan’s extensive collection of surfboards. ‘I can get a decent surf in a half-hour ... getting wet, getting a few waves, jogging back up the street in the gate, and put the board back,’ Evan says, his gaze roaming out to sea to check the waves in what’s now clearly become an unconscious habit. The laundry room augments this seamless routine, with a hidey-hole for wetsuits built into the sleek wooden benchtop. As we walk outside along the stone-lined front path, it’s clear Sea Dragon is an extension of the family’s lifestyle, values and its setting within Middleton. Her namesake, a mature dragon tree, presides over the developing gardens. Nearby, a stand of sunflowers sway peacefully in front of the tall rainwater tanks. Along with a worm farm, septic and solar panels, the property is built on an ethos of sustainability.

The ocean breeze is warm and gentle today, the soothing sound of breaking waves a siren song drawing locals down to the shore. Although a significant undertaking for a young family, it appears to have been a worthwhile investment – their joy in their home evident in the small family moments it enables. ‘We always wanted a breakfast bar for the kids – when they’re sitting along their stools eating breakfast ...’ Evan trails off as Kate finishes the sentence, ‘you pat yourself on the back.’

The Strand Gallery presents

‘Act One: A brush with James’

Above left: Small porcelain vessels. Above right: Artist James McFarlane.

During Easter 2022, be amongst the first to see the emergence of a new ‘fine art’ artist.

James McFarlane has spent the last two years quietly painting elegant ‘still lifes’, refining his skill and talent with oils on canvas.

This will be an opportunity to make an early acquisition of paintings that we believe will go onto be collectable and investable examples of the genre.