WHO AM I

Contrary to my face, I'm a little older than I look and I've had some wonderful wine experiences in my 33 years. In 1992 I was 5 when my family moved to Heathcote from Brunswick In Melbourne. I had a great time growing up on the farm (as I call It) and It was from this age that I started helping around the place. My first official job during vintage was the 'pump girl', it was quite a limiting role which consisted of turning the pump on and off during the pressing, but it was perfect for me. It was as early as this that I remember what a hard slog that vintage was, even as a young girl I would be working well into the night with my father (or at least that's how it felt). Over the years the jobs became more labour intensive; disbudding, labelling, harvesting and mowing the lawns all came within my job description and so before I really even knew It I had quite an inherent understanding of how the business worked.

After moving to Melbourne for university and gaining some corporate experience working for companies Including the Boston Consulting Group, Zurich Financial Services & AIA I stumbled on a job advertisement which seemed too good to be true. It came in the form of a Facebook targeted ad promising that as a Wine Ambassador for Pernod Ricard Winemakers I would get to travel the world while being trained on their wine business in order to share it with others. After a gruelling Interview process five of us were successful - we would train together and be 'deployed' across the globe to become experts on the Pernod Ricard Winemaker products, these Included, among others, Jacobs Creek, St Hugo Wines, Wyndham Estate, Brancott Estate, Church Road (NZ), Campo Viejo (Spain), Kenwood Estate (Sonoma, USA) and Graffinga (San Juan, Argentina). For nine months I travelled from the Barossa Valley to Marlborough to Rioja, finishing In Sydney, spending time with winemakers and viticulturalists, touring the regions In depth, tasting competitor wines, understanding the different ways to run the tasting rooms and learning each winery's logistical processes. The experience was quite unbelievable. My colleagues moved to Poland, Japan, Vietnam & Canada while I was posted to Sydney. Pernod Ricard Winemakers was a great company to work for. My role was three-fold - engage and educate consumers through marketing activations, assist the sales team as a product expert for those on and off premise venues that needed a bit more attention & build the wine culture internally. As Pernod Ricard Is famously a spirits company, the wine side of the business needed a bit more attention. The job allowed me to travel Australia, training and educating and gave me access to some great training experiences including having my WSET 3 paid for as well as sitting on the National Liquor Magazine Tasting Panel.

India with mother Deborah Jones-Munari at around 10 years old during a harvest

WHY HEATHCOTE

I have my parents to thank for that. Adrian & Deborah looked far and wide when searching for a property. Over 2-3 years they explored the Yarra Valley, Pyrenees & Rutherglen. Dad was still completing his Associate Diploma of Applied Science at Wagga Wagga via correspondence and school teaching full time. They found our property in 1992 through a private sale - 5 acres of vines plus a tractor and all the farm equipment. My parents were already familiar with the Heathcote style at the time with Jasper Hill, Wild Duck Creek & Mt Ida becoming more well-known and they recognised that the style and location could definitely become one of the premier wine regions of Australia. That wasn't the only reason though, there was still room to plant on the property, they could find a job in nearby Bendigo, there were schools in the region and it was close to my dad’s family roots of Seymour. In 2005 I left home for University not quite knowing at the time that the industry would lure me back.

Flash forward 26 years, after leaving my job for Pernod Ricard Winemakers I completed a vintage at Mumm Napa and returned home to Heathcote with the passion to complete my first full vintage at home. It was to be a trial to see If I could live and work with my family. It was during this time in February 2018 when I heard the brewery was opening In Heathcote, I could hardly believe It. Palling Brothers, along with venues such as Rutherford & Maine and the Heathcote Inn were the city touches that I know I needed to return to small town living. I've been so impressed with the development of the region which has definitely contributed to my happiness while living In Heathcote.

In 2019 I was nominated to join the Heathcote Tourism & Development board and now I can help shape the future of the Region. As a board member and more personally, one of my key messages to consumers is around the versatility of the styles of the region as well as how incredibly close we are to Melbourne and what a perfect day trip it makes.

The Cellar Door in the 1990’s which was the original stables has come a long way since we purchased the property.

OVER THE FENCE

It would be remiss of me not to mention my parent’s admirable involvement in the early defining of the Heathcote Region. I'm glad they had the passion to recognise the benefits of stepping away from the Bendigo & Heathcote Wine Region to forge our own (regional) path. From originally putting pins on a map to identify the vineyards to finally defining the new Heathcote boundaries. It was through sometimes difficult conversations that this was able to take place. My parents along with other passionate locals were the trail blazers for us all who carved the way for a successful region.

MEMORABLE BOTTLES

In my first week at Jacobs Creek we drove up to the famous Steingarten Vineyards on the edge of Eden Valley. One of my first formal wine tasting experiences was with Rebecca Richardson, the former Sparkling & Whites Winemaker at Jacob's Creek, where we did a vertical tasting of the classic, Steingarten Riesling. We tasted through around 5 vintages while throwing out terms like, custard apple, marmalade, fusel, lime, honey and green apple. It was an eye opening and memorable experience which marked the beginning of a Riesling love affair. I've since travelled to German & French wine regions Including Phalz, Mosel, Reingau & Alsace and in my opinion Eden Valley still produce some of the best Riesling in the world.

More fond memories rest closer to home in our rustic cellar door. After an event, a long day at the cellar or a random Friday night I take pleasure in picking a back vintage off the wine rack and tasting Munari Wines through the years. Most recently I had a 2004 Ladys Pass Shiraz which was still showing beautifully sweet fruit and great structure. Our friends and family join us to reminisce and I always feel so pleased to be able to share a piece of our history with them.

HIGHLIGHTS

From a personal perspective I've already had some fabulous experiences and highlights. "una copa de vino tinto por favor" became a favourite phrase while living in Spain for 9 weeks while working for Pernod. I was basically paid to eat tapas and drink Tempranillo in Logrono, the heart of La Rioja. I learnt there that even in a country where so much wine is so available, and in such a regulated wine industry that just\ like most places, and most people, the regular wine drinker had no idea what they were drinking. The locals didn't know the difference between Joven, Reserva or Grand Reserva - they simply knew If they wanted a wine from Rioja, or neighbouring regions Navarra or Ribero Del Duero they had to ask for that. Living there, commuting to work every day and experiencing the true geography and Spanish way of life was a great career highlight for me.

More recently completing a vintage at Mumm Napa was a delight. I have spent many weeks In the USA over the years and I've come to enjoy the company and culture of *most Americans. Spending three months in the states allowed me to understand the sub regional areas of Napa as well as the more underrated region of Sonoma next door. Working at a sparkling facility was a great eye opener and something vastly different which I would never ever had done in Australia.

India and her Pernod Ricard Wine Ambassador graduates touring Ysios Winery in Rioja, Spain

ANYTHING ELSE?

I'd like to acknowledge the support of some new friends within the industry and the support network they have given me. You may have heard of the Heathcote Women in Wine which is a small alliance I am happy to be part of which was borne out of the horror that has been Covid-19. These women, Tracie Young, Jodi Marsh, Jess Dwyer, Emily Kinsman & Madeline Marson have been an incredible support to me through the challenges and changes which our business and cellar door have faced through the lock-down, re-opening and subsequent lock-down periods. I look forward to working with them and many more men and women of Heathcote as I believe it is the collaboration and broader regional view that will help us all succeed together and mark Heathcote as a world class wine region.

As published in the Heathcote Winegrowers Association “Behind the bottle” Newsletter

Heathcote Women In Wine From top left: Jodi Marsh, Emily Kinsman, Madeleine Marson, India Munari, Jess Dwyer, Tracie Young