Reply to When the Shiraz Hit the Fan

By Russ Badham

Martin, As always I enjoyed your argument and as always was interested in your very measured editorial comment with which I am almost always in strenuous and audible agreement.

I would however caution you against sweeping charges insofar as the whole wine / grape growing industry should not be characterised as adopting the aggression and immorality of some big companies; or as whinging primary producers seeking to park their tax freebee bucket under the milking cow of government handouts.

As you correctly note, the remarkable growth of our industry, (particularly in export), over the last two decades has led to massive plantings, some led by normal commercial considerations , some by tax advantage , and some of both of these at the instigation of 'Collins Street Farmer' types for whom I have no sympathy . The fact is however that an enormous amount of grape production in this country is the province of small ‘fruit blockies’ or farming families in districts as diverse as The Barossa, McLaren Vale, Sunraysia/Riverland, and the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area.

There is nothing glamorous about what these people do now for a few hundred dollars a tonne, (if they still have a buyer), and there was nothing glamorous about what they did before they were enticed away from pursuits like dried fruit (sultanas) or citrus growing and into wine grapes.

These were the classic small people in agriculture who were at the mercy of international markets, the weather or government policy; any of which could deliver quality earnings or rip their livelihood apart at no fault of theirs. When the big wine guys ran around Australia with grape supply contracts it would later be revealed one could drive a tractor through, many of these little people grabbed the paperwork and rushed the banks who in turn believed the financial pages. (And did not read your column in 2000!)

The rest is as you say. They did not see the shirt front coming and could do little in the short term if they had. The big guys who needed them once, do no longer... Who was it who said that ‘when the elephants play the grass gets trampled.’?

It is fine to criticise those who purchased their moleskins and R.M Williams so they could wear them in their off road vehicles to check the vines in 'The Yarra', but spare a thought for the guys who are still in jeans and heavy duty work boots wondering if they should and / or can afford to graft their wine grapevines over to some other variety or pull them out.

One Robinvale Blockie I know has ‘on sold’ his water rights - encouraged by his bank of course - as this is the only asset left. Having not picked one grape off his 20 acre block in 2006 and taking little more than cost recovery the previous year he has no money to redevelop and so will let the vines die. If the twelve month, (also Bank inspired) effort to sell the place comes to nothing , he proposes to subdivide the house off the block so his family has somewhere to live, and simply walk off the land which is planted to non se-xy varietals which were nevertheless 100 percent contracted until 2005.

I am happy to get up the grocers who would turn icon wines into breakfast cereal status, and brewers who see their suppliers and products as transient and as dispensable as the latest advertising concept would dictate. I certainly encourage your continued cynicism in this regard. But don’t tar all the producers with the same brush.

And if we need a campaign about related issues, let’s not let the moronic Federal Agriculture Minister off the hook because a slush fund to bail people out is correctly rejected. But let him feel a bit of heat. After all he could support his natural electorate in the bush as well as his government’s real constituency at the top end of town, by adopting some real old fashioned government intervention and throw serious dollars at export market support and development here and abroad. It is after all good enough for right wing governments in France.

Let’s not pull the vines out, or prop up an industry with a short term over supply, let’s work a bit harder and smarter with serious government support to maintain and build exports.

Posted by Martin Field at 12:12 PM
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Cheatin' in the kitchen

by Martin Field

Tomato juice as stock
Tomato juice is not just a handy breakfast juice, it’s also a great morning after pick-me-up – mixed with a splash of Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, salt and pepper, and, depending on your constitution, a shot of vodka.

But don’t forget tomato juice in the kitchen; it is an excellent substitute for stock when you need to thin gravies, curries and tomato-based sauces. Tip: to off-set the acidity you get sometimes in tomato-based dishes, add a teaspoon or two of sugar – works wonders.

I can’t believe it’s not better: spreadable butter from the fridge
It’s easy to make your own spreadable butter – spreadable straight from the fridge, that is. Take a block of good butter, cut it into smallish cubes, soften it gently but do not under any circumstances melt it. Whiz it in the food processor/blender and as it is whizzing pour in approximately half its weight in extra virgin olive oil. For example, if you use 500 grams of butter add 250mls of oil. When the mixture is well combined place it in an airtight container in the fridge. Use as you would butter – for spreads or cooking.

There is an added benefit here for those who worry about dietary fats. The blend, though buttery to taste, now contains less cholesterol and saturated fats than butter and has more beneficial monounsaturated fats.

Posted by Martin Field at 01:11 AM
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Bali Booze

by Bruno of Balmoral

Jest back from Bali. It was quiet out on the streets of Kuta, partly because of the soccer but mostly due to an observable lack of Aussie tourists, surfers and families. The resulting reduced number of flights meant that our planes coming and going were almost full but we noted that most fellow travellers were a bit on the grey side with only a smattering of younger surfers on board and the only child under 15 being a babe (in arms).

I used to joke a few years back that there was at least one shop for every tourist in Bali, now I'd have to adjust that to 50 to one, and naturally the competition is fierce and the desperation, very sadly, irritating. If it wasn't for the expat business people there wouldn't be any business.

We had dinner with a hotel owner one night and he said he had 10 guests at his large establishment, all older returnees, and that he'd been selling off bits of land he owned to maintain his (admittedly comfortable) lifestyle. Apparently the drop off in Bali tourism has also had a big impact in Java, where resort investors, furniture, clothing and handicraft manufacturers etc are being hit hard by the downturn.

Good value wine is still hard to find in Bali though we found a decent 2004 McWilliams Hanwood Shiraz at my favourite local restaurant, Warung Sobat at Kerobokan, for around A$20 and it went down rather well with a spicy Rendang Sapi (A$4).

Ann took me to a rather more upmarket establishment for my 61st. Lovely looking place called Warisan where we were seated on a broad patio overlooking the rice paddies with the usual superb sunset lending us a rosy, reflective glow. The wine list featured a 2002 Grange for around A$600 but we settled for a St Emilion Grand Cru Chateau Trimoulet '99 for about A$90 which, while not 'off', served to remind me that I was past my prime and had spent far too many weeks cooking in the sun on Kuta Beach.

And I do quite like the local Hatten Rose which sells for about $10. It's relatively low alcohol and has a crisp, dry, almost mouth puckering finish which perfectly suits a tropical setting and saves on mouthwash. Goes well with Gado Gado and Sate Ayam, cutting through the oily peanut sauce a treat. I usually knock over a bottle of this every night with dinner (in Bali) but have never yet had a hangover as a result. The same cannot be said for the Hanwood which, coincidentally, was served on both our Australian airline flights. Yellowtail used to be ubiquitous in cattle class but seems to have 'tailed' off a bit.

Posted by Martin Field at 01:06 AM
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Spitbucket drinking

by Martin Field

Stone’s Premium Ginger Beer. 4.8% alcohol. Six pack of 330ml bottles $15 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Pale, white and slightly cloudy. Appetising tangy fresh ginger nose. Faintly sweet in the mouth with pleasant root ginger zinginess.

Mountain Goat Surefoot Stout 5% alcohol. 330ml bottle – I paid $3.95 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Ruddy, unmilked black coffee hues. Malteser nose. Smooth and malty in the mouth with fine dark chocolate and an attractive bitterness at the finish.

Trevor Jones Reserve Riesling 2005 - $25 cellar door - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Barossa and Eden Valleys, South Australia. Pale with a greenish edge. Lime apple and minerally nose. Delicate and elegant on the palate with tangy lime zest and Granny Smith apple acidity.

Ten Minutes by Tractor Wallis Vineyard Chardonnay 2004 - $52 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Mornington Peninsula, Victoria. Light straw appearance. Flowers and apricots on the nose. Peach and apricot flavours enhance the palate assisted by notes of vanillin oak and butterscotch. A crisp acid finish completes the wine.

Clonale by Kooyong Chardonnay 2005 – up to $25 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Mornington Peninsula, Victoria. A nose of spicy apples, melons and toast. The palate is smooth and luscious and reminded me of apricot conserve on buttered toast, The finish shows medium acidity.

M. Chapoutier La Ciboise 2004 – I paid $14.90 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Appellation Coteaux du Tricastin, Rhone, France. A blend of grenache, shiraz, carignan and mourvèdre. Mid to light rosy red colour. Savoury nose with ripe cherry notes. Mid-weighted dryish palate shows ripe berries, a hint of leather and a noticeably firm finish. Suit dishes like a substantial main course pasta.

Jean-Paul’s Shiraz 2004 - $20 cellar door- Rating: \_/\_/\_/\_/\_/*
Yea, Victoria. Certified organic production, low preservatives. Deep crimson to purple. Inviting fragrance of blackberry and mint. Beautifully constructed, youthful, berry-packed wine. Spicy fruit, oak, and integrated tannins interact harmoniously leaving an impression of a superb, artisan-crafted, modern era red. Truly delicious. Order by email, jeanpauls.vineyard@ycs.com.au.

Moondah Brook Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 – I paid $10.90 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/ *
Western Australia. Ruby to purple hued. Dusty blackcurrant nose. Redcurrant, blackcurrant and plummy flavours mix well on the palate to produce a likeable, ‘Let’s have another bottle of that.’ effect. The well-priced shiraz and cabernet marketed under this label are consistently enjoyable, year in, year out. We buy some annually for a few year’s rewarding cellaring.

Wyndham Estate Bin 555 Sparkling Shiraz NV up t to $14 - Rating: \_/\_/\_/
Ripe, almost porty nose. Mellow, sweetish style with stacks of blackberry conserve flavour.

The Spitbucket Rating System
Five spitbuckets: \_/\_/\_/\_/\_/ - brilliant
Four: \_/\_/\_/\_/ - classy
Three: \_/\_/\_/ - good drinking
Two: \_/\_/ everyday drinking
One: \_/ - spit it!
An asterisk * denotes excellent value for money

Note: Prices in Australian dollars

Posted by Martin Field at 07:57 AM
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When the shiraz hit the fan

by Martin Field

The good, the greedy, and the glut-tonous
Over a glass of good red we were talking a couple of weeks back about the Australian wine glut. Who in the wine industry wasn’t? The particular topic was news that wine industry lobbyists wanted taxpayers to fund a lazy $60 million bail out fund.

My drinking companion, a vigneron who has a small Victorian vineyard, makes his own wine and also sells grapes to big makers, was amazed. ‘Audacious!’ he said. ‘More bleeding snouts trying to get into the trough,’ I added. The government, in a rare stroke of wisdom, knocked back the bail out proposal, pointing out that nobody forced growers to plant their grapes in the first place.

Of course you have to feel sorry for growers forced to let their grapes rot after the suits at the big end of winetown tear up their contracts. And my winemaking friend told me that a well-known company he’d supplied did just that, wanting to take only part of a contracted vintage. He told them to stuff their deals up their de-stemmers and, luckily, found another, honourable, buyer.

The wine business is just a business, but unlike many others it’s seen as glamorous. That’s part of the problem. In the boom cycle it’s a magnet for cashed or borrowed up investors who see an industry offering an attractive lifestyle and a profitable business. Unfortunately they are often poorly advised and know little about winemaking.

And when the big profits do roll in these types swan around in luxury cars, get their buffed heads on TV infotainment shows and generally live the life of egotistical b-grade celebs. But you’ll never hear the wine high rollers say, ‘Thank you consumers for buying shiploads of our temporarily overpriced bottles. Here, take a few million bucks we’ve creamed off the top. Use it wisely to build new schools and hospitals for those less well off than us.’

In the inevitable bust cycle however, they immediately plunge into whinge mode and expect taxpayers to subsidise their losses, which often result from greed, bad planning, and even worse management.

The disastrous wine glut has been on the horizon for years, not least of all because companies, whose only business plan seemed to be chasing the easy dollar, planted grapes or encouraged contractors to plant grapes like there was no tomorrow. And given that situation you didn’t need to be an MBA, a clairvoyant, an economist or an industry analyst to know that the shiraz was going to hit the fan sooner or later.

Nearly six years ago, in September 2000, I wrote in a wine column, ‘My belief is that over the next few years we will see a glut of wine grapes with a consequent stabilisation, if not a fall, in wine prices. This can't be good for winemakers but will undoubtedly please consumers. As for investing in a small vineyard to fund my retirement, I'd rather take up yachting. The latter pursuit has been likened to standing on one leg under a cold shower while tearing up $100 bills. It sounds like a far better investment than planting vines.’

Posted by Martin Field at 07:53 AM
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