Winery in Focus - St Huberts
Directions
Wine: the great Plan B
It’s funny when you think about it, but for so many of our pioneering vignerons, wine was most definitely NOT their career of choice.
Consider Joseph Seppelt - the family business back in Europe had been snuff. It was only when his Seppeltsfield tobacco crops repeatedly failed, that he was persuaded to take a punt on grapevines. Christopher Rawson Penfold - the good doctor only wanted to make a tonic for his patients. Who knew his medicine would be so delicious? William Salter - poor Bill tried just about everything else on his Barossa property: cattle, sheep, spuds and even copper mining before he finally planted Shiraz.
And so it was, for Swiss-born Hubert de Castella - venerable ancestor of 1980s marathon marvel, Robert de Castella. Arriving in Australia in 1862, Deek the Elder snaffled a beautiful property in lush and lovely Yarra Valley, and set about purchasing sheep. But prices were unexpectedly high, and so - completely undeterred by his own lack of experience - Hubert invoked his Plan B.
A man and his saint
Within months he had 100 acres under vine, growing Shiraz, Cab Sauv and Marsanne. He named his vineyard St Huberts - not after himself, but after his namesake saint, Hubertus, patron saint of mathematicians and metal-workers (though not vignerons - which may explain why the enterprise took so long to hit its straps).
Success at last! And then...
After almost 20 years, de Castella finally struck gold when St Huberts was awarded the Emperor of Germany’s Grand Prize at the 1881 Melbourne International Exhibition. A few years later he took out the Grand Prix at the 1889 Paris Exposition, and St Huberts’ overnight success was complete.
When Hubert de Castella died in 1907, the glory days continued with son François at the helm. But by the 1920s, the dream had soured – not just for St Huberts, but for the whole wine-producing region. Yarra Valley’s last vintage was 1921. After that, vines were pulled, or simply ignored, and the area was given over to dairy. The cows held sway until the 1960s, when a new wave of growers reclaimed the Valley for wine.
In 1966, St Huberts was among the first to replant. (Many of these vines are still productive – and while yields are small, flavour and concentration is intense.)
These Days
Long renowned for its Cabernet, St Huberts today is also lauded for its classic, cool climate Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Roussanne. Under the experienced hand of winemaker (and Len Evans Tutorial scholar!) Greg Jarratt, St Huberts has extended its reach beyond Yarra Valley, producing a range of wines that also showcase other premium Victorian regions, like Mornington, Heathcote and the Grampians.
Bonus
Located at the gateway of the Yarra Valley, St Huberts is already ridiculously accessible to fortunate Melburnians.