Episodes - The Wined Up Podcast

Why Peter Valeri Is Betting on the Riverina

The Riverina is the biggest wine region in New South Wales by volume, and for decades its reputation has been built on bulk Chardonnay and Shiraz sold by the tonne. …Peter Valeri wants people to see it differently.

On this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with Peter, the winemaker behind Via Pola in Griffith. He grew up following his dad around the family vineyard, studied wine science and viticulture, then crammed ten vintages into five years, bouncing between the Riverina and the northern hemisphere. A first overseas vintage in Canada’s Okanagan Valley taught him the lesson that still drives everything: wine is made in the vineyard. And despite every other region on offer, he kept coming home to Griffith.

In 2024, the same year he became a dad, Peter made the first Via Pola wines. He and his father carved off part of the family vineyard and planted Italian varieties suited to the warm climate: Pecorino, Fiano, Vermentino and Nero d’Avola, alongside Montepulciano vines dating back to 2008. It’s a nod to his Italian heritage, but also a practical bet that these grapes can thrive in the Riverina. The vineyard has been farmed without synthetic inputs since day one, and has just been granted organic certification, with the vines certified organic from 2027.

We taste two wines that tell the story. The 2026 Pecorino, the only one grown in the Riverina, comes with a great origin story about sheep raiding vineyards, while the 2024 Montepulciano uses carbonic maceration to make a juicy, lighter style that’s built for pizza and pasta night. Peter also explains why the winery is named after the street in Abruzzo where his grandfather grew up, what his dad thought of the idea, and why Durif, fortifieds and Noble One deserve more credit than the region usually gets.

To finish, we look ahead to NSW Wine Month, a Via Pola collaboration with a local Griffith restaurant, a Prosecco in the works, and where Peter hopes the brand will be in ten years.

It’s an honest, warm conversation about family, place and backing yourself, and a good reason to give the Riverina another look.

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What would it take for you to give the Riverina another go? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out Via Pola: https://www.viapolawines.com.au/ and NSW Wine Month: https://www.nswwine.com.au/nsw-wine-month

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Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up and @viapolawines
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷

YouTube Chapters
00:00 More Than Just Bulk Wine
00:56 The Wined Up Ice Breaker Questions
04:15 Growing Up on a Griffith Vineyard
06:50 Ten Vintages in Five Years
08:27 What the Riverina Was, and What It’s Becoming
11:17 Starting Via Pola From Scratch
14:39 The Street in Abruzzo Behind the Name
17:52 Pecorino, Sheep and a Salty Finish
21:13 A Lighter Monty Built for Pizza Night
24:40 Going Organic the Hard Way
26:48 Why the Riverina Deserves a Second Look
28:55 Where Via Pola Is Heading by 2036Show More

Why Peter Valeri Is Betting on the Riverina

The Riverina is the biggest wine region in New South Wales by volume, …

How good is Australian Pinot Noir?

Ten glasses, one blind tasting, and a question that’s been quietly …

Ten glasses, one blind tasting, and a question that’s been quietly dividing Australian wine for years: are we still trying to make Burgundy, or have we finally found our own …voice with Pinot Noir?

On this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with returning guest Marc Malouf of iHeartWine for a genuine celebration of Pinot Noir, not a ranking exercise. They kick off with a round of Pinot specific icebreakers, including the 2012 Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny that Marc calls the most gorgeous Pinot of his life, and a dinner with United Cellars that ran through nine vintages of Mascarello Monprivato Barolo.

From there the conversation gets into the real substance. Marc is honest that Australian Pinot doesn’t quite reach the heights of Shiraz or Chardonnay yet, but argues that isn’t really the point. Where Burgundy has had centuries to map its soils down to the individual row, Australia is still working it out, and Marc makes the case that chasing a Burgundian blueprint might be the wrong goal altogether. Sites like the Yarra Valley grow half a dozen varieties side by side, which makes the kind of granular classification Burgundy is famous for a genuinely different challenge here.

Then comes the main event: ten Pinot Noirs poured blind, head to head across two glasses at a time, with the loser pushed out and replaced until only a favourite remains. Whole bunch versus destemmed, carbonic maceration, oak tannin versus stem tannin, and the way colour gives away a wine’s story all come up as Trent and Marc work through bracket after bracket, laughing at how genuinely hard it is to choose between wines that are all, in their words, unfairly good.
The reveal at the end is the twist. The wine that very nearly won the whole tasting turns out to cost around $60, a reminder that some of the best Pinot in the country doesn’t need to cost a bomb. Marc also hands over a genuine gateway recommendation for anyone new to the variety: an independent Geelong producer punching well above its price point.

It’s an honest, occasionally chaotic and thoroughly enjoyable look at where Australian Pinot Noir actually stands right now, and why that might be something worth celebrating rather than comparing.

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Which Australian Pinot region do you think deserves more attention? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out Marc’s site: https://iheartwine.com.au/
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#pinotnoir #australianwine #marcmalouf #bromleywines #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwetrywelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷
YouTube Chapters
00:00 How Good Is Australian Pinot, Really?
01:04 The Wined Up Ice Breaker Questions
04:49 Fun Facts Even Wine Lovers Miss About Pinot
07:12 Marc’s Favourite Australian Producers
08:39 Chasing Burgundy Without the Centuries of History
13:29 Ten Wines, One Blind Tasting Begins
20:37 A New Bracket and a Total Change of Personality
39:10 The Reveal and a Surprise Under $60
41:17 Final Reflections and Advice for New Pinot DrinkersShow More

Mark Best – To Infinity and beyond!

Mark Best doesn’t care what people say about him. He never really has. …

Mark Best doesn’t care what people say about him. He never really has. And oddly, that’s the throughline of one of the most layered conversations we’ve recorded for The Wined …Up Podcast.

Best built his reputation the hard way at Marque, seventeen years of three-hat, top-50 cooking that, by his own account, took more than it gave back. He talks candidly about closing those doors in 2016 by the skin of his teeth, about losing a hat and losing financial viability in the same breath, and about how long it actually took to work out who he was as a chef once the accolades stopped defining him.

Ten years on, he’s running Infinity, high above Sydney in the Tower, and he’s made a call most restaurateurs wouldn’t touch: an entirely Australian wine list. No safety net of international labels, no champagne carve-out. Sommeliers pushed back. One told him the concept was weak. Mark Best leaned into the friction anyway, and the diners backed him.

Along the way there’s a tasting of the Chalou “Quixotic” Pinot Noir, made by Nadia Wallington and her husband Steve in a genuinely symbiotic vineyard-and-winery partnership, paired with Infinity’s dry-aged, chargrilled coral trout. There’s a proper conversation about mentoring the generation of chefs who came through Mark’s tiny kitchen, Dan Hong and Victor Liong among them, and what he actually looks for in people. And there’s an unfiltered take on where Sydney’s dining scene is heading, on cultural cringe, on old vines and new heads, and on why he’d rather do good work quietly than chase anyone’s approval.

It’s honest, occasionally profane, and full of the kind of hard-won perspective you only get from someone who’s actually lived through the highs and the wreckage of hospitality. If you care about Australian wine, Australian food, or what it actually takes to build and rebuild a career in this industry.

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What would it take for you to walk away from something you’d built? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out Infinity: https://infinitysydneytower.com.au/ and Chalou: https://www.chalouwines.com.au/

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Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up, @infinitysydneytower, @chalouwines and @markbest

🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

#markbest #infinitysydney #chalouwines #drinkaustralian #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwetrywelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷

YouTube Chapters
00:00 Three Hats, One Restless Chef
01:00 The Wined Up Ice Breaker Questions
07:05 Portraits, Truth and a Craftsman, Not an Artist
09:34 Wheat Country, No Chefs, No Celebrity
11:37 The Night the Lightning Struck
13:10 What Mark Best Cuisine Actually Means
16:09 Chasing the Hats and the Weight of Getting There
19:32 Closing the Doors on Marque
20:57 Stepping Into Infinity and the All-Australian Bet
28:55 The Chalou, the Coral Trout and Why Customers Bought In
39:51 Passing It Down: Mentoring the Next Generation
45:47 Why Mark Best Doesn’t Chase ApprovalShow More

Five Way Cellars – One of Sydney’s Wine Institutions

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with Ches …

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with Ches Cook from Five Way Cellars, the independent Paddington wine store his parents Ian and Prue opened in …1987 after Ian came home from a year in Europe wanting to bring that world of wine back to Sydney. Ches has now worked there for half his life, and he takes us through what’s changed, and what hasn’t, across nearly forty years of European-focused wine retail.

The chat moves from a standout cellar visit in the Mosel and an unopened birthday bottle of Côte-Rôtie, through to the philosophy that actually keeps a small shop full of loyal customers: knowing people, being straight with them, and never pretending to love a bottle you don’t. Ches breaks down why a higher price tag doesn’t mean better wine, what a genuine beginner should actually look for on a label, and the seven types of wine drinker he sees walk through the door, tosser included.

There’s a proper detour into a mega-steep, volcanic Grand Cru in Alsace that almost nobody wants to farm, a case for Beechworth as Australia’s best-kept Nebbiolo secret, and an honest read on where Burgundy’s pricing might be heading. As Ian approaches 70 and the next generation starts taking the reins, Ches reflects on what he’s learned from watching his dad build trust with an entire city, one recommendation at a time.

It all circles back to that Grange. Wine, Ches argues, isn’t something to hoard for bragging rights, it’s something to open with the people who matter. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve already got a cellar full of Shiraz and only want Pinot, there’s something here for you.

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:
What’s sitting in your cellar that you’re waiting too long to open? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out fivewaycellars.com.au

YouTube Chapters
00:00 Intro
01:18 The Wined Up Ice Breaker Questions
11:01 What Actually Is Five Way Cellars
17:28 The Real Difference Is Connection
20:37 The Grand Cru Almost No One Wants to Farm
24:01 Building Trust One Bottle at a Time
30:43 The Biggest Mistake Wine Buyers Make
33:04 A Beginner’s Guide to Buying Better Wine
37:31 The Seven Types of Wine Drinker
46:01 Beechworth: Australia’s Nebbiolo Secret
48:04 Rapid-Fire This or That
50:58 What Excites (and Worries) Ches
53:57 Why You Never Sell the Grange

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#fivewaycellars #paddington #sydneywine #independentbottleshop #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We Connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷Show More

The Winemaker Trying to Prove Wine Doesn't Need the Alcohol

What happens when you take a winemaker who never planned to work in …

What happens when you take a winemaker who never planned to work in alcohol-free wine, and hand him the job of making it actually taste like wine?

Aaron Milne fell into …it almost by accident. A winery job during his studies happened to be run by the same people leading Australia’s zero-alcohol scene, and a “one year, just to learn it” detour turned into a career. In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with Aaron, winemaker for Edenvale, to pull apart what actually happens when you strip the alcohol out of wine, and why it’s so much harder than it sounds.

Aaron walks through the process, from the early days of simply boiling off the alcohol, to vacuum distillation, spinning cone columns, and now single-pass equipment that separates the essence, removes the alcohol and returns the flavour. But the technical side is only half the story. Alcohol carries weight, sweetness and length on the palate, and once it’s gone, a wine can turn “fossil dry” almost overnight. Reds are the real test: strip the alcohol from a Cabernet and the tannins and colour compounds that depended on it start to fall apart, which is why Eden Vale’s Coonawarra Cabernet is described as the Everest of the whole project.

The conversation also gets into the culture around no and low alcohol wine: why traditional wine drinkers have been resistant, the idea of “vinosity” as the actual goal, and the rise of the “zebra drinker” — people who move between full-strength and zero wine in the same session rather than choosing one camp for good. Aaron also touches on where the category is heading, including the mid-strength range he thinks holds the most promise over the next five to ten years.

It’s an honest, occasionally very funny look at one of the more overlooked corners of the Australian wine industry, and what it actually takes to make something that isn’t wine taste like it belongs at the table with food anyway.

Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, SBS and Cabernet all make an appearance, alongside a story about a 98 Grange, a fire drum, and Snoop Dogg.

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:
What’s your take — is alcohol-free wine a genuine alternative, or does wine need the alcohol to be wine? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out edenvalle.com.au
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Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷

## YouTube Chapters
00:00 Can Wine Still Be Wine Without the Alcohol?
0:56 Grange, Snoop Dogg and the Icebreaker Questions
5:59 How Aaron Fell Into Winemaking by Accident
8:03 Ending Up at the Frontier of Alcohol-Free Wine
10:33 Why Eden Vale Exists in the First Place
12:58 From Boiling It Out to Vacuum Distillation
16:12 The Real Fight Is Replacing What Alcohol Does
24:09 The Expensive Mistakes Along the Way
25:48 Why Whites Are Easy and Reds Are Brutal
32:53 Chasing Something Called “Vinosity”
36:14 The Rise of the Zebra Drinker
44:03 Taking On the Everest of Zero-Alcohol Wine
50:35 Where Low and No Alcohol Wine Is Headed NextShow More

Is Ashton Hills Making Australia's Best Pinot Noir?

A three hectare Brussels sprout farm on a hill in the Adelaide Hills …

A three hectare Brussels sprout farm on a hill in the Adelaide Hills doesn’t sound like the start of one of Australia’s most respected Pinot Noir stories. But that’s exactly …where Ashton Hills began.

In this episode of **The Wined Up Podcast**, Trent sits down with Liam Van Pelt, the winemaker now carrying on the legacy Stephen George built over more than 40 years in the Piccadilly Valley. Liam’s own path to Ashton Hills was anything but planned. A Glenelg kid with no wine background, he worked his way through hospitality, wine school, a vintage in Italy, Jeff Grosset’s cellar in the Clare Valley, Chapel Hill in McLaren Vale, and a wild stint with Andrew Thomas in the Hunter Valley, before a casual vintage role and a bit of serendipity landed him alongside Stephen. What followed was a letter from Stephen to the CEO of Wirra Wirra that Liam still describes as one of the most emotional moments of his career, handing him a role, and a legacy, that didn’t exist yet.

The conversation moves through the story of how Ashton Hills got its name, why Stephen trialled 27 different clones of Pinot Noir on one tiny patch of dirt over four decades, and what it’s like to inherit that kind of obsession. Liam and Trent taste through the range together, from the 2025 Piccadilly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir through to the two single vineyard wines, Woods Hill and Bow House, sourced two kilometres apart and showing almost nothing in common, right up to the flagship 2025 Estate Pinot Noir grown on Stephen’s original site.

Along the way, Liam talks candidly about the pressure of protecting someone else’s life’s work, the balance between honouring Stephen’s philosophy and finding his own voice, the backing that’s let Ashton Hills invest in better fruit and new vineyards for the future, and where he sees the winery heading over the next decade.

It’s a conversation about legacy, trust, patience, and what it really takes to keep a 40 year old vision alive without losing it.

If you love Pinot Noir, cool climate wine, or stories about people stepping into someone else’s shoes, this one’s worth your time.

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

What’s your favourite Ashton Hills wine? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out https://www.ashtonhills.com.au/

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📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au

📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷

## YouTube Chapters

00:00 Intro
0:55 The Wined Up Ice Breaker Questions
5:15 Wine of the Day: The 2025 Chardonnay
6:26 From a Glenelg Kid to Chasing Vintage
8:32 The Letter That Changed Everything
14:35 Carrying Steven’s Piccadilly Pinot Forward
20:11 A Brussels Sprout Farm Called Ashton Hills
27:33 Woods Hill vs Bow House
31:50 What Makes the Piccadilly Valley Different
44:00 The Flagship: 2025 Estate Pinot Noir
47:18 Gamay, Lighter Styles and a New Generation
51:13 Rapid Fire: This or That
52:08 What’s Next for Ashton Hills
54:16 Closing ThoughtsShow More

Is This Portugal’s Most Exciting New Winery? | ODE Wines

What happens when Australian investors, a respected Portuguese …

What happens when Australian investors, a respected Portuguese winemaker, and a forgotten vineyard come together just 45 minutes from Lisbon?

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we head to …Portugal’s emerging Tejo wine region to discover ODE Wines. A winery that’s quickly gaining attention after being named one of Portugal’s best new wine projects.

But this story goes beyond what’s in the bottle.

We explore how ODE transformed semi-abandoned vineyards into a destination built around wine, food, farming, nature and hospitality. Along the way, Trent tastes through three very different wines that reveal a fascinating side of Portugal many wine lovers may have overlooked.

From a rich and textured Arinto that completely changes expectations of Portuguese white wine, to a beautifully expressive Touriga Nacional that captures the spirit of Portugal, and finally a happy-accident blend called Quarteto that might just be the perfect steak wine, this episode is all about curiosity, discovery and finding exciting wines from unexpected places.

We also dive into:
• Why the Tejo region is becoming one of Portugal’s most talked-about wine areas
• The Australian connection behind ODE Wines
• Minimal intervention winemaking and what it actually means
• Portuguese grape varieties worth seeking out
• Food pairings for Arinto, Touriga Nacional and Quarteto
• Why Portugal continues to be one of the most exciting wine countries in the world

If you love Portuguese wine, wine travel, hidden wine regions, or simply discovering great stories through a glass of wine, this episode is for you.

Because sometimes the most exciting wine journeys start with a little curiosity.

Chapters
00:00 – Is ODE Portugal’s Most Exciting Winery Right Now?
00:20 – How a Portuguese Chicken Pairing Sparked This Journey
01:00 – The Story Behind ODE Wines
01:45 – More Than a Winery: Farming, Food & Wine Tourism
02:30 – The Australian Connection to ODE
03:10 – Minimal Intervention, Maximum Attention
03:50 – Why Portugal’s Tejo Region Is Rising Fast
04:40 – First Taste: The Arinto That Changed Expectations
06:20 – Discovering Portugal’s Signature Red: Touriga Nacional
08:45 – A Happy Accident Called Quarteto
10:30 – The Portuguese Steak Wine?
11:05 – Final Verdict: Is ODE One to Watch?

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

Have you discovered Ode wines, Tejo region or Portuguese wines yet? Drop it in the comments 👇

Get out and visit Portugal and Ode Winery at https://odewinery.com/ and also grab your Ode wines at https://www.globalgrapevine.com.au/product-category/vineyard/ode/

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🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
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#Arinto #touriganacional #quarteto #PortugueseWine #odewinery #tejoregion #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We Connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷Show More

How does Lee Ho Fook interpret modern Chinese cuisine?

What makes a modern Chinese restaurant truly great? And what wine …

What makes a modern Chinese restaurant truly great? And what wine should you be drinking with it?

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent sits down with Victor Liong, …the chef behind Lee Ho Fook, for a conversation that spans food, wine, family, culture and the realities of building one of Australia’s most respected restaurants.

Victor shares stories from growing up between Brunei, Malaysia and Sydney, visiting his grandfather’s kopitiam, walking away from a business degree to pursue cooking, and the journey that led to Lee Ho Fook becoming a fixture of Australian dining.

They also dive into opening Lee Ho Fook Sydney, balancing fatherhood with business ownership, handling criticism, overcoming imposter syndrome and why great restaurants focus on refining ideas rather than constantly chasing trends.

For wine lovers, Victor discusses the wines that shaped his palate, why Lee Ho Fook champions Australian producers, and his favourite Chinese food pairings.

It’s a conversation about hospitality, identity, creativity and the philosophy of serving guests above all else.

If you love wine, food, restaurants, hospitality, entrepreneurship or Australian gastronomy, you’ll enjoy this one.

Chapters

00:00:00 Intro
00:00:55 Icebreakers
00:09:50 Victor’s Background Story
00:18:47 Culinary Influences
00:21:10 Li Ho Fook Story & Philosophy
00:24:43 Defining Modern Chinese Cuisine
00:33:00 Wine Journey
00:46:57 Wine of the Day – Gronju Chardonnay
00:52:06 Wine at Li Ho Fook
00:57:13 Wine Pairings with Chinese Food
01:01:28 Rapid Fire Questions
01:08:33 Proudest Moments & Future
01:12:58 Closing

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

What’s your favourite dish at Lee Ho Fook? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out https://www.leehofook.com.au/

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📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

#leehoFook #victorliong #granjoux #drinkaustralian #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We Connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷Show More

How One Family Took Us Around the World in 4 Wines

What if you could travel from England to France, Tasmania and Bordeaux …

What if you could travel from England to France, Tasmania and Bordeaux without ever leaving your chair?

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we’re not exploring a single wine …region. Instead, we’re following the story of one family that has spent more than 50 years searching the world for great wine and has delivered over a billion bottles along the way.

The journey starts with a young Tony Laithwaite working a harvest in Saint-Émilion. Surrounded by talented growers making incredible wines that rarely left France, he had a simple idea: load a van, take the wines directly to customers, and share discoveries that most people would never find on their own. Decades later, that idea became one of the world’s largest family-owned wine merchants.

To understand the philosophy behind Laithwaites, we taste our way through four very different wines.

• A sparkling wine from Windsor Great Park that showcases why English sparkling is becoming one of the most exciting categories in the wine world.
• A classic Provence rosé that delivers everything you want from southern France, freshness, minerality and effortless drinkability.
• A beautifully elegant Tasmanian Pinot Noir from Joseph Chromy that highlights why Tasmania continues to punch well above its weight.
• A mysterious Pauillac Bordeaux sourced from a secret First Growth parcel that offers a glimpse into one of wine’s most prestigious regions without the eye-watering price tag.

This episode is ultimately about discovery. The people who spend their lives searching for hidden gems. The stories behind great bottles. And why wine remains one of the few things that can transport you across continents through a single glass.

________________________________________
Chapters

00:00 How Do You Travel the World Through 4 Wines?
00:47 The Family Behind a Billion Bottles
01:13 The Bordeaux Harvest That Started Everything
02:00 The Untold Story of Barbara Laithwaite
02:30 What Actually Makes a Wine Merchant?
03:06 Four Wines. Four Regions. One Journey.
03:24 England’s Royal Sparkling Wine Surprise
05:01 Why Provence Rosé Never Goes Out of Style
06:13 Tasmania’s Pinot Noir Sweet Spot
07:55 The Secret First Growth Bordeaux
09:35 A Pauillac That Drinks Well Above Its Price
10:04 Why Wine Is the Ultimate Way to Travel
10:34 The Wines We’d Buy Again Tomorrow

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

Do you think great wine always has to come with a big price tag? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out https://www.laithwaites.com.au/ to find your favourite wine OR check out the wines at the https://goodfoodshow.com.au/sydney-show/

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📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

#laithwaites #greatwindsorpark #josefchromy #moulindepontfract #pinot #rose #paulliac #goodfoodandwine #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

We Drink. We Try. We Learn. We Connect. Drink Responsibly. 🍷Show More

Australia’s Best Chardonnay? The Blind Tasting Shocked Us

What actually happens when you blind taste some of Australia’s most …

What actually happens when you blind taste some of Australia’s most hyped Chardonnays… against each other?

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, Trent is joined by the always insightful …Marc Malouf for a deep dive into Australian Chardonnay. From cult favourites and benchmark producers to the styles, philosophies, and winemaking fingerprints that shape the country’s most talked-about bottles.

It’s raw, blind, occasionally chaotic, and full of genuine moments where both of us completely rethink what we thought we knew about Chardonnay. One wine gets described as “compelling”, another divides us with intense reductive character, and at one point we genuinely question whether Australian Chardonnay might now rival the world’s top chardonnays.

If you love Chardonnay, or think you hate it, this episode might genuinely surprise you.

Chapters
00:00 The French Wine Twist Nobody Expected
00:14 What Is Australia’s Favourite Chardonnay?
01:55 Mark’s Most Memorable Wine Ever
03:14 Why Riesling Might Beat Chardonnay
04:30 The Biggest Lesson From a Life in Wine
06:23 A Vintage Year of Life, Highs & Lows
08:24 Fresh Sourdough Before Nine Chardonnays
09:14 Why Great Chardonnay Is So Hard to Make
10:09 Does Australian Chardonnay Have an Identity?
21:03 The Blind Tasting Starts Getting Serious
23:33 Reductive Chardonnay Explained
26:26 “How Bloody Good Is Australian Chardonnay?”
29:34 Final Round: The Most Divisive Wine Yet
30:46 The Wine Geek Chardonnay Debate
31:00 Which Chardonnay Actually Won?

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

What’s your favourite Australian chardonnay? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out http://www.iheartwine.com.au to find your favourite wine.

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📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
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He Turned His Garage into a Winery (And Learned Fast) With James Follent

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we sit down with amateur …

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we sit down with amateur winemaker James Follent to unpack what really happens when curiosity turns into a full-blown garage winery obsession.

What …started with buying wine for Qantas points somehow turned into hand-picking grapes, experimenting with sparkling Chardonnay, making raspberry mead, joining the Sydney Amateur Winemakers Club, and producing nearly 300 bottles of wine at home.

Along the way, James shares the chaos, mistakes, and happy accidents that come with learning winemaking from scratch, including dropping 23 litres of Moscato all over the kitchen floor.

This conversation dives into what home winemaking actually teaches you about wine. From fermentation and faults to sulphites, ageing, oxidation, vineyard challenges, and why cleaning might secretly be the most important skill in winemaking.

If you’ve ever wondered whether making wine would completely change the way you drink it… this episode is for you.

Whether you’re into Australian wine, home fermentation, garage winemaking, cellar culture, wine education, or just love hearing passionate people obsess over their hobby, this episode captures the messy, fascinating side of wine that most people never see.

⏱️ Chapters
00:00:00 Introduction – Do You Really Understand Wine?
00:00:37 Meet James Fallon – Amateur Winemaker
00:01:08 Lord James & The Scottish Land Story
00:02:25 Icebreaker Questions
00:02:28 Most Memorable Wine Moment
00:04:24 Who Would You Share a Bottle With?
00:05:21 Food & Wine Pairing + Biggest Lesson
00:06:53 Bottling a Life Moment (2025)
00:08:24 James’ Wine Journey Begins
00:11:23 From Drinking to Making Wine
00:12:11 Sydney Amateur Winemakers Club
00:19:25 Sparkling Chardonnay 2025 Tasting
00:22:00 Chateau Falon – Name & Story
00:24:32 How Winemaking Changed His Perspective
00:25:40 Regenerative & Biodynamic Viticulture
00:28:44 Vermentino Mudgee 2025
00:31:25 Winemaking Mistakes & Lessons
00:33:33 Garage Winemaking Setup
00:35:15 Oak, Blending & Experiments
00:38:28 Raspberry Mead Tasting & Story
00:43:10 Regenerative Farming Deep Dive
00:47:38 Merlot Cabernet Blend
00:50:30 Future Plans – Going Commercial?
00:55:57 Final Thoughts & The Joy of Winemaking
00:57:32 Where to Find James & The Club
00:58:25 Closing & Cheers

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

Have you ever thought about making your own wine? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out James Follent and his journey with amateur wine making at https://chateaufollent.com.au/ and his insta https://www.instagram.com/j.fol/. Alternatively if you want to be pursue the journey yourself, check out the Sydney Amateur Winemakers Club https://www.sydneyawc.com/

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📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
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#jamesfollent #chateaufollent #sydneyawc #amateurwinemaking #winemaking #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

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What Does 500 Years of Wine History Taste Like? With Roman Aujoulat from Chateau La Nerthe

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we sit down with Roman …

In this episode of The Wined Up Podcast, we sit down with Roman Aujoulat from Château La Nerthe in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. One of the Rhône Valley’s most historic estates to unpack …what tradition really means when you’re the next generation helping carry it forward.

Roman grew up in the Rhône surrounded by wine at the dinner table, but stepping into a role representing one of the region’s benchmark estates still came with challenge and trepidation. From that first emotional Loire Valley Chardonnay moment that pulled him into wine, to travelling the world pouring Châteauneuf-du-Pape in places like Sydney, this conversation moves between personal story and deep regional insight in the best possible way.

Along the way we explore why Châteauneuf-du-Pape allows up to 18 grape varieties, how blending gives growers freedom in a changing climate, and why Grenache still quietly shapes the identity of the region. Roman also shares the lesser-known history behind Château La Nerthe itself, including Roman amphitheatre stones hidden in the cellar walls and sealed wartime cellars rediscovered decades later.
We taste through Rhône whites, Beaujolais Gamay, Châteauneuf-du-Pape whites and mature Châteauneuf-du-Pape reds while talking about ageing windows, vintage expression, and what it means to evolve a historic estate without losing its soul.

⏱️ Chapters
00:00 – “You don’t need to be a pro to enjoy wine”
00:00:18 – Ice Breaker
00:04:00 – What Châteauneuf-du-Pape pairs best with at the table
00:05:42 – First tasting: Rhône white blend from La Nerthe
00:08:02 – Growing up with wine in the Rhône Valley
00:10:00 – Getting the call to represent La Nerthe
00:10:36 – What makes Rhône… Rhône?
00:12:39 – Robert Parker and global fame for Châteauneuf-du-Pape
00:13:00 – Why Châteauneuf-du-Pape allows 13 (or 18) grapes
00:16:27 – Why vintage variation matters more than consistency here
00:17:03 – The Richard family story: wine in Paris 140 years ago
00:20:25 – Second tasting: Beaujolais Gamay surprise
00:23:59 – How Château La Nerthe survived five centuries
00:26:21 – Phylloxera, rootstocks and saving the vineyards
00:29:22 – Hidden Roman stones and sealed WWII cellar stories
00:34:54 – What goes into white Châteauneuf-du-Pape
00:36:18 – How white Rhône wines age (and when to drink them)
00:48:58 – Modern vs old-school La Nerthe winemaking styles
00:49:06 – Mature Châteauneuf-du-Pape reds and ageing windows
00:57:22 – Final reflections + visiting Château La Nerthe

👉 Subscribe to @thewinedup and tell us below:

What’s your favourite Châteauneuf-du-Pape? Drop it in the comments 👇

Go check out Chateau Le Nerthe https://www.domainesrichard.fr/chateau-la-nerthe/en/

🎙️ Clip from The Wined Up Podcast
📺 Watch full episodes on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow us on Instagram @the.wined.up
🌐 Visit https://www.thewinedup.com.au
📩 info@thewinedup.com.au

#chateaulenerthe #domainesrichard #cdp #chateauneufdupape #TheWinedUpPodcast #wedrinkwelearnweconnect

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