An Interview with winemaker Tom White

Wine is a big part of Green Moustache 🍷

Together with our two sommeliers we take a lot of time to decide which wine makers we want to cooporate with and which wine contributes to make the experience in our oasis even more memorable…

On October 16 we will launch an intimate wine launch with Tom White from Curator Wine Co in Barossa Valley.

It’s going to be a beautiful wine lunch with matching food, lots of talks and interesting facts about the wines Tom will pour.

Since we cannot wait and we’re super curious already, we invited winemaker Tom White for a private interview to get to know him and his passion for making wine a little bit more:

Mel: How did you get into winemaking?

Tom: My parents owned a vineyard in the hills South of McLaren Vale called Mt Jagged Wines, I started

there in the vineyard and gradually found my way into winemaking as I build the Mt Jagged cellar and

winery.

In 2012 I bought my Marananga vineyard and started establishing the Curator Wine Co brand,

then in 2019 I started building my own winery at the vineyard that was utilised for the 2020 vintage.

Mel: Who or what do you look to for inspiration?

Tom: Other Barossa winemakers, small twists on old school ways in either the vineyard or the winery.

It’s that 1% of what someone else does differently that I like to focus in on and add to what we do.

I really look at other winemakers like Rolf Binder, Dan Standish, Jaysen Collins (especially with Grenache).

Mel: How was your latest harvest?

Tom: Very long, thanks to a cool summer and no heat spikes. Shiraz is the standout, Cabernet is nice,

dark and varietal. The Coonawarra Cabernet I made this year looks really solid!

Mel: What lesser known grape varieties are you playing with?

Tom: Malbec to go into Cabernet. Most of what I’m doing is just making Shiraz better and better.

Mel: Anything particularly delicious coming up in the future?

Tom: Always! Extended lees contact fruit salad/field blend white.

2021 Greenock Shiraz and the 2022 Nurioopta Shiraz which will most likely go into Curator single vineyard range.

I also made a 2022 Coonawarra Cabernet in two different styles this year (Noveau and traditional) that looks really cool.

Mel: What challenges are you facing right now with winemaking?

Tom: Logistics! For exports and also for inputs (glass bottles, barrels etc.)

Mel: How is your winemaking process considered sustainable?

Tom: We harvest our own water and solar power (including batteries) with the winery being completely self

sufficient with power. Our vineyard inputs are organic in principle, we don’t do any insecticide or

undervine spraying.

In the winery, I keep our inputs at a minimum to let the fruit speak for itself.

Mel: What are your hobbies and interests outside of winemaking?

Tom: Golf, Sydney Swans and being the taxi driver for my three daughters. :D

Mel: What is your drink of choice?

Tom: Coffee/Shiraz/Chardonnay – pretty much in that order.