Love what you do, love where you do it

Source: Grapegrower & Winemaker, December 2014, Stephanie Timotheou

Andrew Jericho, Maxwell Wines, South Australia

ANDREW Jericho works as a winemaker for Maxwell Wines in McLaren Vale and has been employed in the region since leaving university in 2003.

The things he loves most about living and working in McLaren Vale include the close proximity to beaches and local markets, the quality food on offer and having so many wineries scattered throughout the region.

“With Adelaide being only 40 minutes away, it’s easy to love living in the area,” he said. “McLaren Vale has so many things going for it. The climate is ideal for making Shiraz, Grenache and Cabernet Sauvignon, so access to great parcels of reds is a real strength of making wine in the region.”

Jericho has also worked as a consultant in Shanxi Provence, China, which he says is different in many ways. “It really makes me appreciate how good things are here in McLaren Vale, particularly when growing grapes,” he said. “In Shanxi the vines have to be buried in winter to prevent them from freezing, so the vines are very close to the ground.”

He says there is also a high level of leaf roll virus and high growing season rainfall in China, so the vines are more vulnerable to downy mildew and botrytis. “It was a steep learning curve for me to cope with these things and with intensive sorting, the resulting wines can be very good.”

The variation throughout the region also creates interesting differences and complex wines and Jericho says even within the vineyards around the Maxwell winery, there is a change in geological formations, so “getting an understanding of the vineyards gives great tools come blending time”.

Look out for more ‘Love what you do’ articles in upcoming Winejobs Knowledge Centre articles or visit www.winebiz.com.au/gwm for the full article.