GRAVITATING TO SUCCESS By Keith Platt
D
arrin Gaffy would be the first to admit he landed on his feet when he found and bought 10 hectares of land in Red Hill. In fact, he was so sure of his place on the land that he built a house, planted grape vines and named the property Principia, after a book of the same name by Sir Isaac Newton. “He’s the father of gravity,” Gaffy says while sitting in the kitchen of his house which overlooks his place of work, the vineyard. Gaffy prides himself on using gravity in his winemaking process. The system prevents him from filtering his chardonnay and pinot noir wines. Pumps are usually used by winemakers and Gaffy says going with gravity was “a personal choice” rather than one based on improving the quality of wine.
Gaffy’s tendency towards a more natural process has also seen him shun fertilisers and irrigation, although he stresses that “I’m not organic; I use copper and sulphur sprays as fungicides,
E ssence
Whatever his reasoning, Gaffy’s dedication to his craft has paid off with Principia being named Dark Horse Winery of the Year in the wine lovers’ bible, the 2019 Halliday Wine Companion. Wine critic James Halliday says Gaffy’s “guiding philosophy … is minimal interference”, citing the lack of irrigation, use of gravity and wild yeast during primary and secondary fermentation.
I was attracted by using a natural force – I’m in no hurry to do anything
“I was attracted by using a natural force – I’m in no hurry to do anything,” he said.
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Red Hill’s a damp place”. His practices see him harvesting about 1.5 tonnes to the acre, “which is not a high yield”.
The Wine Companion describes Principia’s Kindred Hill 2016 pinot noir as having “perfectly ripened” with a “tantalisingly seductive palate” that leaves “an imprint that takes seeming eternity to diminish”.
The similarly priced ($55 a bottle) 2016 Altior pinot noir and Principia’s $40 pinot noir are also lauded for their flavours. The 2016 chardonnay is said by Halliday to have an initial “beguiling bouquet” (creamy, nutty, nougat-like) that then reveals “a complexity of stone fruit and citrus” with a “long, lemony finish”. continued next page...
October 2018