Custodian of quality

Cruising through the scenic twists and turns of the Adelaide Hills in his old kombi, and making acclaimed wines from a state-of-the-art winery, Mike is living his dream.

He became the sparkling winemaker for Petaluma in 2000, progressing to winemaker and then chief winemaker and manager. In 2014 he played a big role in the construction and move to Petaluma’s new, cutting-edge winery at Woodside.

Since Brian Croser and his wife Ann established Petaluma in the mid-1970s, the winery has become one of Australia’s most respected, renowned as a pioneer in growing grape varieties to suit particular regions and subregions.

“What I love most at Petaluma is the broad variety of wines that we make,” says Mike. “You’re never locked into a particular style, from Chardonnay through to reds to sparkling. It’s very fulfilling.

“We control every aspect of the winemaking process from grape to glass,” he says. “We’re striving to provide people with an experience that they can enjoy and hopefully an experience that they’ll always remember.”

As well as crafting celebrated, classic wines, Mike and his team are pushing the boundaries with the limited-release Petaluma Project Co. range. They’re experimenting with different techniques to create new Chardonnay styles and exploring emerging varieties like Nebbiolo and Barbera.

“That’s extremely exciting for the team at Petaluma,” says Mike.

Whatever style of wine he’s creating, Mike takes a pared back approach to showcase the pristine fruit coming out of Petaluma’s distinguished vineyards.

“The philosophy that I bring to my winemaking is to let the vineyard do the talking,” he says. “Petaluma has an amazing history. We are basically the custodians of the vineyard that we’ve inherited, and we continue to strive for that meticulous level of quality, and that, I think, is reflected in our wines.”

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