Disrupting the status quo

A young Stephen was put to work each day after school, sometimes dusting off wine bottles and sticking on labels, other days helping in the vineyard.

Out of school, Stephen started his wine career away from his hometown of Margaret River. He worked with top wineries in Burgundy and Bordeaux in France and Italy’s Barolo, before joining Australian wine giant BRL Hardy for a decade, mostly as Chief Red Winemaker. He crafted award-winning wines and built an impressive reputation.

In 2004, Stephen and his wife Fiona Lindquist established their wine label S.C. Pannell in South Australia’s celebrated McLaren Vale wine region.

“We’re trying to make wine that suits where we live,” he says. “There’s been a disconnect between those two things for a long time. We live in a coastal, maritime, warm to hot climate. Exploring varieties that come from similar climates, be it Portugal, Spain, Greece, Southern Italy, that’s the interesting part for me.”

Stephen’s wines are guided by his philosophy that emphasises the vineyard, farmed chemical-free, and making wines that suit a region’s climate and lifestyle. His approach has seen the awards roll in, including the 2015 Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year award.

“The most important thing about wine is that it should taste like it comes from somewhere,” says Stephen. “Grape varieties express that. They’re like the colours that paint the landscape. So as a winemaker, I try to get out of the way and not manipulate them too much.”

A rebel by his own admission, Stephen is making elegant, refined, food-friendly wines in a region well known for its bold and powerful styles.

“We’re exploring and re-engineering wine to actually work with how we live. I believe that wine is an art form, and I believe it’s up to us to really push the envelope, and make new and exciting wines that challenge people’s perception of what Australian wine is.”

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