Vasili's Garden Episodes
Country Life Country Wines!
Every year I look forward to attending the annual home made wine festival held by the City of Darebin, 5 years running now and I’ve attended every event with over 100 entrants all competing for the Annual ‘Best Home Made Wine award.’
And I must say for a man who doesn’t drink, even though I do like a glass of red on the odd occasion, I’ve been able to pick first and second winners nearly every time. It must be the wonderful Greek taste buds I have and the fact that I don’t spit out the sample.
Why waste a good drop like that?
Just recently I was invited to attend the 40th home wine show of the Eltham and District Winemakers Guild, thinking that it would have about the same range of wines to taste as the Darebin Wine Festival, I was looking forward to the opportunity.
Well folks, what can I say but WOW!
Not only did I get to taste the traditional Reds and whites, I was astonished at the quality of country wines made in the homes of ordinary Australians. Who would have ever thought that you can make wine literally out of any fruit or vegetable?
I got to taste a range of absolutely stunning fruit, vegetable and plant based wines, but imagine drinking wine that’s made with Raspberry and coffee, Kaffir Lime Leaf and lemon, Hops with Fennel Seed and Spices or even Plum Mariposa? And the list goes on.
The Eltham wine show is the largest home winemaking show in Australia and with well over 100 wine makers who submitted 615 entries, I knew I had my work cut out for me to find the best drop in this place. But it didn’t take long before I found the best drop and proudly produced by Vinko and Kathy Eterovic who not only won several medals but were also declared “Winemaker of the Year” for the Eltham Guild.
Vinko and Kathy make a wide variety of wines, from your traditional reds and whites to the unusual blends of Country wines, all of which are completely free of any preservatives. Vinko migrated to Australia some 40 years ago and established his own stonemason business in Melbourne. Since retiring, his love for gardening and winemaking grew bigger and stronger every year and it’s from their garden that Vinko and Kathy make many of their country wines, using fruit and vegetables grown from either their own garden or their friend’s gardens.
I was surprised to learn that country wines can be made from anything that’s suitable for eating, which includes grains, flowers (egg rose petals), nuts and herbs too. And it’s the European immigrants who are responsible for its existence even though it’s on a small scale in Australia but without the active support for this craft by the Eltham and Frankston Guilds, it could become a tradition of the past.
Don’t let this happen, start growing your fruit and veggies to not only eat and preserve them, grow them to make crazy and unusual Country wines Too!
But if you don’t know how or where to start, then visit Eltham’s or Frankston’s websites for more info. http://www.amateurwine.org.au and http://www.fawg.org.au
Maresi!
Vinko’s Country Wines from Vasili's Garden on Vimeo.
Sponsors / Supporters
