AT THE age of 13 the now Silkwood Estate winemaker Michael Ng migrated to Melbourne with his Chinese parents, who set up a restaurant there.
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The restaurant served wine, but at home his father never drank it and was much more partial to beer and spirits Thus a wine career for Michael was highly improbable - especially as he gained a Melbourne University bachelor of information systems degree after school.
University life, however, created a passion for things vinous as the young man bought as many wines as he could afford and studied avidly the ones he couldn't.
Next step in 2003 was a La Trobe University viticultural science and winemaking course, at which a lecturer was dubious of Michael's commitment to wine and confided that he was the first Asian ever in his classes.
Such scepticism made it hard for Michael to get the practical experience demanded, and in 2003 the only opening was as a Chinese food chef at Domaine Chandon's Yarra Valley restaurant. Kitchen off-duty time allowed him to observe action in Chandon's vineyard and winery and led him in 2004 to make his first wine - a shiraz - in his garage.
Graduating from Latrobe in 2006, his hopes of hands-on winery and vineyard work blossomed as he won a Southcorp cadetship that brought experience at the Great Western, Lindeman's Mildura and Penfolds' Barossa sites. In 2006 the cadetship took him to a vintage in an Italian-owned winery in Turkey.
Then came a 2007 vintage job at Wither Hills in New Zealand's Marlborough area, a 2008 vintage in France, a move to winemaking, and ultimately to the chief winemaker's post, at WA's Denmark area Forest Hill winery.
In 2015 he moved to Rockcliffe Denmark winery and started contract winemaking for the Rockcliffe, Peos Estate, Willoughby Park, Ironcloud and Nannup Estate brands. This was followed in 2018 by the winemaker's job at Silkwood at Pemberton in the South Western Australian wine zone.
Now aged 41 and married with two children, Michael loves his work at the Pemberton estate. The 120-ha property, with its winery, 25 ha vineyard, cellar door, luxury chalets and sheep and cattle grazing, is owned by Scottish engineer Peter Bowman and his family. Aberdeen-born Peter worked on major global engineering projects, before migrating to Australia and setting up his multimillion-dollar Perth-based engineering consultancy.
He bought the Silkwood estate in 2004 after driving past it and noting a For Sale sign on his way to visit his Pemberton area-based son.
WINE REVIEWS
JUICY WALCOTT RED
NAMED for 1862 pioneer settler Pemberton Walcott and his relatives from the WA pioneer Brockman family, the Silkwood Estate 2017 The Walcott Shiraz is bright garnet and has 13.5% alcohol, Turkish delight scents and juicy plum front-palate flavour. The middle palate shows cherry, cloves, spice and mocha oak and the finish of minty tannins. PRICE: $30.
DRINK WITH: lasagne.
AGEING: five years.
RATING: 4 stars
GOOD-VALUE MERLOT
WITH 13% alcohol, this good-value Silkwood Estate 2017 The Bowers Merlot is so-named because the vines are surrounded by towering karri trees. The wine is cherry red and has bouquet garni scents and ripe mulberry front-palate flavour. The middle palate shows blueberry, black olive, mint and cedary oak and the finish dusty tannins.
PRICE: $20.
DRINK WITH: chicken kebabs.
AGEING: four years.
RATING: 4.5 stars
PAELLA-PLUS PINOT
WITH today's other wines, this vibrant Silkwood Estate 2018 The Walcott Pinot Noir is at silkwoodwines.com.au, cellar door and wine stores. It has 14% alcohol, ruby hues and scents of violets. The front palate shows spicy raspberry flavour, the middle palate cranberry, pomegranate, spearmint and vanillin oak and the finish earthy tannins.
PRICE: $30.
DRINK WITH: paella.
AGEING: five years.
RATING: 4.5 stars