Off the vine: Sydney wine underground

Researching the amateur winemaking movement in Sydney is akin to infiltrating the Masons. I stretched the friendships with my local Italian restaurateurs, enquired through my Italian-descended friends and sniffed around wineries for clues. Once I had gained the faith of one source, I was introduced to 'Nonno Pinto', an octogenarian Italian originally from Basilicata near Naples. Through translation he reveals that he learnt winemaking as a boy, and having come to Australia had continued the tradition. "We use no chemical, no nothing, just the fruit and the old barrels," he says.

His story is echoed amongst other amateur, backyard winemakers. Grapes are crushed and pressed as they would be at any small batch winery, generally using older machinery from boutique vineyards of yesteryear. Nonno Pinto's gear whirrs and cranks in his garage behind firmly closed roller doors. The winemaking is old school; modern techniques are dismissed by a shrug and a slosh in a glass. "This one a year old," Nonno Pinto says - it's surprisingly fresh, but with that heady alcohol and concentrated flavour of a home brew. Shiraz and cabernet are combined at fermentation time by the rickety old winemaker; he believes in the full flavour and longevity of the blend.

While grape vines dot suburbs in the inner west and western suburbs of Sydney, it's Drummoyne, Five Dock and Haberfield that boast the largest concentration of clandestine vines. However, this isn't where the bulk of the grapes come from. Digging deeper reveals a culture of grape sourcing from the Sydney Markets in Flemington. Amateur winemakers throng to the markets for the annual ten-week wine grape selling season, which runs from March to late May. For years trailer trucks have rumbled in from around the country carrying wine grape varieties. According to an anonymous source, shiraz, cabernet and mataro are the preferred grapes and most come from Renmark in South Australia.

Over the past seven years, an informal, invite-only wine tasting competition has been run amongst the Flower Market traders at the markets. It all sounds very cloak and dagger, honour and pride, swords and sunflowers. However, the competition, which was an underground event, has recently been heralded as a market-wide, yearly celebration. For the past four years the Balaga brothers have taken out the top award. Between Tony and Frank Balaga, whose family originates from Palmi Reggio in Calabria, there is a healthy competition and a pursuit of higher quality. "There has been a great history of winemakers in my family," says Tony. Times are changing. "Now, I even have a scientific wine kit," he continues. "I test the grapes for the acid and the sugar levels to make sure I get the best wine grapes off the trucks." His wines are heady and dense, but reflect "freshness that wine from the shops doesn't have, and nothing in them, so the extra glass has no headache in it."

Tony speaks of underground cellars built into foundations of houses, of winemakers with ancient barrels and glass flagons acting as make-do fermenters. He was cagey about where he makes his wine, but assured me that this year he will beat his brother. "We will have the wine judging in September this year," he states. "In the end we let the grapes speak for themselves."

Sydney Markets www.sydneymarkets.com.au
Sydney Amateur Winemaker's Club www.sydneyawc.com

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