Wow! It is all happening at Marsh Estate at the moment! Busy, busy, busy! I hardly know where to begin. Updating the winery and bottling line; deep ripping the vineyard and renewing trellis systems; strategising new labels and oh, enjoying the brand new website…..www.marshestate.com.au. Does all this make the wine taste better? Let me share something with you.

There are two ways in which to view wine. One, a drink. Two…..a story. Wine of course is a drink, first and foremost. The story however is not just what is written on the back label. You see so many wine companies who create stories about themselves and then sell it to you, the customer. There is nothing wrong with this approach, as it forms a platform for a more enjoyable wine experience. I even attended a Wine Federation of Australia conference where we were told that creating a story around your brand was imperative. I don’t know. I know the Marsh Estate story. It is a story full of family commitment and ties; of a love of a product so dear to my family that we went to all kinds of lengths to ensure the greatest quality was being grown and made. It was fun growing up in my family. Wine was everything. The thing is, that is my story…..not yours. I strongly believe that the relationship you form with your own story far surpasses that of another’s. Wine is a drink. The story you form determines whether that drink is full of excitement, laughter, fond memories and times shared with family and friends. Your experience of your wine visits to vineyards and cellar doors, meeting the very people who create the magic is and always will be your story, no one else’s. To me, my wine drinking and enjoyment takes on so many dimensions due to the deep respect I have formed for my interpretation of the wines I drink. The wine just being drunk is literally drowned in fond memories. Does it taste better? Of Course! Think of your favourite restaurant. As soon as you walk in, there is a fuss made about you. Smiles, welcoming laughter and a familiar atmosphere. Sure, you are aware that there is a history associated with the restaurant. Family, good produce and a reputation to uphold. You, however, see through this as you create the very context of your experience in your story. Does the food taste better? Of course! The entire meal takes on dimensions far beyond just being cooked food lumped on a plate.

The one thing mum and dad used to always say to us growing up was that Marsh Estate is only in our care. It is only possible to genuinely succeed in what we do if we give up the right of ownership to the people who enjoy what it stands for. Integrity is a word which is loosely thrown around to form the impression of authenticity. Integrity is not just doing things a certain way or administrating correct procedures, integrity is honouring your word. Only then will authenticity be possible.

There is nothing in life more appealing than the genuine article. Sadly, the wine industry has lost a lot of its appeal due to the lack of this. Wine to me will always be about reflection of the producer. Everything being grown, made, matured and bottled on site and reflecting the vineyard, varietal and vintage is the genuine article. Marsh Estate and Lake’s Folly are the only remaining true Estates in the Hunter Valley. That is not right or wrong. That is just a fact. To me though it is difficult to create your beautiful wine stories from anything else. But as I say, they are yours and yours only……..Enjoy them.

OK, for this mailing list we have the awesome 2010 whites and the ever popular 2009 reds! The Poppy’s Maverick Semillon upon release, has been the fastest selling white wine I can remember. I needn’t comment on the 2009 reds as the strong media sentiment has all but sold them out. Very small quantities….BE QUICK!!

Dad is really well and enjoying life to the hilt. He has recently arrived home from an extended wine tour of Germany and Austria and has a million stories (there they are!) of which are fascinating. It is great to see Dad still so vibrantly in love with the most amazing gift in the universe…..wine.

As always for this mailing list we are subsidising the freight. Freight is free to Sydney, Newcastle and the Central Coast and is only $12.00 per carton, door to door, elsewhere in Australia. Our International shipping rates are exceptionally well priced so feel free to email us with any queries.