A glass half-full fares well

Tucked away between cosmopolitan Melbourne and vibrant Sydney is the little town of Wamboin, home to the boutique winery Contentious Character. The essence of the operation is to intertwine the diverse background of the owners – their personalities and passion for food and wine – with the environmental factors, and to experiment, creating quality products while having some fun along the way. 

From sour to sweet

The business journey hasn’t always been cheerful. Since taking ownership of the winery in 2016, the winemakers have endured a three-year drought, which was quickly shadowed by the Black Summer bushfires. Ben Jarrett, Contentious Character managing director explains: “The winery went from growing virtually no fruit, to smoke-tainted fruit. While the recommendation was to ‘drop the fruit’, we worked through our options and decided to harvest and invest in improving its quality.” 

Rebuilding the profile of the grapes was a complex process – the fruit had to be stripped of carbon, but carbon also had to be added into the course of action. Contentious was one of very few wineries in the area to introduce a ‘bushfire vintage’ and successfully produced three varieties – a riesling, sparkling wine and rosé. 

The vineyard took another hit when heavy rain led to flooding, ruining the grapes with fungal growth. This time, there was no scientific remedy to save the fruit. Throw COVID-19 in the mix and the winemakers started exploring opportunities to diversify their offering.

Taking a consultative approach, the winemakers made the decision to look at other vineyards with a cool climate belt, similar to their eco-environment, to source the fruit and make the wine on site. The search led to them finding four wineries, with one in Mudgee and another in Bega exclusively growing the fruit to their specific requirements to complement their wine-making methods. The end-to-end process resulted in the 2021 vintage – their first vintage stemming from a diversified offering. 

Uncorking fine fare

But it’s not all red and white. The business produces an assortment of condiments and pantry items. Prior to the pandemic this was a small, add-on business line, with support mainly from the local community of about 2,000 people. Products made in the kitchen were only available for purchase through the winery restaurant and cellar door. But with no onsite foot traffic due to the pandemic and faced with uncertainty from the March 2020 lockdown, Contentious signed up for the federal government’s JobKeeper initiative to help maintain employees.

Keeping all their kitchen staff employed and engaging them in new initiatives, the business was able to expand their condiment offering to wider markets. The introduction of an online ordering system was a game-changer. Anyone across Australia – including the loyal fans from postcode 2620, were now a few clicks away from satisfying their appetite for Contentious’ condiments. 

The winery introduced wine hampers and gift lines such as soaps and candles with many of the gift products inspired by their wines or locally sourced ingredients. 

"The products play on the aromas of the wine varietals. We’re all about sustainability and we recycle the wine bottles in the production of our candles. This not only becomes a sensory extension of our wines but also a subtle Contentious branding mechanism"

With the cellar door firmly shut to the public during the lockdowns, Contentious brought the cellar door into the homes of its customers by hosting virtual wine tasting events. Customers could book for the live event online and then receive a wine tasting kit consisting of six pouches of wines, sheets to fill in and easy-to-follow instructions.  

The lockdowns sparked people all over the globe to connect through online platforms. The virtual events provided a fun and informative experience for lovers of wine to engage with each other. Learning the story of each of the wines and with plenty of question time available at the end made it a personable experience, much like the cellar door customer experience. The events have been a big hit with 100 participants dialling in for the launch event.

“Whether the customer enjoys an occasional drop or is a connoisseur, our virtual wine tasting events allow everyone to connect in an inclusive online environment, have a bit of fun and learn the story behind our wines,” says Ben.

On the grapevine

It’s been challenging but Contentious is enjoying the fruits of its labour. “Having achieved 170% growth in 2020 is a testament to adeptly pivoting, being nimble, adapting to online and doing things differently,” says Ben. The winery is on track to produce 200 tonnes of grapes in 2021, a big jump from their humble beginnings in 2016 of 15 tonnes. With one tonne producing 650 litres of juice, 200 tonnes translates to over 173,000 bottles. Now that’s a lot of wine, and it doesn’t stop there. 

The business has introduced onsite picnics whereby customers order a picnic hamper online, collect it from the cellar door along with a self-guided map, and enjoy it on a designated spot on the grounds. These picnics are the perfect way to take in the views, enjoy the delights with your companions and be COVID-safe. 

Also on the horizon is the expansion into tourism with the proposed development of five-star self-contained accommodation. Plans to export are in fruition as well.

With a deep-rooted passion for wine and a sprinkling of creativity, Contentious Character is certainly living up to their name.