Meet the Chef

Joshua Ross has always loved cooking, growing vegetables in his garden, fishing, foraging, and cooking at home. Ross admitted he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do after school but decided to pursue his passion.

went straight into it out of school by emailing Logan Brown and asking if I could do work experience to see if I liked the industry,” Ross explained. After two months, he was offered a job. Ross has been head chef of Bellamys by Logan Brown for three years now, having been offered the contract by parliament. Executive chef Shaun Clouston saw this as an opportunity for Ross, who was ready for a new challenge. Bellamys by Logan Brown is a unique and quintessentially New Zealand dining experience in Wellington. The restaurant, situated on the third floor of the Joshua Ross Beehive, combines New Zealand Parliament’s rich history with the legacy of Logan Brown Head Chef, Bellamys by restaurant. Catering for lunch and dinner, with

Logan Brown private dining available for group bookings, Bellamys by Logan Brown promises not only a unique setting, but also premium New Zealand cuisine. Previously for exclusive use by parliamentarians, Bellamys is now open to anyone wishing to experience the buzz, spirit of hospitality and amazing food Aotearoa has to offer. A typical day for Ross sees him checking and sorting orders before briefing the team and going over the run sheet for the day. Then preparations begin. Lunch service is from 12pm-2pm and dinner service from 5.30pm onwards. Ross enjoys that each service is different. “ “We always have different groups coming through or being hosted by an MP or parliamentary organisation.” Once service is finished, everyone cleans, organises the fridge and preps for the next day. When asked about his style, Ross confessed he doesn’t have one, but he is inspired by great ingredients and the stories behind them as quality produce helps set the foundation for creating a beautiful dish. “It’s great working with awesome suppliers that are passionate.” To see a guest happy or intrigued by a great meal or something they’ve learnt about the ingredients in a dish is highly rewarding for Ross.

“I

“Seeing guests happy, that’s why I cook and what gives me satisfaction.”

In his short seven years as a chef, Ross has earned some impressive achievements. In 2016 he was selected as a semi-finalist for the San Pellegrino young chef competition. At Bellamy’s he won a hat in the Cuisine Good Food Guide, and two hats in the Cuisine Good Food Guide through Logan Brown.

His latest accomplishment was winning the Jeune Chef competition which will see him compete in the international final in France next year. Ross is also in the process of starting up his own café in Lower Hutt, called Twenty Eight, his hope is to provide a café that offers a place for people to connect, engage, and feel well-nourished. Ross found COVID-19 enlightening. “For me personally, it was a great time to reflect and look at how we were doing things in the restaurant,” he said.

“Coming out of it, we changed the style of a two or three course bistro menu. This helped us with consistency, food waste, staffing, and quality.” In the future, Ross hopes to work in Europe or Australia to gain more experience. He would also like to open his own restaurant with a link to a restaurant farm.

“Be prepared for hard work because it’s not easy, but it’s worth it,” are Ross’s words to any budding, young chefs at the beginning of their culinary journey.

“Most importantly, find a good kitchen to learn in with good bosses. Show them loyalty and they will look after you; they will open a lot of doors for you.”

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Despite never thinking he would end up in the wine industry, Phil Hanford established Grasshopper Rock Winery 20 years ago.

never had any interest in wine for the first 40 years of my life,” admitted Hanford. “But now we own a pinot noir vineyard and make a significant contribution to the fabric of Central Otago Pinot Noir.”

Initially, Hanford studied agriculture. “I have always had a fascination with agriculture and the connection between land and production. The wine industry is very much an agriculturebased industry,” he said. With a career in The Rural Bank, Hanford noticed that the most successful farming operations were so because of their choice in the best farming systems and practices. “Growing grapes is the same,” Hanford continued.

“We chose to grow pinot noir grapes to produce the very best wine and that meant finding the land and site best suited to this and applying the best management practices. It seems simple but selecting the right site for a finicky grape variety like pinot noir is the key to consistently producing premium pinot noir grapes. If you produce premium grapes, you can produce premium pinot noir and we were up for the challenge.” Grasshopper Rock is the single largest pinot noir producer at 45.25 degrees south. This means the vineyard has slower ripening due to cooler nights and is drier and less windy than other parts of Central Otago. As any wine enthusiast will know, wine is 100 percent influenced by the site of the vineyard. Due to Grasshopper’s site, its pinot noirs tend to show finer tannins and silkier texture, with high perfume and savoury, earthy tones. The cool “I nights and late harvest give structure which means the wine evolves exceptionally well over many years in the bottle. The vineyard site dates back to the 1870’s, when the first vines were planted. Whilst the vineyard has grown, the original buildings remain. “It was the history as a horticultural property, the ideal soils, the aspect, water rights and climate data which attracted us to the property for pinot noir,” said Hanford. Hanford’s philosophy towards winemaking had a large impact in the process of choosing the right site. “Our philosophy with our vineyard and winemaking is simply to produce the best single-vineyard wine we can. It means doing a good job in the vineyard, producing excellent quality grapes, and not overworking the grapes in the winery.”

“It sounds simple,” Hanford said, “which it is, but it is not easy.” Grasshopper Rock is also sustainably focused. “Everything we do in the vineyard must pass our sustainability test.”

Microplastic pollution is a concern in the wine industry and Grasshopper Rock is committed to using biodegradable products and avoiding using any unnecessary plastic products. To do so, it has started importing biodegradable products from France to supply other vineyards. Glass bottles have the single biggest carbon footprint within the wine industry.

“High-quality wine does not have to be in heavy bottles, and we have always committed to lightweight bottles,” Hanford stated. He believes customers should change their buying behaviour and force wineries to change. “I think the industry needs to take sustainability more seriously and justify its unnecessary use of some packaging and plastics,” reiterated Hanford.

Over 20 years, Hanford’s winery has grown and achieved a lot, but he still has one goal in mind. “Our goal is to see Grasshopper Rock as a sustainable pinot noir vineyard worthy of Grand Cru status evolve over time.”

For new viticulturists, Hanford offered some advice. “Have courage and a clear vision of what you want to achieve. It is not for the fainthearted but don’t let that put you off. For great things to happen requires courage.

“A great wine is a memorable one. It may be memorable because it contributed to the memory of the occasion, it may be memorable because of its place in history or age, or it may be a wine of outstanding quality.”