Matt Fowles and his family
FEATURE // Regional pairings
Better together FOR CHEFS AND sommeliers, one question is always front of mind: How can we bring out the best in both food and wine?
Of course, there’s more than one answer.
Food and wine pairings can flow from
a number of strategies, but ‘what grows together, goes together’ is driving the
agenda in restaurants and cellar doors.
Hospitality speaks to three operators who are taking the ethos to new heights. At Fowles Wine in the Strathbogie
Ranges region of Victoria, local is part of the day-to-day operations. Owner Matt
ingredients from around the region.
Over on the west coast, there’s Arimia
wines; an off-grid winery and restaurant
that draws the bulk of its ingredients from a 135-acre property in Margaret River.
With 7.5 hectares under vine, six dams, a winter creek and 18 beehives, owner and farmer Ann Spencer produces a bounty on-site, from trout, marron and pigs to
vegetables. As a result, chef and business partner Evan Hayter’s menu is a true reflection of the locality.
For Stokehouse St Kilda, it’s about
bringing a local approach to the city.
vegetables and slaughter the animals.
suppliers, the Melbourne restaurant
32 | Hospitality
WORDS Madeline Woolway
The majority of the menu is created using
Fowles and the team, including head chef Adele Aitken, make the wine, grow the
Most iconic food and wine pairings are tied to the adage ‘what grows together, goes together’, but how are contemporary Australian venues reimagining the maxim?
Known for its close relationship with
“For people with a heightened awareness around food provenance, matching local wine to food is the ultimate from a philosophical point of view.” – Matt Fowles
