“We want Pool to be able to make interesting and unpredictable wines,” says co-owner-winemaker Tim Flynn. “We want to take some of the classic grapes that grow so well in the Macedon Ranges and Central Vic regions and follow them to become something that is very exciting and vibrant to us. We want to make sure that throughout the whole process we adhere to values we hold dear: sustainability and not introducing or taking things that don’t need to be touched.”
Pool Wines is a collaborative endeavour between Flynn, Darcy Muller, Alex Servinis and Ed Curnow, who contribute equally at every stage of the process, from farming/sourcing through to sales. “Pool was founded on a friendship and shared love of making and creating,” says Flynn. “With an interest in organics, sustainability, wine and food, launching a wine label seemed a great way to bring some of these passions together.”
“Rather than chasing higher sugar levels and intensity we focus more on acid levels and balance, as we believe this is more important in making the vibrant wines that we do.”
The fist Pool wine, a shiraz, was made from the 2019 vintage and released in December the same year. “We aim to make vibrant wines that are both fun to drink and with enough character to interest a broad range of wine-enjoyers,” says Muller. “Our wines are not made with a desired product in mind. We think this makes us stand out amongst other wines in the current landscape. We come in with no plan to manipulate the fruit in a way that appeals to a certain demographic”
The quartet currently work with fruit and vineyards within a close proximity to their winery in the Macedon Ranges. “Having the opportunity to confine the whole production to a small footprint is appealing for a few reasons,” says Flynn. “One being our connection to the area, living, growing up and spending our formative years hanging out together there. Another being our consciousness to restrict our carbon output wherever possible and having the fruit travel just minutes between the vineyard and winery helps with this as well as allowing us to begin processing it at its most fresh.”
There is no formal training to draw on amongst the group, but that didn’t hold them back. “We’ve had various time spent with natural and conventional winemakers over the years,” says Curnow, “asking a lot of questions, learning along the way. Our first vintage was in 2019 with some local fruit, and we have just taken each vintage as an opportunity to learn more and grow our skillset.”
“Some new vineyards we have been maintaining ourselves and will take fruit for the ’22 vintage use no chemical herbicides or fungicides and are dry grown. We will continue to push towards the most sustainable and organic practices we can.”
The transition from what started as a hobby to what has become a viable business occured over the first couple of years, notes Flynn. “One of the benefits of having four people sharing all the roles in Pool meant that we had plenty of ideas constantly bouncing around and plenty of shared time to work through them all. It helps that we all bring vastly different experiences and knowledge to the table, as well as that we’re always keen to continue learning. We love being involved in every step of the process – the vineyard, the winery, designing labels, working with stockists, the whole lot.”
The fruit for the Pool wines comes from Macedon, Heathcote and other Central Victorian areas, with the current release wines from vineyards that are working towards being organic, though not yet certified. “Some new vineyards we have been maintaining ourselves and will take fruit for the ’22 vintage use no chemical herbicides or fungicides and are dry grown,” says Servinis. “We will continue to push towards the most sustainable and organic practices we can.”
In the winery, the process follows an arc consistent with natural winemaking methods. There’s no new oak used, with neutral barrels and stainless steel favoured, which gives them options depending on who they believe any given parcel is best matured. “We are strict on using no sulphur at all with our wines, at any stage of winemaking,” adds Servinis. “This is now going to extend to our cleaning processes in the winery, too. We feel that we can produce more exciting wines without it, and make the adjustments required to be able to work in this way. We also make no other additions or subtractions to the wine; we don’t fine or filter either.”
The Pool wines are centred around the classic grapes that have grown in the regions, which they believe have a proven track record. However, the fruit is typically picked somewhat earlier than the established producers, especially in the heat of Heathcote, where most of their fruit is currently sourced. “Rather than chasing higher sugar levels and intensity we focus more on acid levels and balance, as we believe this is more important in making the vibrant wines that we do,” notes Muller.
“We are under no grand illusions that we are revolutionising winemaking or doing anything much different to the many people who have come before us, but we take pride in being thoughtful with our choices in winemaking, intervening as little as possible and being as kind to the earth as we can.”
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