South Africans Michelle and Pieter Badenhorst recently moved to the south-west and are behind the new Suffoir boutique vineyard near Macarthur. Suffoir’s first vintage of pinot noir will be showcased during the Port Fairy Winter Weekends. Image: Supplied.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] H[/dropcap]aving blown winter right out the door with the dachshund dash, art exhibitions and great music, the Port Fairy Winter Weekends Festival is gearing up for its second instalment with a focus on fabulous local food and wine.
The second weekend runs across July 4-5, during which many of the gourmet food and wine producers around the Port Fairy area (Gourmet Port Fairy) will be opening their doors, together with some of the top restaurants and eateries around town.
The feature event is a six-course gourmet lunch prepared by Penshurst-born chef Matt Dempsey from the two-hat Inverleigh restaurant Gladioli, to be served at the historic Royal Oak Hotel, Port Fairy, on the Saturday. Matt will be using delicious locally sourced produce including crayfish, Skipton eel and buffalo cheeses from Shaw River Buffalo at Yambuk.
The lunch also includes an opportunity to try some delicious small-vineyard wines from Basalt, at Killarney, Napa Merri, at Woodford, and the new, Suffoir winery at Macarthur.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T[/dropcap]he couple behind Suffoir, Michelle and Pieter Badenhorst, are originally from South Africa but have recently made south-west Victoria their new home.
As Michelle explained via email, the boutique winery has just launched its first vintage of Pinot Noir which is not only available for tasting at their cellar door, which is just 7km from Mt Eccles National Park, but will be among the wines on offer at the winter weekend’s luncheon.
“We are very pleased with our first vintage,” she said.
“Our Pinot Noir grows on two distinct soil types, which creates a remarkable difference in the taste profiles of the wines.”
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] W[/dropcap]hile the name Suffoir has a distinct Frenchness to it – and the Badenhorsts have just returned from a trip to the French wine growing regions – the name is actually a blend of two interests: the Suffolk sheep and Pinot Noir vines on their property.
“We tried to capture local elements and incorporate these when we were designing the wine labels,” Michelle explained.
“One label features one of our Suffolk sheep and for the other label, we worked with a well-known artist, Portchie, to capture some of the region’s iconic elements such as the Macarthur windfarm nearby.”
Pieter has a background in biochemistry and plant breeding and has applied these skills to his new profession of winemaking.
“We only have 2.5 acres to work with, but hope to offer more varieties in the future when we are more established,” Michelle said.
The Port Fairy Winter Weekend will also include high tea on Saturday and Sunday at The Pantry Door, which sits alongside the Basalt Winery at Killarney.
Pastry chef Andrew Hall, who has worked at two Michelin-starred restaurants during his career, has recently introduced the sumptuous high teas as part of an expanding repertoire at the popular cafe.
[box]You can follow updates on the Port Fairy Winter Weekends program via its website and Facebook page. Click here for further details and bookings for the Matt Dempsey lunch.[/box]
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Bluestone co-editor Carol Altmann with some of the bargains to be had at the Koroit Lions Club op shop: a down vest, collectable spoon and retro, Johnson-ware plate, all for $3. (Artwork in background is by Carmel Wallace.)
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] A [/dropcap]t the risk of starting a passionate debate – then again, why not? – could Koroit be home to one of the best, old-style op shops in the south-west?
The Koroit Lion’s Club op-shop in a former kindergarten building in High St has been open for less than six months, but is already pulling the crowds from around the district and mostly through word of mouth.
Indeed Bluestone has learned the shop is turning over at least $1000 a week – more than $20,000 in total thus far – which is bringing smiles to the faces of the Lion’s Club which uses all of this money to fund a range of community projects in Koroit. It sure beats slaving over a sausage sizzle every Saturday!
And what is the secret to its success? From our assessment, it is the fact that the op shop is how op shops used to be before going more boutique, ie. slightly rambling, slightly cluttered and cheap, cheap, cheap.
Since opening for business in March, the Koroit Lions Club op shop has turned over $1000 a week.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] W [/dropcap]hile there are glass cabinets here and there displaying “special” items, such as what appeared to be a set of Bakelite coasters for $10, there are also racks of clothes, shelves of shoes, piles of plates, cups, cutlery, knick-knacks, toys, china, vases, videos, CDs, DVDs and all of the other irresistible gizmos and gadgets that make up an op-shop, with prices marked at 20 cents, 50 cents, $1….you get the picture.
In a place like this, $5 can go a very long way.
We purchased a down vest (90 per cent down, 10 per cent small feathers), a must-have collectable spoon from Talbot featuring a female lawn bowler with arms completely out of proportion to her body and a 1970s Australian-made, Johnson ware plate – total cost: $3.
The thinking behind the op-shop is to move the goods on as quickly as possible, hence the bargain prices, rather than have them piling up. Like most op-shops, donations of goods keep rolling in and can quickly become overwhelming.
The op-shop also offers Eftpos and credit card facilities. Be warned: this place could get seriously addictive.
Weekend trading hours – and Eftpos – have proven part of a winning formula for the Lions Club op shop in Koroit.
[box]The Koroit Lion’s Club Op-Shop, 92 High St (next to the CFA), Koroit, is open Mon, Wed and Friday from 10am-4pm and Saturday from 10am-1pm.[/box]
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No cutting corners: Jack Hancock joins Fabrication II
Coup: Melbourne-based clothing designer Jack Hancock will be making a bespoke jacket from Fletcher Jones fabric for the upcoming Fabrication II auction.
By Carol Altmann
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] A [/dropcap]mong the remarkable array of items being created from Fletcher Jones fabric for this year’s Fabrication II auction will be something truly special: a hand-crafted garment by emerging Melbourne designer Jack Hancock.
The supremely talented 25-year-old, who grew up – and first learnt to sew – in Warrnambool, was encouraged by a friend and member of the F Project arts collective, Madeleine Peters, to enter a piece for the September event which serves as a major fundraiser for The Artery.
The auction, now in its second year, involves creators making something from pieces of old but unused Fletcher Jones fabric salvaged by the F Project after the closure of the Fletcher Jones factory in 2009.
Jack used a recent visit back home to rummage through the many boxes of fabric and was stunned to find offcuts of top quality, pure wool fabric made by British company, Dormeuil.
“It is beautiful, even after all this time, and too good to be just thrown away, as it was once going to be,” Jack says.
One of the stunning pieces Jack created for his graduate portfolio under the theme, Japonism. Image by Olivia Tran, reproduced courtesy of Jack Hancock.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] T [/dropcap]his Dormeuil material, among others, will be used by Jack to create a unique jacket featuring different panels of fabric, with the rivers of Warrnambool superimposed in contrasting materials across the back.
The pattern will be based on a Gerber pattern, which was cutting edge, computer-based technology introduced to the Fletcher Jones company in its later years.
“I have managed to get hold of the Gerber pattern for a Fletcher Jones coat thanks to the F Project, so even though I am calling my piece a jacket, it will be from that coat design,” Jack explains.
“Actually it was the Gerber patterns that in a way led to the demise of Fletcher Jones as it was forced to compete in a world of cheap, mass produced clothing, so there is some irony there.”
Jack with a mannequin made for the Melbourne Myer Emporium in the 1930s: a time when clothes were made to last. Jack purchased this mannequin during his visit to the FJ Markets and has since renamed it Daisy.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] T [/dropcap]he global shift from producing and buying clothes that lasted for years, to mass-produced items that barely see out a season, is one that Jack rails against daily.
Indeed he doesn’t particularly like “fashion” – and its built-in expiry dates – but instead likes to talk about “clothing”: quality garments carefully designed and made from quality materials.
“I am fascinated by how textiles are produced and have been produced through history…and the structure and integrity of a particular garment,” he says.
“It is also, for me, about creating sustainable clothing, not just in terms of where the fabric has come from and how it is produced, but that it will last and not be thrown away, just as a pair of Fletcher Jones’s trousers would last a lifetime.”
Objects of great beauty: natural wool is one of Jack’s favourite fibres. Image by Olivia Tran, reproduced courtesy of Jack Hancock.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] W [/dropcap]hile Jack doesn’t consider himself an artist, but “someone who just makes clothes”, his eye for design emerged at a young age.
Former Warrnambool College art teacher Ollie Morgan was an early influence while he was at school and, as a teenager, he completed a two-year Certificate in Clothing Production through South-West TAFE that at that time held classes in the former Fletcher Jones factory.
“I did work experience with Hemden tailors, in Melbourne, and worked next to the guy who tailored the Fletcher Jones trousers, so there are all sorts of connections to Fletchers,” Jack says, smiling.
Jack’s impressive portfolio of work led to him being accepted into RMIT to study a Bachelor of Design (Fashion), from where he graduated with first class honours and was invited to show his work in the national graduate showcase at Melbourne Fashion Week.
It was to be the first of many such endorsements for his work.
Colonial meets couture: another of Jack’s creations for his graduate portfolio that demonstrates his creativity and skill. Image by Olivia Tran, reproduced courtesy of Jack Hancock.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] S [/dropcap]ince graduating, Jack has been developing his own label, Tack Jancock, and has worked with the Melbourne dance outfit, Chunky Move.
His work for Chunky Move dancer and choreographer Benjamin Hancock (no relation) was this year recognised with a prestigious Green Room Award for best visual design for the show, Princess.
And when we meet, Jack is recovering from what sounds like a marathon effort to produce costumes for wait staff at the spectacular Dark MOFO festival, held in Hobart each winter.
“It was a fantastic opportunity, but I think I am still recovering!” he says, rubbing his eyes.
While much of Jack’s work to date might be described as theatrical – particularly that he designed for his RMIT graduate year – he is moving toward a collaboration with fellow designer, Domenic Coloca, to create clothes for the everyperson.
Gender fluidity in fashion. Image by Olivia Tran, reproduced courtesy of Jack Hancock.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] T[/dropcap]hese are clothes that will be less theatrical and more about people feeling like themselves. The starting point is the human body, and how it moves in the world,” he explains.
Again, however, the focus is on creating unique, durable, distinctive clothing that could even be considered collectable.
“Just as people collect pottery or work by particular crafts people, I see clothing can be a part of that, where you look for a particular designer who has created a one-off piece,” Jack says.
With this in mind, the bidding for Jack’s Fabrication II entry is sure to be spirited – and lead to someone sporting one of the best jacket’s in town.
Jack Hancock, pictured here in the FJ Markets, was born – and learnt to sew – in Warrnambool. He is now one of the most exciting emerging designers in Melbourne.
[box]You can see more of Jack’s exquisite work at the Tack Jancock website here. Fabrication II will be exhibited and auctioned at The Artery, 224 Timor St, Warrnambool on Saturday Sept 19 from 6pm. For full details about the event and how to be involved, please email f4u@fproject.org.au[/box]
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Warrnambool City Councillor Peter Hulin, holding an upholstery ruler, with this faithful companion, Boris, a 68kg Rottweiler.
Words and images by Carol Altmann
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] I [/dropcap]f it’s true that people subconsciously choose a pet dog that mirrors themselves, it is appropriate that Warrnambool City Councillor Peter Hulin owns a 68kg Rottweiler called Boris.
Big Boris, who Peter jokingly refers to as a Chihuahua cross, is – like his owner – from strong German stock, intensely loyal to those he respects and not one to take any crap when provoked.
“Does Boris reflect you?” I ask Peter during our conversation at his Koroit St upholstery business, where a stretched-out Boris looks like a couch blocking the doorway.
“In many ways, yes. He is as placid as can be and would not hurt a fly when he is out here, hanging around, but come to my place after dark and try and take something and see how you go then,” Peter says, laughing.
“It was like when I grabbed a guy who had hurt my son,” he adds, referring to an incident from 2008 when he attacked a man in Port Fairy, who, Peter argued, was part of an ongoing campaign of harassment against his son, John.
Peter was fined, but no conviction was recorded, after being charged with recklessly causing injury and unlawful assault.
Peter has similarly been accused of being too aggressive in his role as councillor since being elected in 2008, but others – like the steady stream of ratepayers who visit his shop to seek advice or a listening ear – consider him a hero of the common person.
Perhaps more than any other councillor, he is either loved or loathed, with not much space in between.
“It’s not personal to me and I don’t take it personally. I just believe there is a better way,” Peter says of the criticism he receives from those who would prefer he remain quiet.
“We need people elected to council with the ability to move this city toward the place it should be, and could easily be: we are not elected to be puppets.”
Peter Hulin grew up the son of an upholsterer, John Hulin, who shaped his life in ways that went well beyond the usual father-son relationship.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] P [/dropcap]eter grew up the son of an upholsterer and World War II veteran who, Peter says, could be extremely violent as a result of the mental trauma he suffered after fighting on the Russian front line for the Germans.
It was an often traumatic childhood, but one that Peter says has given him a strong survival instinct.
As a teenager, Peter was apprenticed to his father and, during this time, witnessed an event that shaped him for life. As Peter tells it, his father had complained to the council for years about an unsafe auto engine business at the back of his shop in Kepler St (at what is now Day Kitty), warning it was a major fire hazard.
The inevitable happened and a fire from the engine business swept through a number of buildings, including a garage that housed the Hulin’s new car. Peter, who was then 17, and his father attempted to retrieve the vehicle but such was the shock and strain, his father suffered a heart attack and died in front of him.
Peter saw the tragedy as an avoidable problem that, because of the council’s ineptitude, had catastrophic consequences.
“I understood then that if you had a problem, you sort it out: you don’t pretend that it is not happening,” he says.
“When someone comes to me with a problem now, I try and sort it out for them and get something done, and I cannot see why that is considered being radical.”
Away from the council chambers, Peter Hulin – and Boris – fields a string of visits from ratepayers and supporters to his Koroit St shop.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”]T [/dropcap]he difficult and ultimately tragic relationship with his father saw Peter seek out his own role models and he has several older mentors who continue to guide his thinking.
He also absorbs information like a sponge, listening to ABC 774 rather than 3AW and reading biographies on inspiring leaders such as Abraham Lincoln.
“I want to know what I don’t know,” he says.
A passionate, rather than a passive, approach has always been Peter Hulin’s style. Before being elected to council (it took two attempts), he wrote copious letters to the local paper, outlining where Warrnambool could do and be much better.
“Those same issues are the ones I am still fighting for today – CBD renewal, pedestrian safety, the environment,” he says.
“I fix things for a living. I can see the potential in someone’s old piece of furniture and what can be done with it. And I can see Warrnambool bursting with potential, but it is being held back.”
With council elections to be held next year, Peter Hulin will again be among the candidates and, if re-elected, has no intention of pulling his head in.
“Making the right decisions can be hard: it is easy to just blob along and not rock the boat, but I am not like that,” he says.
“I know who I am and what I am made of and not many people can say that. If you stand up for what you believe in, it can be very difficult, but nobody can question your integrity in being prepared to do it.”
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Derrinallum mechanic Geoff Henderson is also president of the Mt Elephant Community Management and helping increase public access to the landmark.
By Carol Altmann
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”]D[/dropcap]errinallum mechanic Geoff Henderson is the keeper of the keys to a volcano.
“Here you go,” he says while standing in his main street garage, Urquhart Motors, and passing me a keyring with the words “Mt Elephant Gate” written on the tag.
“Just be sure to lock the gate after you,” he smiles.
As president of the Mt Elephant Community Management, Geoff is part of a dedicated group that is slowly and methodically turning one of the south-west’s great landmarks into a natural wonderland that can be accessed by everyone.
For while Mt Elephant, just 1km west of Derrinallum, is a comforting sight to the thousands who drive the “back road” to Melbourne, very few people have actually stopped to look more closely, or climb it.
“I think that is the most common thing people say to me,” says management secretary Val Lang. “They say they driven past Mt Elephant for years, but have never been for a walk on it.”
Even on a cloudy day, Mt Elephant (Djerrinallum) has a particular beauty. This is how it appears from the Hamilton Highway north of the mountain.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”]P[/dropcap]art of the reason is that up until 2000, Mt Elephant was privately owned by the Eldridge family.
The mountain was scheduled to be auctioned, but instead the Eldridge’s negotiated to sell it to the people of Derrinallum-Lismore – a community of less than 1000 people – who raised $100,000 toward the $200,000 purchase price. The remaining funds were provided by Trust for Nature, which now holds the title.
In the 15 years since, the management team and a steady stream of energetic volunteers have progressively worked on restoring the site and promoting it as the geological gem that it is.
“We began with improving the environment itself, with pest management, getting rid of the rabbits, and revegetation, and then looked at improving access for the community, through better tracks and signage,” Val explains.
How the mountain got its European name: the sleeping elephant shape is obvious when looking from the south. Image: Front Paddock Cafe & Larder.
View from the top, looking east. There is also a rim walk that circumnavigates the mountain and takes about an hour.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”]M[/dropcap]t Elephant, so-named for its shape when viewed from the south, is described as a steep-sided volcanic scoria cone that formed at least 20,000 years ago.
According to Trust for Nature, the indigenous name for the mountain is Djerrinallum (or Sirryallum, or Gerinyelam, depending on which European settler wrote it down), meaning “Hill of Fire”, so there are no prizes for guessing where Derrinallum got its name from.
And even for a non-geologist, it is hard not to be blown away – pardon the pun – by the mounds of basalt, scoria and “lava bombs” that can be seen around the mountain: there is nothing quite like picking up a rock that looks like it should weigh 5kg and find it as light and frothy as an Aero bar.
“Volcanoes are a window to the earth and we are so fortunate to have a range of volcanoes around this area,” Val says.
Derrinallum butcher, the late Jack Borbidge, whose generous bequest continues to fund works at Mt Elephant. Image: The Life and Times of Jack Borbidge.
[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”]T[/dropcap]he 30-40 minute walk to the top of the mountain is steep, but spectacular, which means you can take regular breaks to admire the views without anybody questioning your aerobic fitness.
On a sunny day, which unfortunately we didn’t strike but it was still well worth the trek, you can see people surfing at Lady Bay beach in Warrnambool…well, almost…and enjoy a 360-degree sweep of the south-west.
The main walking track is named in honour of a local butcher, the 6ft-something Jack Borbidge and his wife Millie, who left a substantial bequest to the management committee to enable ongoing improvements at the mountain.
It is this generous legacy, together with money from the State Government and Corangamite Shire, which has helped fund a new visitor centre that is expected to be built within 18 months.
“It will be a place for visitors, volunteers and the community to use and enjoy and people who are unable to climb the mountain, like young children and the elderly, will still be able to learn about the mountain,” Val explains.
The centre, combined with the mountain now being open every Sunday afternoon, is sure to mean far less people drive past, but actually make it a destination.
“If you walk the full circuit, around the rim, you feel you are not quite flying, but almost – there is a feeling of space all around you which is just wonderful,” Val says.
[box]Mt Elephant is now open for public access and self-guided walks every Sunday from 1pm-4pm. A volunteer will be on site. Free entry. For other times, collect the gate key from Geoff at Urquhart Motors, 13 Main St, Derrinallum, ph: 0419 361 390. For more information, maps, history and activities, visit the Mt Elephant website here.[/box]
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