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PEOPLE & PROPERTY OF MELBOURNE

DYLAN GRIMES

MCG TO CELL A R DOOR

MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY HIS AUSSIE ECO-RETREAT

FOOD

ORDER IN: NEW RESTAURANTS

SAM WOOD

SMARTER SUMMER DRINKS

B AY S I D E & P O R T P H I L L I P

DECEMBER 4-10, 2019

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E M I LY P OW E R

The editor’s desk

SIMON SCHIFF

Dylan Grimes is surely the only person in the world with the job title “AFL footballer and vigneron”. The Richmond premiership star and All Australian defender owns Mount Macedon Winery with his wife Elisha. It is a sanctuary for Grimes – there can be no greater contrast to the ringing of the crowd at a capacity MCG than a solo stroll among the vines, where the backman is tagged by his dog. “It’s a completely different realm, and I get to pretend to be a farmer,” Grimes tells journalist Megan Hustwaite. The Tiger’s life off the footy field and on the land is this week’s cover feature. ●

JOLLY GOOD TIME / Catering supremo Peter Rowland

ESPRESSO EFFECT / Cool cafe Levi, in Murrumbeena,

is delivering delectables for the family Christmas table

struts onto the scene with a bright fit-out. Head chef

until Christmas Eve. A highlight – the black forest trifle.

Emma Jeffery is formerly of the excellent eateries

● peterrowland.com.au/festive-feasting

Gilson and Mammoth. ● levimelbourne.com.au

THE EDIT What we love at Domain Review

OUR COVER \ Dylan Grimes at his Mount Macedon Winery. Photographed by Julian Kingma.

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TALE TO TELL / The Handmaid’s Tale author Margaret

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TIGER IN THE VINES COVER STORY A dual premiership player

and All-Australian backman, Richmondâ€™s Dylan Grimes also finds time to make wine.

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rom the lush MCG to picturesque Mount Macedon, Dylan Grimes likes to roam wide, open spaces. The two-time Richmond premiership defender is best known for nullifying the AFL’s best forwards, as highlighted by his sensational 2019 All-Australian season, but away from the game he spends his time in a field of a different kind, as owner of Mount Macedon Winery. The 28-year-old and his wife Elisha, who were married last month, purchased the 32.2-hectare property, which also features a farm, restaurant and cellar door, events space and accommodation, nearly three years ago. First planted in 1989, as part of Olivia NewtonJohn’s Koala Blue label, the winery on the western slopes of Mount Macedon sits 680 metres above sea level, making it one of the highest altitude wineries in Australia. The challenging growing conditions make for high quality fruit and a more condensed and interesting flavour. Grimes says he’s found his passion and purpose outside of football. “It’s a completely different realm and I get to pretend to be a farmer, which is fun,’’ he tells Domain Review. “Growing up at Panton Hill, I spent every weekend and school holidays doing things in the country and on the farm and I fell in love with it. “I knew post-footy I was going to really immerse myself in the country and live on the land and while playing I’ve been able to set up that life after footy. “I’d been a keen wine consumer of all types. My wife was working in the Yarra Valley and this place came up – we jumped at it and haven’t looked back.” Mount Macedon Winery manages the growing season then sends the fruits of its labour to Werribee’s Shadowfax Wines where it’s pressed, returned then bottled. Pinot noir and chardonnay are their specialities. At Christmas, the couple will head to France on a honeymoon-research trip to look into some new planting techniques. Being on the land and breathing in the fresh

M E G A N H U S T WA IT E ●

Ph o t o

J U LIA N KI N G M A

country air has given Grimes both balance and an ability to be more present. “Getting out in a beautiful country setting and escaping to something different, there’s never a dull moment with a place like this. Football’s such a fast-paced vibe, a bubble, but it’s the complete opposite up here; you’re in touch with nature and what the seasons and land are doing,’’ he says. “It’s helped my football, without a shadow of a doubt, to not be so immersed in one thing. More and more players are finding things away from football and realising the benefits of having a more balanced approach to their career and life. You can over-think and overdo things and sometimes the answer isn’t more, more, more. “Out on the land you’re working with your hands, in nature and, for me, there’s no better feeling because you’re fully immersed in the moment and getting back in touch with something that means a lot to me.”

“I catch the V-Line train to Melbourne, get a coffee at Woodend station and really enjoy it. It’s a good chance to do some work on the train and nice not to drive sometimes,” he says. “You see the same people every morning and the guy remembers my coffee order now, so I’m officially a local. It’s a terrific community in the Macedon Ranges and the more time we spend here, the more we love it.”

etting up himself for life after footy has also been a motivating factor. “I left school, drafted at 18, so I’ve never had a job other than at the Richmond Football Club. As you get older, you look at friends you went to school with who have finished uni degrees and immersed themselves in their industry for a long time now,’’ Grimes says. “You can come out of the game feeling underqualified and under-skilled, going from living a

“It’s helped my football, without a shadow of a doubt, to not be so immersed in one thing. Out on the land you’re working with your hands ... there’s no better feeling.” Nevertheless, Grimes reckons there are similarities between footy and farm life. “Keeping the animals happy and healthy, fences standing straight and staying on top of the firewood is a full-time job in itself. There are a few moving parts and I think that’s what makes it so engaging,’’ he says. “Similar to footy, I think players realise early on there’s a correlation between hard work and reward. With a big property like this that correlation is particularly evident because you really get out what you put in and I’ve been able to apply that message from football to a different field.” During the cut and thrust of the footy season, Grimes divides his time between Mount Macedon and his city base.

lifestyle in an elite environment to being unemployed with not a lot of experience in anything other than football. “So, it can be pretty daunting for a lot of players. I’ve been lucky to find something I’m really passionate about and have terrific mentors to surround myself with.” So, what’s next for the AFL’s vigneron? “I’m super excited about expanding the paddockto-plate concept. I really want to grow the majority of the produce we’re using in the restaurant and cellar door,” Grimes says. “My family are traditionally olive growers so an olive grove as well and I’d love to get chickens and a dairy cow.” ● ● mountmacedonwinery.com.au

Dylan Grimes hopes to expand “paddock-to-plate” at his winery.

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TRAVEL Find peace and solitude – with Matthew McConaughey’s help. Wo r d s

J O S H B OZ I N

Wild and free GETTY IMAGES

icture this: a cabin in the wild, the light of the stars shining brilliantly in the night’s sky. Not a sound besides the echoes of nature. “Serve yourself” reads its welcome sign. “So come here, serve yourself, with thanks.” They’re the welcoming words of Matthew McConaughey. That’s right, the Matthew McConaughey wants you to experience The Reserve, his cabin in the woods. This isn’t a drill. The Academy Award-winning actor and Hollywood heartthrob, with his southern charm and prophetic-like quotes, has helped design a private off-the-grid sanctuary in partnership with Wild Turkey and Australian travel start-up Unyoked. McConaughey, Wild Turkey’s creative director, launched The Reserve as part of Wild Turkey’s “With Thanks” initiative supporting Australians demonstrating conviction to protect and preserve the unique natural environment. “This 'With Thanks’ initiative we are on, we have been looking for places and people to go and shine a light on and say 'hey, thank you’. And with that thank you, hopefully comes exposure to more responsibility for not only us to take but for others to take,” McConaughey says. “Personal responsibility is a very tough thing to sell and I don’t think you can sell it across the board, but we can make a dent. And it’s a good dent.” Unveiling the cabins in Sydney late last month, McConaughey and Unyoked reiterated the desire for guests to switch off, escaping the mundanity and stresses of everyday life, disconnecting digitally and mentally and getting, well, “unyoked” – meaning to cease work. “One of the things that can happen when you go off on your own is that you may not enjoy the company ... and that’s a good thing,” McConaughey says. “Hopefully you can stay long enough to shake

hands with the fact that you’re the only one you can’t get rid of. So, you start getting along. I’ve had that experience many times in my life.” The coming together of twin brothers from the Northern Territory – Cam and Chris Grant, founders of Unyoked – Wild Turkey and one of Hollywood’s biggest stars seems like an unlikely partnership, but that’s the point. Chris Grant explains: “Matthew flew us to America to meet with him where we discussed at length what we do and why we do it. We found a common interest and from that, he came up with the idea to design a cabin and the elements inside it, with the proceeds going back towards our charity partner. Matthew was like one of the team.” Inside The Reserve are design decisions that are iconically McConaughey: dim, moody lighting,

timber throughout, essays by Ralph Waldo Emerson, books by Og Mandino, Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan playing on cassette, and even a hidden Wild Turkey Bar stocked with McConaughey’s very own Longbranch bourbon. “We all feel frazzled from time to time and I sure don’t have it down, but The Reserve is a place engineered to give you the time to check back in with the source ... yourself. It’s an antidote to the frenetic pace of life,” McConaughey says. ● THE RESERVE \ Bookings open in early December, with a percentage of the proceeds from stays donated to Unyoked’s charity partner, the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife. ● unyoked.co

“We all feel frazzled but The Reserve is a place engineered to T H E R E S E RV E CA B I N

give you the time to check in with the source ... yourself.” DOM A IN REV IEW

DRINK

Wo r d s

R AC H E L L E U N R E I C H

ou often hear of people who say they want to live a different kind of life – it might be moving to an idyllic locale overseas, growing their own produce, focusing on friends rather than finances – but you rarely meet someone who actually does it. Matt Purbrick and his wife Lentil are a couple who have managed to achieve those goals, and a glimpse into their bicontinental life in Italy and Victoria – as well as the development of their own organic wine label Minimum – proves that dreams can sometimes become the most aspirational kind of reality. Purbrick admits that he became

M AT T & L E N T I L PU R B RI C K

nostalgic for the environment he was raised in, where Australian kids pedalled around on their bikes together, ate homemade food and were remote enough to create their own idyllic enclave. As he reached adulthood, he felt less connected to his place of birth and more drawn to Italy, where his mother’s family was from.

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SHANTANU STARICK

The bare minimum

The good life imbues every drop of wine made by this Victorian couple.

“Over here [Italy], the focus is on family and food and friends. And so everyone feels richer here.” He and Lentil “were curious … and we connected with a culture that embodied the teachings that we were doing at the time, and fell in love with it.” The project he’s referring to is Grown & Gathered, whereby the couple have been proponents of farming their own produce and being advocates of sustainable farming and packaging. Apart from producing two books – Grown & Gathered, and The Village – they also developed interests such as Lentil’s Flower Exchange, for which they’d grow flowers and trade them, rather than exchange money for them.

In September, Minimum Wines was launched, just months after the couple decided to call Italy home. The idea was to create an organic wine label with a focus on minimum intervention, natural growing principles and true sustainability. And the pair took advantage of a knowledgeable partner, joining forces with Purbrick’s father, Tahbilk chief executive and winemaker Alister Purbrick. Growing up, Matt and his father had a traditional father-son relationship, and Matt didn’t think he’d enter the wine-making market. A decade ago, he thinks his father probably thought he was a hippie,

“but … there has been this cultural shift in Australia, where [people] started to recognise the importance of the things [we stood for].” To date, Minimum has created a chardonnay, a sangiovese rosato and a sangiovese syrah. Purbrick says he tries not to compare it with other wines on the market: “The most important thing is that we’re dedicated to making

fantastic, nuanced wines that enhance the natural environments within which they are produced, rather than destroy them. We are incredibly proud to be sequestering more carbon than we produce, enlivening our souls and not leaving a trail of waste behind us.” But the main thing that the couple has learnt isn’t about wine at all. The main lesson Purbrick has gleaned from Italy? “Just slow down,” he says. “Have a bit more time, give more time to the life part of life. I think we work so hard in Australia, and it feels weird to have downtime there. Just stop and take the day slower. Over here, the focus is on family and food and friends. And so everyone feels richer here. They’re definitely not, but life feels richer.” ● ● minimumwines.com

Get in the know, before you bid If you’re ready to buy your new home, it’s important to research the market and stay up to date with the latest auction results so that you turn up to an auction feeling confident. Hop on to the Domain app to view the latest auction results updated every Saturday evening.

Australia’s home of property. DOM A IN REV IEW

FOOD

Spoiled for choice S O FIA L E VI N

e’re all set for an indulgent summer thanks to a slew of new venues last month. There’s festivity as well as creativity in the air, with a new modChinese restaurant in Carlton, a street-style torta and taco kiosk in Collingwood, and Thornbury ice-cream and hot-chip store Kenny Lover, with flavours as wild as soy sauce. Pinchy’s lobster rolls is now a full-blown seafood and champagne bar while, heading south, another Rustica is open for dinner and Murrumbeena just met its new favourite cafe. Further south on the Mornington Peninsula, Ten Minutes by Tractor has risen from the ashes.

KENNY LOVER \ THORNBURY

This ice-cream shop is equal parts weird and wonderful. Flavours range from traditional to adventurous (kalamata olive and white chocolate).

L AG O O N D I N I N G

NIKKI TO

New menus not to miss this month. Wo r d s

R U S TI CA

LAGOON DINING \ CARLTON

RUSTICA \ SOUTH YARRA

Order hot chips for dipping. Must order: watermelon and olive oil ice-cream

An Asian player has landed in Little Italy, opening last month. Heavily, but not exclusively, Chineseinfluenced dishes are interpreted for a modern Melbourne setting in a space best described as “sexy”. Must order: ma po tofu knots, shiitake and mustard greens

Rustica’s sixth cafe – a 500-squaremetre flagship, no less – is in a former retail warehouse on Chapel Street. It’s the only one of their stores that offers dinner as well as breakfast, lunch and baked goods. Must order: ’nduja, burrata, charred peach and broccoli pizza

796 High Street, Thornbury

263 Lygon Street, Carlton

501 Chapel Street, South Yarra

● kennylover.com.au

● lagoondining.com

● rusticasourdough.com.au

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PINCHY’S \ CBD

Formerly a pop-up selling lobster rolls in Emporium, Pinchy’s has taken on a new life in Mid City Arcade. Now, it’s a seafood restaurant and champagne bar with chef Pierre Khodja in the kitchen (ex-Camus, Northcote). Must order: prawn head roll with sea urchin aioli Level 1/200 Bourke Street, Melbourne ● pinchys.co

COMING IN EARLY 2020 …

COLLINGWOOD

Mary’s Burgers Cult-burger joint Mary’s is opening a 140-seat, rock ’n’ roll burger restaurant on Franklin Street in the city, in late January. Grazeland This March a permanent 10,000-square-metre weekend food festival is launching beside Scienceworks with more than 50 vendors, three licensed bars, artisan stalls and entertainment. ●

A torta and taco shop has replaced the defunct kebab kiosk on Smith Street between Alexandra Parade and Johnston Street. Must order: torta al pastor with pork, queso, bean, avocado, lettuce, coriander and pickle 384 Smith Street, Collingwood ● tortasandtacos.com.au

TEN MINUTES BY TRACTOR \ MORNINGTON PENINSULA

This winery and fine-dining restaurant reopened last month after a fire in February 2018. Customers and those who fought the blaze were the first to experience the new kitchen, chef ’s table, private dining room and terrace. Must order: roast Bundarra pork belly and loin, smoked eel, white balsamic, kohlrabi, and mustard leaf JASON LOUCAS

FRANKIE’S TORTAS AND TACOS \

1333 Mornington-Flinders Road, Main Ridge ● tenminutesbytractor.com.au

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ACHIEVING

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IN FOCUS

Without limits

The fight against brain cancer will take journalist Candice Wyatt to greater heights than ever before. Now, six years after Karyn’s death at age 56, Wyatt will embark on the journey they had planned, honouring her mother and with a vital purpose. In February next year, she is joining a trek of the Annapurna Circuit in the Nepalese Himalayas to raise money towards treatments for brain cancer. Wyatt has been pushing herself through regular altitude training at a gym this year to handle the extreme conditions. Her fundraising endeavours – the goal is tens of thousands – go handin hand with her role as an ambassador for Cure Brain Cancer, the foundation behind the trek. She is also auctioning off a private all-inclusive dinner in Room 1954 for

GREG BRIGGS

hen journalist Candice Wyatt and her mother Karyn started talking about going to Nepal together, it was a natural fit for the adventurous and athletic Karyn: she had trekked Kokoda twice and had her sights set on marathon training. Wyatt, now a senior reporter and newsreader at 10 News First, agreed they would together fulfil one of her mother’s wishes – trekking to Everest base camp. However, before she and Wyatt could make plans for the trip, Karyn started experiencing vertigo. It came with a dire diagnosis: the mother of two had brain cancer, which to date has no cure.

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“It’s still a great unknown. Brain cancer kills more children and more adults under 40 in Australia than any other disease.” 26 people at the Pullman Melbourne on Swanston (pictured left), where she will wait on diners (bids can be made by direct messaging Wyatt through her Instagram account). Contributing to the cause will be the sales of a limited edition candle she has developed – The Scent of Nepal – invoking the fragrances her mother loved; patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla and cinnamon. Wyatt remembers that when her mother first became ill, she was naive to the insidious nature of brain cancer. “Survival rates for brain cancer have not changed in decades,” she says. “It’s still a great unknown.

Brain cancer kills more children and more adults under 40 in Australia than any other disease. We thought she would have an operation and everything would be fine.” Karyn was told to expect numbness in her left arm and leg. Instead, her mother woke up from surgery “and [those limbs] were completely paralysed. She never walked again. That made her entire hospital stay and death even worse. She always talked about running again. She’d say, ‘I can’t wait until I can go back home and go for a run.’ “I always say, with zero exaggeration, that my mum was the

Wyatt has no doubt Karyn would be proud of her achievements. “I feel like a lot has happened since Mum died,” she says. “I became a newsreader at Channel Ten. I bought my first property, had meaningful relationships, met some of my best friends. “But this – going to Nepal to raise money – would be by far her proudest thing.” ● DONATIONS \ curebraincancer. org.au/Candice THE SCENT OF NEPAL \ soyonthehill.com

● Instagram @candice_wyatt_10

E M I LY P OW E R & R AC H E L L E U N R E I C H

Frame Living System by Kett

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fittest person I’ve ever known. My earliest memories are of her teaching aerobics classes. She watched everything she ate … people need to know that you can be perfectly healthy. Brain cancer is not linked to smoking or a bad diet or even genetics. It’s completely random.” The disease caused painful shifts in the final stages. “She had personality changes, she became aggressive [from the brain cancer] and the drugs she had to take changed everything about her appetite and appearance,” Wyatt says of her mother. “You don’t get the deep and meaningful conversations.”

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SAM WOOD \ HEALTH & FITNESS

Eat, drink and be mindful

hether it’s a beer at a barbecue with mates or a glass of bubbly on Christmas Day, there is no guilt in enjoying an ice cold beverage when socialising in the summer time. The important thing to remember is that alcohol contains calories just like food (shocking, I know), and there’s a big difference between one wine with dinner and six espresso martinis on a Friday night. If weight loss (or even maintenance) is your goal during this period then it pays to be aware of the best and worst choices when it comes to booze.

RED WINE \ Dry wines are relatively low in sugar as

most of the sugar content gets converted to alcohol during the fermentation process. A nice glass of pinot noir is my pick but if you want something a little more refreshing, opt for a chilled dry white.

CLEAR SPIRITS AND SODA WATER \ It’s not the

CHAMPAGNE \ Champagne is lower in both calories and sugar than white wine. However, the bubbles in champagne mean you feel the effects of the alcohol more easily, so make sure you’re keeping track of your consumption. A few glasses of quality champagne is better than a whole bottle of average bubbles.

most exciting choice but vodka and soda water is your healthiest pick when you’re trying to keep calories and sugar in check. If you’re a gin fan, keep in mind that tonic water is not on par with soda water and can be packed full of sugar.

BEER \ I love a cold beer in summer but unfortunately most beers are high in carbs and sugar, which is not great for our waistline, hence the term “beer belly”.

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“The silly season does tend to roll on for several months and it’s important that we are aware of what we are consuming.”

COCKTAILS \ This is a broad category but, on the

the worst alcohol choice nutritionally. An espresso martini, for example, usually contains a creamy liqueur and sugar syrup, essentially making it a caffeinated, alcoholic dessert. I can’t stress enough that this is a time to enjoy with friends and family and there is absolutely nothing wrong with catching up over a few drinks. However, the silly season does tend to roll on for several months and it’s important that we are aware of what we are consuming. Make smart choices, drink in moderation and always remember that what goes in, must be burnt off so make sure you keep moving over this period as well. ●

whole, cocktails are not the healthiest pick. Fruit juices, sugar syrups and sugary mix-ins make these

● 28bysamwood.com

There are plenty of lower-carb options on the market now which is great.

ISTOCK

APEROL SPRITZ \ The drink of summer and the most common beverage seen on Instagram these days, the beloved Aperol spritz! Consisting of prosecco, soda water and Aperol, the spritz is a refreshing summer drink with a moderate sugar content. It’s pretty much on par with a cider or glass of rose. Not the best, not the worst.

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BRIGHTON \ 6 KINANE STREET 4

When well-heeled buyers want to invest in one of the flashiest addresses in Melbourne, they buy in Brighton’s Golden Mile. But when they want seclusion in the prestigious suburb, they nab a hideaway on Kinane Street. Shane Warne used to be a resident. And Chris and Bec Judd are new arrivals, having just completed renovations on a Spanish colonial pad two doors down. Regardless of the celebrity neighbours, you can enjoy splendid isolation at No.6, which feels like an exclusive resort. Tucked away at the back of the 1448-square-metre block is a huge Tuscan-style villa. It comes with exterior accessories – including a tennis court, mosaic-tiled pool and spa, and long driveway – that match the opulence of the home’s interior. The latter has been recently revamped, with the current owners creating chic European-influenced living zones with a calming palette of black, white and grey. From the basement entry, take the marble staircase to the ground floor to explore the main living zone, which is perfect for entertaining. Herringbone oak floors spread through the formal dining and lounge area, which has two sets of french doors leading to the terrace by the pool. Further along is the more casual open-plan kitchen, family and meals area – also an expansive space – that connects to the terrace via bifold doors. The Miele kitchen, with its large walk-in pantry and generous bench space, would make catering a breeze. Upstairs, the first floor is devoted to four plushly-carpeted bedrooms. The parents’ retreat has a marble en suite

FINAL WORD

bathroom, a neatnik’s dream dressing room and a sitting room. The second-largest bedroom is also vast and affords

“THIS BEAUTIFUL HOUSE, COMPLETE WITH POOL, TENNIS COURT AND

tennis court views from its ample balcony.

MANICURED DRIVEWAY, PRESENTS A RARE OPPORTUNITY IN THE BRIGHTON

This is a light-filled residence. Some rooms have entire

MARKET FOR DISCERNING BUYERS.” BEN VIETH – AGENT

walls of glazing to make the most of the home’s northerly orientation. Other features include a big rumpus room, home office/gym, secure garaging for four cars, two guest parking bays and high hedging for privacy. The house is close to the beach, top private schools, Church Street’s eateries and Were Street’s shops. ● MARY DOWNES property@domainreview.com.au Agent: Marshall White, Ben Vieth 0404 084 793 Price: $10 million Auction: 2.30pm, December 7