Raquel Jones / A journey into Winemaking

Below is the original interview from 2020 with Young Gun of Wine, offering insight into Raquel Jones’ journey into winemaking and her ongoing pursuit of mastering the timeless art of making wine.

A journey into winemaking

It is mind-boggling to think that, in 2014, we decided as a family to upturn our professional lives in Melbourne and embark on a quest to find a vineyard in country Victoria. Hugh and I were pursuing a dream we both shared: to make quality wine from vine to bottle.

We spent almost every weekend in the lead-up scouring the state.

Three hours from Melbourne, near Beechworth in North East Victoria, we found our perfect vineyard. After extensive due diligence, we turned the key to our forever home in 2016. Our first commercial offering came from the 2017 vintage, and the Weathercraft brand was born.

Young Gun of Wine

Fast-forward to 2020, when I decided to throw my hat into the ring for the Australian Young Gun of Wine competition for the first time. It was exciting to be part of a collaboration celebrating emerging talent. In March 2020, I was shortlisted among the Top 50 winemakers and interviewed by Young Gun of Wine.

Update: Raquel was consecutively awarded a Top 50 finalist position from her first entry in 2020 through to her final year of eligibility in 2023.

How did your journey into winemaking begin?

I come from a non-traditional winemaking background. While I did have some exposure to homemade wines while growing up, backyard winemaking was never the driving force behind our new venture.

My journey into winemaking began with a solid foundation in chemistry and a significant amount of viticultural study, all of which I had undertaken before Hugh and I purchased our vineyard.

One pivotal decision I made was to seek out a mentor who shared my level of dedication and attention to detail—someone who could guide and teach me throughout my winemaking journey.

I firmly believe in the adage, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” Given that I was essentially diving headfirst into the world of winemaking, I wanted the guidance of someone with extensive experience.

What mattered to me was finding a mentor who would listen to my ideas and winemaking plans, then provide valuable guidance rather than simply dictating what I should do.

How have your studies and previous career shaped you as a winemaker?

Before embarking on this winemaking journey, I had a successful career in the legal field and ran my own business for approximately a decade.

While my childhood was filled with memories of helping my dad grow vegetables and fruit, my path took a different turn after high school. My parents encouraged me to pursue a career in law, which led me to spend a decade working in the legal and finance fields.

After successfully selling my legal business, I returned to education in my early 30s. I had always been intrigued by biological solutions, so I chose to study nutritional bioscience and chemistry.

As our pursuit of the perfect vineyard gained momentum, I shifted my focus towards viticulture and winemaking, with the aim of transitioning into a second career as a vigneron.

At the time of the interview, I was deep into my Wine Science degree at Charles Sturt University, albeit with a few exemptions.

Juggling the demands of a vineyard, parenthood, winemaking and off-farm business responsibilities made progress a little slower than I would have liked. However, in a vertically integrated business such as ours, there is no substitute for hands-on experience across every aspect.

It is this practical knowledge that truly cements your understanding in such a dynamic field. My diverse background has also equipped me with a unique set of skills and perspectives that I bring to the world of winemaking.

What principles guide your approach to growing grapes and making wine?

I have a passionate belief in the term vigneron, and the maxim that you can only make great wine from great grapes holds true.

I wanted to control the growing aspect by owning the vineyard, ensuring the integrity of the fruit was maintained from vine to bottle.

Hugh and I could have started our wine enterprise much earlier by setting up a winery and buying fruit, but that did not align with our philosophy. Instead, we worked very hard for several more years to save enough money to buy a great site, grow great fruit and make wine in the way we wanted to.

Quality, for us, is paramount. It is our guiding principle.

How have your Spanish heritage and European travels influenced Weathercraft’s wines?

My family background is Spanish, and I am the first in my family to be born in Australia. Naturally, I have a strong interest in all Spanish wines, although my deepest passion lies in high-quality Tempranillo.

Hugh and I have also been fortunate enough to spend quite a bit of time travelling throughout Europe. Our wines reflect our European loves: Syrah from the Rhône, Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero and the great Chardonnays of Burgundy.

My rosé is also made traditionally, with minimal skin contact and time spent in barrel—absolutely no saignée.

What is your ambition for Tempranillo at Weathercraft?

While there are some remarkable examples of Australian Tempranillo, and this country has many sites that are well suited to the variety, we believe Australian Tempranillo still has a long way to go before it approaches the best wines of Spain.

My ultimate dream is to one day make a Tempranillo that stands shoulder to shoulder with Spain’s finest.

Why was your Beechworth vineyard the right site for Tempranillo?

When we acquired our vineyard, I undertook extensive research into its soil composition, climate, diurnal temperature variation and other factors.

From a mesoclimate perspective, I carefully selected a combination of three clones from the Ribera del Duero region in north-western Spain that were perfectly suited to our site.

These clones come from the same region as Vega Sicilia and Alejandro Fernández’s renowned Pesquera vines. We were among the first producers in Australia to have fruit from these Ribera clones in bottle.

Most Tempranillo clones in Australia originate from Portugal or regions such as Valdepeñas, Rioja or Toro in Spain. To have Ribera clones is very special and represents an extraordinary and distinctive part of our winemaking journey.

I could not be more excited about our Tempranillo and what these clones may achieve at Weathercraft.