By Emily-Rose Toohey
Granite Belt wine country is known nationwide for its immaculate beverage offerings and in 2022, Robert Channon Wines celebrated 21-ish years of its esteemed Verdelho.
Robert and Peggy Channon established the winery in 1998, but before the idea of starting the business even crossed the former’s mind, he spent 35 years working as a solicitor.
Born and raised in England, Robert said he moved to Australia in 1973 when his home country was in a terrible state.
“There were strikes and everybody hated everybody – we were working by candlelight, and it was just awful,” he said.
Prior to Robert and Peggy making the journey to Stanthorpe in the late 90s (they had briefly visited the region beforehand), they both lived and worked in Sydney and Brisbane.
On a whim and a desire to escape the hustle and bustle of the city, they bought the land now known as Robert Channon Wines and the former solicitor said it seemed like a good idea to do something useful at last.
“I suddenly had lots of friends as a winery owner,” he remarked of the venture.
“It was enormously exciting to start with and we gradually learnt what it was all about.”
Robert’s skills and knowledge of the business came from both working on the job and through a winemaking course but said his biggest help was learning directly from those around him.
This is where the story of the winery’s Verdelho began, and it was a twist of fate that resulted in the creation of Robert Channon Wines’ prize-wining beverage.
“The nursery supplying the vines couldn’t supply the chardonnay we had ordered,“ Robert said.
“When we went to pick it up, we found out they had sold it to someone else, so we had to plant Verdelho.”
And the rest is history, as the first three vintages of the wine would eventually take out the prize for Best White Wine at the Queensland Wine Awards for multiple years since 2001 and is a business venture worth celebrating.
Although it isn’t quite the wine’s 21st birthday (it turned 22 this year), Robert explained that Leisa at their Persian Poppy restaurant had prepared a delicious meal and celebration for the occasion, so they decided to celebrate it nonetheless.
“Over the years, there’s been some steady and massive changes in the industry and the standard of wines has just transformed,” he said.
And business is back at Robert Channon Wines, which includes their concerts, which were halted for two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We’ve had three (concerts ) this year and the next one is on 4 September, with international pianist Roman Rudnytsky,” he said.
“We love to see lots of people here and have live music back.”
