John Coughlan

Senior White Winemaker

Bilbul winemaker John Coughlan is a man seduced by wine's winning ways. After leaving school in the late 1990s he decided to take a year off before commencing a science based degree at university. "More of a scotch and beer man back then,"  John took a job working in the laboratory of a Griffith winery.

"I thought working in the lab would help me skill-wise in the degree I was going to pursue," he says. "But as it turned out I fell in love with the aromas and whatnot of the fementations that were occurring, seeing how the flavours and aromas evolved from a fermenting juice to a wine. It was amazing."

After completing his stint in that first laboratory, John landed a job at De Bortoli as technical assistant to the senior winemakers who encouraged him to study the winemaking degree at Charles Sturt University. He studied part time for seven years (graduating in 2006), all the time helping out at the Bilbul winery finally becoming part of the white wine making team.

"It was really good for me to be able to work at De Bortoli and study at the same time," says John. "I was working in the winery then learning the theory behind what I was doing."

John now heads up the white wine making team at Bilbul, an excellent fit as white wine is what he likes to drink these days.

"I'm really intrigued by the newer style of savvys that are coming out, particularly with Sancerre-like characters, but I'm still partial to Chardonnay just because the the amount of variability and style that are out there, it is a wine that can have something for everybody."

"I'm enjoying the challenge of making Sauvignon Blanc, particularly as we are in a warm area that is not seen as an ideal place to grow or get good fruit concentration. But I am identifying the vineyards and the growers who are producing something that is a bit unique. It has been a labour of love getting Sauvignon in the bottle."

John has also been refining the Moscato-style sparkling wines that have been behind the success of the Emeri range.

John says that the biggest change he has witnessed at Bilbul over the last few years has been the move to a more "natural" way of making wine.

"The biggest thing I have learned is the more you can be hands off, the easier it becomes and the better the wine. At the end of the day, wine is a result of the fruit - if the fruit is good and you don't try and push it too hard, you can make good wine."