The Cellar Door Podcast

Tom Massey

Join lawyer/wine explorer, Tom Massey, in the Cellar Door to hear the stories of the people and wineries in the wonderful world of wine. Tom is joined by winery owners, wine makers and other wine personalities to hear and share their stories, the stories of the wineries and the stories of the wines. It's a podcast about where it all came from and where it's all going. 

  1. 6d ago

    Keeping the Faith: Charlie and Sophie Melton on Brand, Legacy and the Future of a Barossa Icon

    Send us Fan Mail For more than four decades, Charles Melton has been one of the defining voices of the Barossa Valley. His journey stretches from the wine glut of the 1980s, through the rise of modern Australian wine, to the creation of one of the country's most recognisable labels. I recently had the pleasure of sitting down at the Charles Melton winery on Krondorf Road with Charles Melton and his daughter Sophie Melton, the next generation helping to shape the future of the family business. We discuss brand, authenticity, family, and the challenge of remaining relevant in an industry that has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. Charles reflects on  his early days in the industry, surviving the industry's darkest periods, and developing a brand that today enjoys a loyal following across multiple generations. Sophie shares what it is like to inherit that legacy, and how she is finding her own voice as a winemaker through her Domaine Sophie Claire label. Together, they explore the power of story in wine, the importance of place, the realities of today's wine market, and why the strongest brands are often built not through marketing campaigns, but through decades of genuine human connection. Whether you're interested in the history of the Barossa, the business of building a premium wine brand, or the future of Australian wine, this conversation offers a fascinating look at how one family has navigated change while remaining true to its values. This is my conversation with Charles and Sophie Melton. A huge thanks to Charles and Sophie for joining. Topics covered: The history of the Barossa vine pull and how oversupply crises shaped the regionNorth vs south Barossa style differences and what makes the southern end distinctThe origin story of Nine Popes — and its surprising connection to Châteauneuf-du-PapeBrand authenticity, storytelling, and what keeps Charles Melton relevant across four generations of customersThe current Australian wine industry glut and how small producers are navigating itDistribution philosophy: long-term relationships, staying boutique, and resisting over-expansionThe Young Gun of Wine awards and what it means for a new generation winemaker to competeStaying true to classic Barossa varieties — Grenache, Shiraz, Mataro, Cabernet — rather than chasing trendsKeywords: Charles Melton Wines, Barossa Valley wine, Nine Popes, Grenache Barossa, Sophie Melton winemaker, Domaine Sophie Claire, Peter Lehmann, Barossa vine pull, Krondorf Road winery, Young Gun of Wine, Australian wine industry, family winery, wine brand storytelling, Barossa Shiraz, cellar door Barossa Support the show

    1h 10m

  2. Jun 13

    The Hidden Life of Vineyards - with Dylan Grigg

    Send us Fan Mail Wine is full of simple stories. Old vines are better than young vines. Great vineyards are all about terroir. Climate determines quality. Pick the right variety, put it in the right place, and the rest takes care of itself. They're neat stories. They're marketable stories. According to this week's guest, they're also dangerously incomplete. Dylan Grigg is one of the most respected viticulturists in Australia. He's a consultant, researcher, vineyard owner, international speaker, former Australian Viticulturist of the Year, and a man whose work takes him from the Barossa Valley to Tasmania, Western Australia, California, Spain and beyond. In this conversation, we explore the extraordinary complexity that exists beneath the surface of every vineyard. We discuss old vines, epigenetics, vine memory, climate variability, regenerative viticulture, and why so many of the questions wine lovers ask can never be answered with a simple yes or no. We unpack Dylan's remarkable journey from a young apprentice chef in the Barossa to earning a PhD, before relocating his family to Catalonia and building an international reputation as one of the wine industry's most respected vineyard minds. Along the way, Dylan explains why vineyards aren't spreadsheets, why experience matters as much as science, and why the best viticulturists often spend their lives becoming more comfortable with uncertainty rather than less. This is my conversation with Dylan Grigg. A huge thanks to Dylan for joining me Support the show

    1h 1m

  3. Jun 6

    Part 2 with Robert Joseph - The Next Chapter for the Wine Industry

    Send us Fan Mail In Part 1 of my conversation with wine industry commentator, producer, and recovering wine critic Robert Joseph, we explored a deceptively simple question: where do wineries actually make their money? But that conversation quickly led to a much bigger one. What happens when the traditional wine business model comes under pressure? In this second part, we move beyond profitability and into the forces reshaping the global wine industry. We discuss ageing vineyard owners, succession challenges, private equity, direct-to-consumer sales, wine tourism, changing consumer behaviour, and why adaptation may be the defining challenge for wineries over the next decade. We also tackle the role of wine critics and traditional wine media, and Robert offers some characteristically frank views on Australia's place in the global wine market and whether we've lost clarity about what Australian wine stands for internationally. Buckle up for this section team.  Whether you're a wine producer, retailer, marketer, or simply fascinated by the business of wine, there's plenty here to challenge conventional thinking. And if you'd like to explore these ideas further, I highly recommend following Robert's work through Wine Thinker and his Substack, where he continues to ask some of the most important, and often uncomfortable, questions facing the wine industry today. This is Part 2 of my conversation with Robert Joseph. Support the show

    1h 31m

  4. May 9

    How the wine industry makes money - and how it doesn't

    Send us Fan Mail For a long time, the wine industry has sold itself on romance. The rolling vineyard. The family story. The passionate winemaker chasing perfection in a bottle. But behind every bottle of wine is something far more complicated: a business model. And right now, many of those models are under enormous pressure. In this conversation, Robert Joseph returns to The Cellar Door Podcast to unpack one of the most important, and least understood, questions in wine: How does the wine industry actually make money? From tiny family growers to giant corporations, cooperatives, negociants, supermarkets, private labels, cellar doors and direct-to-consumer sales, Robert peels back the layers of an industry where agriculture, luxury, hospitality, branding, land value and distribution all collide.  We talk about why some wineries survive while others struggle, why owning vineyard land is not always the asset people think it is, how supermarkets and distribution chains shape the entire market, and why the future belongs to producers who think beyond simply growing grapes and making wine. This is one of those conversations that changes the way you look at the wine business, and maybe the wine bottle sitting in front of you. Here is my conversation with Robert Joseph. Support the show

    1h 21m

  5. May 2

    Travis Schultz on harnessing the connective power of wine

    Send us Fan Mail Over the last year, while speaking with people across the Australian wine industry, one name kept unexpectedly coming up in conversation in connection with the Queensland market, not a winemaker, not a sommelier, but a lawyer. Today’s guest is Travis Schultz, founder of Travis Schultz & Partners, philanthropist, wine writer, and someone who has quietly built some of Queensland’s most respected wine events. Through events supporting charities including SunnyKids and LifeFlight, Travis has used wine not simply as a product, but as a powerful tool for connection, bringing together winemakers, professionals, community leaders, and wine lovers to raise millions of dollars for good causes. We discuss everything from the anatomy of a great wine event, to why wine creates a different kind of conversation, through to the upcoming Noosa Concours d'Elegance activation, where Travis and his team will host an exclusive winemakers lunch in the middle of one of Australia’s most spectacular luxury events. But beneath the wine, the stories, and the philanthropy, this conversation is really about something deeper: the role wine plays in bringing people together. Ladies and gentlemen, this is my conversation with Travis Schultz. Support the show

    45 min

  6. Apr 25

    The People Building Geographe

    Send us Fan Mail Late last year I had the pleasure of speaking with Pipa Nielson who gave an exciting and colourful introduction to the Western Australian region of Geographe wine region. Following that first course in Geographe education, Pipa arranged a second: a conversation with wine rockstar, Kim Horton, of Willow Bridge Estate. After growing up in the Swan Valley, Kim has made wine across multiple regions in WA, and in this conversation I get to ask him what makes Geographe, and the broader WA wine scene, so very special. Kim’s story is also fascinating, with early aspirations in the finance sector… aspirations that took a remarkably different turn. What follows is a deep dive into a young region that’s still defining itself. We talk about the diversity of Geographe, from coastal plains to the elevated Ferguson Valley, and how that translates into a wide spectrum of wine styles.  This is a conversation about people and craft. Kim shares what it’s really like to be a winemaker: the highs, the setbacks, and the reality of building a career in an industry that’s anything but predictable. This is Geographe, through the eyes of someone living and shaping it. A huge thanks to Kim Horton for joining.  Support the show

    1h 1m

  7. Apr 5

    Catching up with Doug Neal

    Send us Fan Mail Support the show

    38 min

  8. Mar 28

    Something Completely Different: A Mystery Box Tasting with Marc Malouf

    Send us Fan Mail To borrow from Monty Python: now for something completely different. This episode steps away from the usual B2B conversations and industry stories, and into something I don’t usually focus on… wine tasting. When a mystery box of wine appeared on my doorstep, filled with a collection of genuinely exotic and intriguing bottles, I did what anyone would do: I tracked down the sender. That trail led me to none other than the talented, guitar-shredding, wine-slinging Marc Malouf of iHeart Wine, and a very generous supporter and benefactor. So I thought, why not lean into it? In this episode, we put the usual format to one side and let Marc guide us through a flavour-filled journey across a lineup of wines that are as diverse as they are exciting. For those who are interested, the lineup includes: A fun 2020 Nebbiolo blend from the Muraje label in Piedmont;A 2024 Vermentino from La Magia in Tuscany;The 2022 Definitus Pinot Noir from Tapanappa’s Foggy Hill Vineyard in the Fleurieu Peninsula;A 2023 Mas Jullien rosé from France’s Languedoc region;A 2023 Clos Marie Manon, also from the Languedoc region;And finally, a Blanc de Blancs from Boll & Cie in Champagne.Along the way, we’re joined by a special guest, my brother-in-law Mac, bringing a fresh perspective as a passionate foodie discovering these wines in real time, whenever I let him get a word in. Yes, I know I can yap. I hope you enjoy this different style chit chat, and a massive thanks to Marc and Mac for joining me. Support the show

    47 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Join lawyer/wine explorer, Tom Massey, in the Cellar Door to hear the stories of the people and wineries in the wonderful world of wine. Tom is joined by winery owners, wine makers and other wine personalities to hear and share their stories, the stories of the wineries and the stories of the wines. It's a podcast about where it all came from and where it's all going. 

Information

  • Creator
    Tom Massey
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    215
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Cellar Door Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Cellar Door Podcast

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