INTRODUCING MIKE SAUNDERS
We're thrilled to welcome Mike Saunders to Voyager Estate as our Head of Viticulture. Mike’s passion for viticulture traces back to his childhood, where his love for farming first took root. At just seven years old, he was already behind the wheel of a tractor alongside his grandad, captivated by the outdoors and the land. This early connection led him to pursue a Degree in Horticulture and sparked a lifelong fascination. Mike brings a wealth of experience and deep expertise in managing organic vineyards to the team, having honed his skills over many seasons at some of New Zealand's most celebrated wineries.
What drew you to Voyager Estate in Margaret River?
Moving from one beautiful part of the world to another! If you're going to go anywhere in Australia, everyone I've spoken to says Margaret River is the place to be. It almost feels like there's a memo going around, because every person I meet tells me this is the most amazing place. So, either everyone's just on the same page, or it really is the best place in the world!
What fascinates you most about viticulture?
It’s the vine’s ability to grow in any situation, in any environment worldwide. Give the vine two or three core ingredients, and it will do its thing, producing an infinitely variable product. The same vine in different circumstances will create something you’ve never tasted before.
For you, what is the most rewarding aspect of farming organically?
The most rewarding time is that minute that last bunch is picked for the season and you’ve done everything you possibly can to create the best possible fruit and convey that through to the winery. It’s this real mixture of relief and pride and a little bit of grief. It’s the end of one great chapter, but the beginning of another.
What about the most challenging aspect?
Organic viticulture is about doing a million little things at exactly the right time. As we don’t have the silver bullets with organics, we’ve got to be so much more observant. We’ve also got to be so much more proactive and in tune with the environment that the vines are in. But if we’re doing our job right, nailing the balance within the ecosystem, then everything else kind of just flows on from there.
How do you think farming practices manifest in the final wine?
Everything that has impacted those grapes, and then the wine, is reflected in the final product. The wine is the ultimate distillation of an entire year’s work—of the vineyard team’s commitment, the climate, the weather, and how we treat the fruit when it hits the winery.
In Margaret River, we are known for our worldclass Chardonnay. What excites you about this variety?
I think Chardonnay is one of those wines that has got an incredible ability to be infinitely variable. So it takes on the persona of the viticulturist, it takes on the persona of the winemaker, and it takes on the flavours of the environment that it’s grown and made in. It takes on all the outside impact and outside influences, brings them all into itself, and radiates out something beautiful.
What will your first year at Voyager Estate look like?
There’s going to be a lot of observation, a lot of getting to know the vines, getting to know the people, getting to know the climate, and then seeing how we can start to shape those things into what we want them to be. So yes, a lot of observation in the first year, get a harvest under the belt, get the fruit into the winery, and start tasting.
