22 | T H E B A R OSSA M AG
>> The Andrew's family: Rebecca, Landen, Celeste and Owen.
Owen Andrews is making pastries,
his deft hands form delicate parcels
of perfection, destined to adorn
the tables of yet another fine
dining event. changed in over a century but
age old Barossa food traditions
have permeated these stone
walls, waiting until now
to be re-discovered. sourced from the cooperage
across the road, the same way
Benno Seppelt’s staff would have
done during Seppeltsfield’s era
of self-sufficiency. being set into jellies and cheese
is once again floating in tawny,
absorbing those full, rich flavours
of yesteryear, ready to be enjoyed
by a new generation.
Whilst it’s not unusual to see a chef
working in a modern commercial
kitchen, sheer determination and
a relentless drive to succeed are
among the hidden qualities that
make this picture special. “There’s 170 years’ worth of food
stories here,” Owen says with an
infectious enthusiasm. “When we came here we noticed
all these hooks in the cellar and I
asked Warren Randall if we could
cure legs of prosciutto and hang
them in the cellar. Putting them
in there, it just felt like we were
putting back in place what belongs.” He’s even found a way to preserve
the inedible fruit of the date palms
that form Seppeltsfield’s famed
“Avenue of Hope and Dreams”, an
initiative instigated by the Seppelt
family to help lift community spirit
during the difficult post war era.
Today, Owen has not only
resurrected the smokehouse,
he’s using it to flavour mushrooms
in another nod to history under
his artisan label of preserves and
condiments; old sherries are “That’s what I love about this
estate, we can take what they
have put in place and then we
can add something to it,” says
Owen whose award-winning
cooking has become synonymous
Seppeltsfield Winery’s
historic Cellar Six, framed
by date palms planted during
the Great Depression, is
Owen’s headquarters.
The outside of the building hasn’t
He speaks of cheese preserved in
barrels of Para Tawny, mushrooms
growing in cellars ready for sale
and did you know Seppeltsfield
was the first to export smoked
bacon to the UK?
That original smokehouse is now
back in operation using century
old port and sherry barrel shavings
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