In the vines with… Frederick Stevenson

Bondi Journal
Jun 1
2 min read

Updated: Jun 2

Long lunches as the crisp winter sun shines overhead, light, bright drop in hand. Cosy dinners accompanied by a rich, mouth-filling red…

There's something extra special about food and wine pairings in the winter, and we'd recommend adding South Australian label, Frederick Stevenson—the brainchild of Steve Crawford—to your list of producers to explore, stat.

A low-intervention approach and focus on organically and sustainably grown grapes are central to the award-winning winemakers ethos.

"I aspire to showcase the variety, vintage and region in every wine, preferring not to augment the raw material—the grapes, as they enter the cellar," explains Steve.

Food-friendliness is also a must, and this stems from Steve’s firsthand experiences abroad.

"My travels and work in European wine regions and very importantly eating their food has had a great influence on the wine styles that I make," he says.

"I see wine as a complementary addition to the dinner table, not something that should shout and overpower all of the other elements of the setting."

From pseudonym, to fully-fledged label

It was this globetrotting that ultimately inspired Steve to launch Frederick Stevenson in 2011, where the aim was to explore more diverse styles, and bring something a little different to the Barossa wine region and beyond.

"My European travels and work had exposed me to various different winemaking styles, which made it somewhat difficult to relate to the Barossa Valley style that I had returned to," he explains.

"Frederick started as a phantom operation to explore a stylistic change away from the heavy and rich red wines that the Barossa had become synonymous with, and focus more on balance and elegance whilst still maintaining some energy and textual presence. Eventually my boss discovered who "Frederick" was and I was starting to think that my tiny experiment could grow."

Fast forward 14 years and Frederick Stevenson wines can be found in restaurants, bars and retail stores up and down the country, and Steve's ever-evolving range features Pinots from the Adelaide Hills, Clare Valley Rieslings and Grenaches from the Barossa to name a few.

Winter picks from the Frederick Stevenson range

The label is a long-time Rocker favourite, with various iterations of the Eden Valley Montepulciano having featured in our wine book over the years.

A medium bodied drop, it's full, plush, and you'll find notes of everything from blackberry, blackcurrant and plum, to mulberry, licorice and alpine herbs peppered throughout.

The perfect pairing? While it's a versatile wine, given this one is a classic Italian style, you can't go past a rocking pasta, like our pappardelle beef cheek ragu, or a grilled meat dish—where CopperTree Farms' Mbs 5+ dry aged rib-eye on the bone is the one.

Elsewhere, we're partial to the Clare Valley Riesling, which has just landed on the Rocker menu, and you'll find us sipping this one alongside the perfect-for-snacking-and-sharing calamari fritti, followed by the rich, zesty hand rolled pici Cacio e Pepe.