As a young chef, Steve Flamsteed went to France in pursuit of a woman. He also had a grant to learn how to make his favourite alpine-style cheeses.
He never did get the woman, but her family in Beaujolais taught him how to make wine. More than 20 years later, he still loves the region's wines and would like to take gamay grapes to Australia to make Beaujolais-style wines at his Giant Steps vineyard.
Returning to Australia, Flamsteed realised he had to specialise; he couldn't be a chef, a cheesemaker and a winemaker and do all three properly. What's more, he has added coffee roasting to his skills. He says insuring his nose, essential for all these ventures, "might be an idea".
Flamsteed's 16-year-old winery now also offers cheese, coffee and home-cured meats, along with sourdough bread baked on the premises. The starter for the bread is at least 50 years old and is from the Poilane bakery in Paris. Giant Steps is home to the Innocent Bystander pinot noir and chardonnay wines.
Situated in what is known as Melbourne's dress circle, the winery's Yarra Valley home is in a semicircle of wine-growing regions that include the Mornington Peninsula, Macedon and Geelong.
The Yarra Valley is known for its rare-breed pigs, lambs, dairy products and even a short duck-hunting season. Pinot noir is one obvious choice for winemakers following the adage, "if it grows together, it goes together".