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Phil Conway embraced adventure and the unknown when he moved from Ireland to Melbourne in Australia. Phil describes a love of food from an early age, a love and passion that placed him on an inevitable collision course with wine. These passions took him across the globe while also launching him onto the set of Australia’s masterchef. Phil describes his passion for food and wine as extensions of himself rather than descriptions of what he does or his occupation. Food and wine are central to his entire life. In this conversation, we discuss Phil’s role as wine buyer for Barrel and Batch, purchase trends in Melbourne, his journey from Ireland's Galway to Melbourne and Phil corrects some misconceptions I have about everything Masterchef. An extremely fun conversation. A huge thanks to Phil for joining me.

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Will Taylor is one of the most insightful voices in Australian Wine - and its not hard to see why. His perspective is as unique as it is dialed in. As the managing partner of the wine group at Finlayson’s law, he spends his days analysing the aspects of the wine trade and industry that get the least attention - the least sexy aspects of the trade, that are the most important when it comes to building a viable trade and industry. In this chat I get to ask Will about his key takeaways from 2025, while he also unpacks what he perceives to be necessary to sprout the green shoots that will place the national industry on an upward trajectory. As always, an absolute pleasure and privilege talking with Will Taylor, a huge thanks to Will for joining me.

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Cyndal Petty has spunk. She describes her drive and oodles of energy from an early age, her parents placing her in the gymnastics arena and her early success in it until injury caused her to pivot. But the foundations of drive and dedication had set hard, and when Cyndal found herself as an apprentice chef at age 15 years old, it was only a matter of time before she set her eyes on a new goal and shot out in pursuit. Her goal: to learn and absorb everything she could about wine. Fast forward some years and Cyndal has become a multidimensional force: she writes, presents, consults and curates. Most importantly, she works tirelessly and endlessly to hone her skills and improve. This was an extremely fun conversation with someone who is backing herself to achieve exciting things. A massive thanks to Cyndal for joining me on the CDP.

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