How I Got Here: Winemaker Carla Rodeghiero | HerCanberra

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How I Got Here: Winemaker Carla Rodeghiero

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Admit it, we’ve all been there – stalking social media and LinkedIn profiles, trying desperately to figure out how the hell someone got their dream job.

It seems impossible and yet there they are, living out your career fantasy (minus the itchy business suit). It might seem hard to believe, but once upon a time, they were also fantasising about their future career, and with some hard work, they made it.

Welcome to How I Got Here, HerCanberra’s series that reveals everything you want to know about the secrets of career success. This week, we sat down with Sapling Yard owner and winemaker Carla Rodeghiero to learn her tips from the trade.

Existential crisis time: Who are you and what do you do?

I am a multi-passionate person – I can’t get enough of wine, I love working in the vineyard and equally can’t let go of clinical research.

Let’s go back to when you were a kid, have you always dreamed of working in this industry?

When I was a kid I spent a lot of time with my Italian grandparents, lunch would be pastasciutta served with a glass of lemonade mixed with red wine. The pasta was hand-made, and the spare room was full of it drying over long wooden curtain rods propped up by chairs…maybe that’s where it all came from.

 Tell us about when you were first starting out, what set a fire in your belly to get here and how did you do it?

I completed an ‘Introduction to Wine’ while undertaking my science degree and was hooked on wine from there. I set aside the thought of a wine career and then came across it again while working in London in a wine bar, it was like a candy shop to me. Returning to Australia I enrolled in wine science at Charles Sturt University and worked away at it for six years part-time, I would do contract work and spend three months every year working in a winery as a cellar hand both here and overseas. Instead of being sensible and buying a house, I bought some land in Braidwood because it was affordable and seemed to be suited to growing Pinot Noir and Riesling. Hence ‘Sapling Yard’ was born.

 Recall a time when you wanted to chuck it all in; what did you tell yourself when it got too hard?

Almost once a year, I have a moment or two, often during vintage/harvest. I don’t tell myself anything, I just get on with it and then something usually sparks my passion again, I have a ‘never give up’ attitude

What was your biggest break? 

I made my own break but I guess the best leg up was being able to lease the Lake George Winery and cellar to expand the business and bring in a business partner.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? 

Don’t be in a hurry, enjoy the journey

What is it about your industry that you love and what makes you want to pull your hair out?

I love the creativity we can apply to our winemaking in Australia. I hate the deception of labels purporting to be boutique but are actually owned and operated by multinationals.

Tell us how you ‘stay in the know’, what media do you consume?

Daily Wine News, and Grape Grower Wine Maker.

Where do you see yourself in five years? 

Wherever life takes me

Why should people follow in your footsteps?

 I guess don’t, make your own way, don’t be fooled by the apparent success of others, more often it’s a veneer.

What advice would you give your past self?

You will be ok, go for a long walk.

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