Brian Franklin is possibly the only winemaker in Australia, if not the world, with penguin issues. Each autumn, golden chardonnay and blue-black pinot noir grapes make the journey from his vineyard at Apsley Gorge, 14 kilometres inland, to his winery on the waterfront at Bicheno, on Tasmania’s east coast.
The penguins have a much shorter journey. After a few ungainly hops and a waddle from the shoreline with its pretty jetty, boat ramp named “The Gulch” and lichen-daubed rocks, the little creatures are in the winery.
