From crunching numbers to crushing grapes, former accountant Todd Riethmuller has trodden an unlikely career path to become an accomplished winemaker with a string of gold-medal winning wines to his name.

In his mid-30s, Todd was living in the Papua New Guinea capital of Port Moresby, working as a financial controller for a large company and, in his own words, “suffering a mid-life crisis.”He started flicking through a university guide and got all the way to “W” before he stopped. “I thought, ‘You can study winemaking? I’m doing that!”

With a degree from Adelaide Uni tucked under his arm, Todd and wife Donna moved to the Barossa Valley. Following a stint as winemaker for Trevor Jones Fine Wines at Lyndoch, he launched his own label in 2002, producing quality wines ranging from the exquisite, gold-medal winning Ruth Miller Riesling through to the energetic Toddler GSM and the popular Black Tongue Shiraz. There’s even a to-die-for chocolate liqueur for the sweet tooths.

Todd sources only the finest fruit from small family-owned vineyards throughout the Barossa and prides himself on crafting well-priced wines that cater to tastes across the board.
“From fantastic delicate whites for Riesling, all the way through the scope to the full-bodied Shiraz from the northern part of the Valley, Barossa fruit is just so broad,” Todd enthuses. “You can make pretty much everything.”

In 2004, Todd opened a cellar door in the main street of Tanunda. It’s situated in what used to be a general store attached to the Riethmuller family home and, with its custom-made Parisian-style zinc bar and wood-fired oven churning out pizzas on the weekends, it’s a cosy place to sip Domain Barossa’s finest and watch the world go by. - Megan Lehmann

Todd Riethmuller