Eumalga Sweet White Dessert Wine

A fabulous discovery over the last few weeks, investigating the movements of Jean’s widow, Margaret and her adult children after they left Dubbo.

Hippolyte (Henri) Paulin Macquarie Serisier, Jean’s second eldest boy, was in Paris with Jean when his father died, and winemaking was his lifelong passion.

Yet, two of his children were born in Western Australia so investigating where led to the discovery of the Coorinja Winery at Toodyay, formerly Newcastle, about an hour’s drive northeast Perth.

All the family did head west but to be so far inland and for just a short time, hinted at the possibility Henri had found himself a vineyard.

Google Maps confirmed it, and Coorinja Winery’s social media includes a post with a photo of the Eumalga Sweet Dessert Wine, with the comment:

In the 1890s there was a winemaker at Coorinja named Hippolyte Serisier, he was born in Dubbo, and he started the tradition of making a Sweet White called Eumalga in memory of his sister ‘Rose Eumalga’ who only lived a few years. After Serisier moved on from Coorinja winemakers Mr J Valent and then Mr A Pardelli carried on the tradition into the early 1900s.

The story goes when Serisier was blending his Sweet White called Eumalga, the affair was said to be top secret and nobody was allowed near him.

When we first sampled this unique white we knew it would be the perfect tribute to the story of Eumalga and Serisier. Our Eumalga can be described as nothing less than absolutely delicious. Eumalga will make for the perfect drink to go with your next cheese platter or enjoy a glass with chocolate. It is pure indulgence.

Reaching out to the owners of Coorinja Winery, Michael Wood kindly fished out an old family tree a descendant had dropped off some years ago and also said a descendant of Hipployte’s brother, (probably Frederick), lives in Toodyay, and has been running a French cafe and garden centre with his wife, at the old Guildford post office.

That family tree puts Hippolyte and definitely his wife, at Coorinja in January 1898 when a daughter, Margaret Valencia appears to have been born there, and a son, Arthur Macquarie born in Newcastle, now known as Toodyay, in August 1899.

A scan from a book kept in Coorinja Winery’s cellar door includes a photo of Hippolyte as an adult and some details about his activities at Coorinja.

Plus, Michael sent a photo believed to be taken around 1912, of Henry (John) Banff and Hippolyte, who was a wine maker and excise officer at Clinton Winery, Coominya in Queensland standing outside the Bond Room of the Banff Bros winery where brandy was stored.

That’s another unexpected clue to Hippolyte’s path toward owning his own winery at Warwick, Queensland.

If only Jean Emile had lived, you have to wonder what he and his son might have achieved together, but both certainly made their mark.