But that’s what you might have done in the late ‘90s when Brave Goose Vineyard was established by Dr John Stocker and wife Joanne, after purchasing land near the Tallarook Ranges.
Dr Stocker was Australia’s chief scientist from December 1996 to April 1999 and started the winery to explore a passion and take a break from a hectic schedule.
After completing a PhD in immunology, Dr Stocker was a member of the Basel Institute for Immunology in Switzerland from 1976 to 1978
He joined the Swiss pharmaceutical company Hoffmann-LaRoche and Co in its Basel headquarters in 1979.
It was there Dr Stocker and his wife began exploring their passion for wine with weekend trips to northern Italy.
The variety of wines captured their imagination and inspired them to try their hand at producing a vintage.
After returning to Australia, Dr Stocker completed a course in winemaking and began a trial and error process at Brave Goose Vineyard.
“It was quite a steep learning curve and planting in a hilly area like the Tallarook Ranges was a bit of a first,” Dr Stocker said.
“We were influenced by the types of soil European grapes thrive in. The area we picked looked right to me and we decided to give it a go. Thankfully it worked out.
“We always enjoyed coming to the Seymour and district area and having the winery gave us another excuse to visit.”
While he managed his fledgling winery, Dr Stocker worked in numerous roles, including as chief executive of the CSIRO from 1990 to 1995. He later returned to CSIRO as chairman from 2007 to 2010.
He was a foundation member of the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council and has been a member of the Australian Research Council and the Australia China Council.
He was chairman of the Grape and Wine Research and Development Corporation from 1996 to 2003 and a director of Wine Victoria from 2013 to 2015.
But Dr Stocker said the role most people asked him about was working with former Prime Minister John Howard as Australia’s chief scientist.
“The role of chief scientist is interesting because it means you have the opportunity to influence the government’s attitude and action towards science,” John said.
“I was very lucky to serve under John Howard because he took an interest in science. I enjoyed our meetings and I always felt he took what I had to say seriously.
“It was an interesting time and at a stage where Australia was working out what it was good at.
“A country our size can’t do everything so has to focus resources on a few things. It was an honour to be tasked with helping make some of those decisions.”
After two decades running Brave Goose Vineyard, Dr Stocker handed the reins to his daughter and winemaker Nina Stocker and her husband John Day.
Together they work on the family's property managing the home vineyard, growing shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, viognier and gamay.
Dr Stocker is now retired and living on the Sunshine Coast, but he said he was pleased knowing his hobby had become a thriving business for Nina and John.
“Winemaking was a hobby for me, and I never considered Nina taking it on,” he said.
“However, she developed a keen interest and showed an amazing talent, completing the University of Adelaide Roseworthy postgraduate winemaking degree, which was great to see.
“It got to a point where I realised there was nothing more I could teach her, so I happily left her to it.
“She developed a talent way beyond my skill level and she’s made a real go of it, producing some stunning wines.”
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