Jessica Ferguson

The Path

Ferguson trained at University of Tasmania and Wine & Spirit Education Trust (2022), laying down a foundation that would let her move fluently between technical precision and the more intuitive demands of wine. Her early career began firmly in science and quality control, where the work required discipline, consistency, and a sharp eye for detail: Industrial Chemist at Allison Laboratories (1994–2001), Analytical Chemist at Analytical Service Laboratories (ASL) (1999–2000), QC Chemist at GSK (2001–2003), and Senior Quality Assurance Officer (release for sale) at New Products Development (2004–2005). These were years spent inside the systems and standards that keep products moving safely into the world, and they gave her a professional rigour that would later translate naturally into winemaking. From there, the path bent toward Sirromet Wines, where her career began to gather shape and momentum. She stepped into the cellar as Laboratory Supervisor and Wine Chemist at Sirromet Wines (2005–2011), a role that placed her at the seam between analysis and craft. The progression continued with Assistant Winemaker and Site Chemist at Sirromet Wines (2011–2019), followed by Winemaker and Environmental Coordinator and WSET Certified Educator at Sirromet Wines (2019–2020). Each stage deepened her understanding of the vineyard and winery as connected systems—part science, part instinct, part daily attention. A brief interval as Liquor Sales Team Member at BWS (2020–2021) and Quality Assurance Lead at Mavlab (2021) sits between those long Sirromet years and the position she holds now, Chief Winemaker of Sirromet Wines (since 2021), bringing the journey full circle in a way that feels both earned and inevitable.

The Work Today

Ferguson has held the Chief Winemaker role at Sirromet Wines since 2021, and the tone of her approach is marked not by grandstanding but by practical honesty. She speaks like someone who knows the work is always larger than one person, and that improvement is a discipline rather than a declaration: “I felt like I didn’t know if I could do what they did, but I’ve been really lucky in that I’ve had really good mentors who have allowed me to experiment.” The sentence carries the texture of a career built through observation, trust, and the freedom to test ideas without losing sight of the responsibilities at hand. That openness remains central to the way she describes her own practice. “I am still learning and not expert in any way, but always talking to people and asking questions and spending as much time as I can in the vineyard.” It is a revealing credo—modest, alert, and grounded in presence. The vineyard, in this telling, is not a backdrop but a classroom; not a romantic abstraction, but the living source from which every decision must eventually answer.

In Their Words “I felt like I didn’t know if I could do what they did, but I’ve been really lucky in that I’ve had really good mentors who have allowed me to experiment.” “I am still learning and not expert in any way, but always talking to people and asking questions and spending as much time as I can in the vineyard.”

Acclaim

Jessica's honors include dux of the 35th Advanced Wine Assessment Course.