In 1950, Max was packed off to Europe to study sherry and port making. (Fortifieds Penfolds’ stock-in-trade at the time.) During a side trip to Bordeaux, he met one of France’s most respected and highly qualified old-school winemakers, Monsieur Christian Cruse. Cruse took Max under his wing, showing him everything he wanted to know, and introducing him to magnificent old Bordeaux first growth wines. Max was astounded at their still-potent bouquets and rich, generous flavours. For Max, it was a Light Bulb Moment; for the rest of us, an utmost important encounter in Australian wine-making history.
Of course, without this visit to Bordeaux, we would today be without Grange. After this time in France, Max Schubert started experimenting with making a long-lived red wine that would match to that of the French. He created the first Grange in 1951 but had to keep it in secret in the Cellars of Magill away from the Penfolds Board of Directors, as it was a truly controversial wine for the time.