Alpaca industry stalwarts Angela and Ian Preuss have reinvented their lives again, this time as master chocolatiers just off the Great Ocean Road in southern Victoria.
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When Angela and Ian Preuss packed up their Surilana herd of alpacas they didn’t head for the hills — they were already based in the Strathbogie Ranges in central Victoria.
Instead they left the hills and headed for (well, very close to) the coast.
And it’s one thing to pack up your alpacas and move on, it’s quite another thing altogether when the herd you are busy relocating just happens to be Surilana.
That’s not just one of the industry’s pioneering herds in Australia — Surilana is a benchmark brand.
A brand which has, for decades, been the level to which other, especially newer, breeders aspire. It was born out of the merger of Australia’s two largest suri herds — Pinjarra and Surilana.
Team Preuss had Pinjarra, one of the first studs in Australia to incorporate and build up the number of coloured suris (colours other than white) in the Australian herd.
Jill Short (who established Surilana) was one of the pioneers in the Australian suri industry, committed to increasing the quality of the Australian suri herd, with an emphasis on high-quality white suris.
In 2004, Jill, Ian and Angela were part of a five-week adventure around the high Altiplano of Peru to source alpacas.
“The Altiplano in Peru is where the majority of alpaca breeders are based, and many parts of the region are more than 4000m above sea level,” Angela said.
“As a result of the high altitude, the remoteness of the farms and the rough terrain, the sourcing of alpacas is more of an endurance event than a holiday.
“However, even though the search for alpacas in Peru took us out of our comfort zone, it was well worth the adventure when we came across the quality stock which we were searching for.”
But this isn’t as much a story about alpacas as it is about chocolate. With a few roasted nuts (with a dash of the caramelised, salted, roasted and chilli flavouring) thrown in.
And the chocolate alpaca.
Plan A for Team Preuss had seemed simple enough, looking to consolidate their enterprise before retiring.
They had the alpacas and accompanying alpaca products so after a bit of searching around they decided to buy Gorge Chocolates, at Cooriemungle (near Portland in south-west Victoria).
So now they had 1000 alpacas, an alpaca product business, an established chocolate retail outlet just minutes from the Great Ocean Rd and the Twelve Apostles and then added The Big Nut.
All just in time for the global pandemic to just about close down everything.
Time for Plan B.
“It actually worked out better than you might have thought,” Angela explained.
“It gave us a chance to reshape the business (even a few walls taken out has tripled the size of the shop) and we had marvellous support from the locals.
“Gorge Chocolates came with around 100 acres [40ha] and we have another nearby block of 200 acres [80ha] and we have combined both enterprises.
“The driveway up to Gorge Chocolates is a longish one and we have the alpaca in paddocks on both sides. People can get a bag of feed and go down to hand feed them, it seems everyone loves to see them and get up close and personal.
“The chocolate shop was established in 2004 and its modest beginning soon gave way to a business appreciated by locals and tourists in the area.
“It is also a member of the 12 Apostles Food Artisan Gourmet Trail (visit 12apostles.com.au) as well as being home Victoria’s largest alpaca stud and Australia’s largest suri stud so we rebranded the business Gorge Chocolates at the Chocolate Alpaca.”
And Surilana/Gorge Chocolates has also helped redefine the term family business. While based at Strathbogie they had employed Matt Delahey to help with the alpacas — he was 19 at the time.
When they told him in 2019 they were moving to the coast, they extended an offer for him, his wife Steph and their two children to come as well.
So the Delahey family also upped stumps and came along for the ride — and a third child has since arrived. And Matt’s still running the herd.
With kids in mind, that’s the latest project in the pipeline — an adventure playground at the chocolate shop — and maybe pizzas and then getting licensed to turn quick visits into comfortable, drawn-out lunches, with something for everyone.
“Now visitors can not only be treated to great chocolate, hot chocolate and coffee and see the large herd of alpacas, the shop also has a large array of wonderful alpaca products made from their super soft fleece, from clothing and giftware to bedding and carpets,” Angela said.
“The ongoing renovations are to create a large cafe area with some great treats available, including platters made from local produce.”
The chocolates aren’t home-grown, but they have two things going for them.
One, they are all handcrafted onsite by Angela and her team.
And two, they’re only made with Belgian chocolate — why use the rest when you can use the best?
“The Belgian connection is very important, and it sets us apart in the marketplace,” Angela said.
“And it’s not just a reputation thing, although that’s very powerful. Belgian chocolate is also a couverture chocolate, which means, unlike regular chocolate, it has been ground to a finer texture during the production process and contains a greater percentage of cocoa butter relative to the other ingredients.
“These two differences produce a superior flavour and texture that makes couverture the best chocolate for tempering.”
Tempering is a process that involves heating and cooling chocolate to specific temperatures that when done correctly gives the chocolate a beautiful lustre and satisfying snap, typical of chocolate bars and bon bons.
“We now have three tempering machines, which makes life easier,” Angela said.
“We have also expanded the base range of milk, dark and white chocolate, and recently introduced caramel chocolate as well as ruby chocolate, which comes in a pinkish colour and has a slightly fruity taste.”
The Belgian chocolate also makes the best hot chocolate — possibly anywhere, Angela believes — as it is made, literally with chocolate, not just flavoured powder.
It’s just another of those special touches which make the thriving business that more attractive to visitors and the rapidly spreading word-of-mouth support they are getting.
But this rural/regional multifaceted melange remains close to the hearts of Angela and Ian.
Surilana has been a dominant presence in the show ring — either their own animals or through their genetics — but hasn’t been there since the pandemic began.
However, it is still on the agenda, as is their ongoing commitment to the industry, with Angela recently judging the Australian National Show in Adelaide and at the end of September the alpaca fleeces at the Melbourne Royal Show.
She has judged all across the world and since the move to Cooriemungle, Ian has added juggling to his repertoire as he splits his time between Surilana, Gorge Chocolates, renovations, the couple’s fleece marketing business and the alpaca products sold online and through the Cooriemungle business.
“The Scotch Group, our fleece marketing arm, deals with fibre of all colours and micron even though suri has an emphasis on white,” Angela says.
“Since we made the move here, we have been surprised at the number of alpaca we have sold into the district.
“There weren’t that many down here but there has been a lot of interest and a lot of sales, and that has been one of the bonuses of our move from Strathbogie.”
As for the retirement plans, well Angela is pretty sure “this is my last new thing”.
“And while it has been a real highlight with this move, over the years we have been teachers, worked in retail, had a health food store, done all the things with the alpaca, and now we’re in tourism with a chocolate shop alongside our agricultural pursuits.
“I reckon we have done enough.”