When Gary Cass spoiled a vat of wine by accidentally flooding it with oxygen ar a South West vineyard more than 20 years ago , he noticed a textile-like substance had developed inside the container.
But it wasn't until Mr Cass teamed up with Perth fashion designer Donna Franklin that the potential of the material he had inadvertently 'created' was realised, with the duo creating the world's first dress made from wine in 2007.
Since then he has established a company, Nanollose, and made further developments with the Acetobacter bacteria, which he found converts ethanol, whether in wine, beer, or even sparkling wine, into biodegradable and solid cellulose cotton-like fibre (microbial cellulose), creating the 'Sparkling Couture' dress in 2016.
Fashion creations made from microbial cellulose have toured the world with appearances in Ripley's Believe It Or Not, the Milan World Expo in 2015 and more recently at the 2016 Perth Fashion Festival.
