NZWinegrower Aug/Sep 2012

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CONTENTS

ISSUE 75

82

R E GULARS

FEATURES

4

Editorial

10

Vintage 2012

Tessa Nicholson

Just how much did the weather impact on the wine regions of New Zealand?

Nearly all saw a drop in yields and Philip Gregan says that will mean some changes in the year ahead.

5

From the CEO

Philip Gregan

8

In Brief

News from around the country

20 Sauvignon Blanc Research

40 Sommeliers Corner

Cameron Douglas MS

44 Money Matters

Marcus Phillips from NZForex

112 Bob’s Blog

35

Pinot Noir 2013

Hundreds of international guests are expected to descend on Wellington for Pinot Noir 2013. Chair of the organising committee, Alastair Maling MW explains how this event will be very difrerent to the others that have preceded it.

75

The Last 15 Years

In 1997 Jo Burzynska was working in London. Now she is an acclaimed wine writer and judge, based here in New Zealand. She takes a close look at how, in 15 years, the New Zealand wine industry has undergone massive changes.

Bob Campbell MW

117

Calendar

Wine events happening in New Zealand

119

Research Supplement

The latest science and research projects funded by NZ Winegrowers FRONT COVER PHOTO: Amisfield Wine Company, Central Otago.

Supplied by New Zealand Winegrowers

Rob Keyzers, based at Victoria University in Wellington, is currently attempting to discover just what it is that makes Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc tick. To do so, he is using a rather controversial method.

48

10

E D I TO R Tessa Nicholson tessa.nicholson@me.com

FROM THE EDITOR TESSA NICHOLSON

CO R R E S P O N D E NTS Auckland: Joelle Thomson jthomson@xtra.co.nz Wairarapa: Barbara Gillham barbarag@value.net.nz Gisborne: Christine Boyce christineboyce@gmail.com Hawkes Bay: Mary Shanahan maryshanahan173@gmail.com Nelson: Neil Hodson neil@hodgson.net.nz Canterbury: Jo Burzynska joburzynska@talk21.com Central Otago: Max Marriott max@maxmarriott.com

TWELVE MONTHS IS A VERY LONG TIME

A DV E R T I S I N G Ros Sellers nzwinegrower@xtra.co.nz Ph: 07 827 8648 Fax: 07 827 8631 Mobile: 021 190 3877 www.nzwinegrower.co.nz

C I R C U L AT I O N & SUBSCRIPTIONS Lorraine Rudelj lorraine@nzwine.com Ph: 09 303 3527 Fax: 09 302 2969 New Zealand Winegrowers PO Box 90 276, Auckland Mail Centre, New Zealand

PUBLISHING & P R E - P R E SS Rural News Group PO Box 3855, Auckland 1140 Ph: 09 307 0399 Location: Top Floor, 29 Northcroft Street, Takapuna, Auckland 0622 Publisher: Brian Hight Managing Editor: Adam Fricker Production: Dave Ferguson, Rebecca Williams

Published by Rural News Group Ltd under authority of New Zealand Winegrowers (jointly representing Wine Institute of New Zealand Inc and New Zealand Grape Growers Council Inc). Unless directly attributed, opinions expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of Rural News Group and/ or its directors or management, New Zealand Winegrowers or its constituent organisations.

Published every second month.

One free copy is mailed to every member of the Institute, the Council, the New Zealand Society of Viticulture & Oenology and the New Zealand Vine Improvement Group, and to such other persons or organisations as directed by the owners, with provision for additional copies and other recipients to be on a subscription basis.

ISSN 1174-5223

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

I

n terms of the New Zealand wine industry, it appears a year is a very long time. Twelve months ago, the industry was lamenting the issue of over supply, bulk wine exports, and a lack of profitability.

While the latter of these is still a major issue today, the other two have been somewhat nullified by the drop in yields in the 2012 vintage. Now wineries will be facing concerns over whether they have enough wine to meet market demand, rather than worrying about how they are going to clear their tanks of surplus stock.

At the NZW Vintage Review meetings held around the country, CEO Philip Gregan spoke about the impact the lower than average vintage would have on the industry overall. The bad news is, if sales continue over the next 12 months, the way they did in the last 12 months, we would be short by 45 million litres. Who would have predicted that at vintage last year?

Of course there are positives to this scenario. If Mother Nature hadn’t conspired to thwart the grower’s attempts to reach maximum yields, what would that extra 45 million litres have been used for? Bulk wine? If so, then the shortfall is a positive.

Will the drop mean New Zealand is entering a phase where the demand for our wines outstrips supply? Then that also is a positive. But only if the prices paid rise in accordance.

Unfortunately that may be a harder task to achieve, than the increased sales attained in the 12 months to the end of June 2012.

The GFC isn’t over. One look at the situation in Europe is enough to verify that.

People the world over are still hurting financially and everyone knows that wine is a discretionary spend. The prices paid for our wine in the past few years have fallen from the golden highs pre 2008.

Admittedly they are starting to show signs of rising in the UK, but elsewhere there are very few markets where the price paid currently is above the price paid four years ago.

So the task in front of the industry now, is to build the value component, on the back of a drop in volume.

There is one factor that will help that scenario – the quality of the 2012 vintage.

Yields may have been down, but the near perfect autumn conditions meant those lower crops were able to ripen at their leisure.

The ensuing wines have got winemakers very excited.

The next 12 months will be all important ones, as New Zealand works to reestablish its reputation as a high quality producer of premium wines, rather than a high quality producer with surplus, satisfying own brand labels.

On top of that, the industry has to ensure it doesn’t over correct itself next year, with a vintage that exceeds all records.

2012 may have been the lowest in a few years, but it has to be remembered, it was still the fourth largest vintage in New Zealand’s history. Over correct too much and the 2008 scenario could be back to plague us. ■

FROM THE CEO PHILIP GREGAN

READY, SET... TRADE A brief review of NZ Winegrowers activities and trade matters at close of 2011/12 shows it was a very busy year with involvement in matters such as The EU rules on allergen labelling and the EU Organic Wine Standard

W

ith New Zealand Wine exports now valued at just under $1.2 billion and representing around 75% of industry sales, international trade is now the life blood of our wine industry.

There are many factors driving intentional success. Wine quality and brand recognition/ strength come to mind quickly.

One of less obvious determinants though is the market access conditions which govern the entry of our wines into global markets and how these compare with the access conditions for other countries. In a comparative sense, if we gain competitive advantage in those market access conditions, New Zealand wine will have an advantage in the market place. Fail to secure competitive access and New Zealand wineries will find their ability to compete successfully is severely curtailed.

New Zealand Winegrowers recognizes the opportunities and threats that arise in terms of access to existing and potential markets. As a result we devote considerable time, effort and intellectual horsepower to securing positive and practi-

cal outcomes for New Zealand producers.

In that context we work very closely with various government agencies, notably Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ministry of Primary Industry, New Zealand Customs Service, Ministry of Economic Development and others. At various times we also work very closely with sister organisations in other wine producing countries. Our goals in all our market access initiatives are; in the first instance, to protect the access that New Zealand wine producers already have in markets, and second to support growth in markets by securing improved access.

A brief review of NZ Winegrowers activities and trade matters at close of 2011/12 shows it was a very busy year with involvement in matters such as: The EU rules on allergen labelling and the EU Organic Wine Standard.

China customs procedures The US TTB Notice 122 on vintage date requirements.

The Russia/Kazakhstan/Belarus Free Trade Agreement and the technical regulations “On the Safety of Wine”.

The Brazil safe guard investigation.

The EU’s application to register “Zeeland” as a Dutch GI for wine in Australia.

Attendance at the APEC Wine Regulators Forum in San Francisco and at various World Wine Trade Group, OIV and FIVS meetings.

The next 12 months will be no less busy. NZW will continue to seek a positive outcome for wine within the framework of the ongoing Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations which have now been widened to include Canada, which alone is a market worth $70 million of New Zealand wine exports each year. TPP is very important to the future of New Zealand wine as over 60% of wine exports by value go to TPP negotiating countries.

From a trade perspective highlights of the next year will include two important meetings to be held in Auckland in November.

The first meeting is of the APEC Wine Regulators Forum which is a follow up to a meeting held in September 2011. NZW is working closely with the

government on the Forum and has secured funding from both APEC and the government to assist with its organisation. The Forum will bring wine regulators from all the key Asia Pacific economies to New Zealand. It is our opportunity to influence how these economies are regulating the access into and sale of wine in their markets. Key themes at the meeting are managing wine as a low risk product and certification procedures.

The second meeting in Auckland will be of the World Wine Trade Group which New Zealand joined as a foundation member in 1998. The focus of the Auckland meeting will be the completion of Phase Two of the WWTG Labelling Agreement which will provide for improved requirements around multi varietal and multi regional labelling.

If all goes according to plan this Agreement will improve access to WWTG markets such as Canada and the United States.

If there are any questions about New Zealand Winegrowers involvement in international trade issues please contact John Barker, General Manager Advocacy and Trade. ■

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 5

REGIONAL VIEWPOINT

A VOTE OF THANKS MARGARET HANSON, CHAIRPERSON, WINES FROM MARTINBOROUGH

M

y husband and I got talked into planting a small vineyard 13 years ago. Prior to that, we had had no contact with the wine industry, apart from enjoying drinking it. After a career in the public service and consulting, the experience has been an eye opener for us. One of the greatest surprises has been how generous and cooperative the local wine community has been, far more than any other business sector I have been involved with.

I am going to talk about Martinborough – that is the region I know. My assumption, and my hope, is that our experience is replicated in other areas of New Zealand.

For most of the first 11 years, we were contract growers for Martinborough Vineyard (at least for the seasons that we managed to produce fruit).

They were fantastic to us. They guided and gently nudged us as we took our stumbling steps forward. They answered our questions – often repeatedly. They commiserated on our setbacks and helped us celebrate our successes. They shared equipment, experience and advice. They did this for a vineyard that was never

6

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

going to grow enough to make a significant difference to their overall production. It came from a passion for making good wine that they were prepared to share with others.

They weren’t the only ones that helped us. Other local vineyard owners were also generous in their support and encouragement. Whether it was walking us through what they were doing, being available at the end of a phone or sharing stories at the

stupid. They never even showed impatience.

In 2010, we decided that the time had come to make our own wine. Again we were supported by others. Information, advice and encouragement were generously shared. We are now riding on the coat tails of the pioneers

“Wine makers taught us about wine, viticulturists taught us how to grow grapes and vineyard staff taught us the practical skills and smart ways of carrying out the endless tasks involved in running a vineyard.” end of month drinks that people in the Martinborough wine industry organise. Wine makers taught us about wine, viticulturists taught us how to grow grapes and vineyard staff taught us the practical skills and smart ways of carrying out the endless tasks involved in running a vineyard.

Although they may have smiled at our naivety when we turned away, they never made us feel

of our area who have put in many years of hard work to learn how to grow great wines in this terroir, establish the brand of Martinborough and promote it to the rest of New Zealand and the world. We are benefitting hugely from being able to associate with this.

Last year I was encouraged to get involved with Wines from Martinborough – a marketing

organisation funded by members. Again I have been struck with how willing our members are to work together and how much can be achieved when they do.

Not only does it allow us to tap into each other’s skills but to share the workload, the costs and the contacts. The enthusiasm is infectious. What can feel overwhelming on your own, becomes fun. What would be impossible standing alone, becomes achievable when done as a combined effort. I know that there is a lot of talk about the New Zealand wine industry needing to work together. I agree. Doing this locally is an important part of this. It is where most people are able to step forward and get involved. It is easy to get buried in the workload and concerns of your own business. What I have learnt since I planted my first grapes, is what a difference it makes when you look beyond your own vineyard - to others, but also for yourself. ■

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MAR0221 WineGrower August Issue.indd 1

21/05/12 9:16 AM

IN BRIEF

National Farewell David Cox

Gisborne

David Cox, Director – Europe for New Zealand Winegrowers has left the organisation to pursue other interests and projects.

Chris Yorke, Global Marketing Director, New Zealand Winegrowers says; “We will be recruiting for a successor to drive our exciting projects in Europe. In Mainland Europe New Zealand Winegrowers is working in partnership with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise to launch and build the New Zealand Wine brand in Germany, Netherlands and Sweden. We will be looking for an experienced, credible wine marketer who wants to be part of the next stage of New Zealand wine’s growth in Europe.”

More Join Agrecovery Rural Recycling Two more companies have joined the Agrecovery Recycling programme, bringing the number of brand owners up to 56. Victorian Chemical Company and Roots, Shoots and Fruits are the latest companies to get on board with the recycling programme, which accepts triple rinsed plastic containers from 1 – 60 litres, at 70 collection sites around the country.

Jame’s Millton Honoured

Auckland

Congrats to James Millton who was honoured in the recent Queen’s Birthday Honours. Millton, who is renowned as being at the forefront of organic winegrowing was named a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for his services to the wine industry. Humbled by the honour, he said it was, “ A very good recognition for what our region can contribute to the greater requirements of the wine industry.”

New Appointment

Wairarapa

Dr Bruno Fedrizzi, from Italy, has been appointed as a member of the Auckland University’s School of Chemical Sciences. Having conducted cutting edge research into wine aroma, Bruno will play a major role in the current research being conducted. He has been focusing on several classes of aroma compounds even though the strongest emphasis was on sulphur compounds. “Lately I have spent most of my time on a class of sulphur-containing compounds which are very appreciated here in New Zealand, as they are considered to be the ones imparting the most distinctive traits of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc – the varietal thiols 3MH, 3MHA and 4MMP.”

Evening of Organics James Millton and fellow biodynamic winemaker, Nick Mills of Rippon Vineyard in Wanaka, are hosting an evening to celebrate organics on Thursday 9 August at the NZ School of Food & Wine in Auckland.

School director Celia Hay relocated from Christchurch after the 22 February earthquake last year, which devastated her school there. The new facility is on Customs Street West at the Viaduct, Auckland. To book for this dinner, email: briana@foodandwine.co.nz

Syrah Experience Waiheke Island’s Obsidian’s winemaker Michael Wood leads a Syrah tasting on Sunday 5 August, which will include a flight of 15 Syrahs from all over the world as well as two from Obsidian Vineyard; both 2012 vintage. Entry is by ticket only; $65 per person. The venue is at 303 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland; the tasting kicks off at 3.30pm to 5pm. No bookings on the day. Book in advance: email: Janet@obsidian. co.nz , phone Janet 027 240 1564 or Angela, (09) 631 1390

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

New Year’s Honour for Clive Paton Another member of the New Zealand wine industry to be honoured in the recent Queen’s Birthday Honours, was Clive Paton. As a pioneer of the Martinborough wine industry, Paton, co-owner of Ata Rangi is also a renowned conservationist. His services to both fields were recognised with him being made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Hawkes Bay New Wine Phone App A new wine app for phones and androids was recently promoted at a Hot Red Hawkes Bay expo held in Auckland.

A pocket food and wine guide, the wine application http://wineapps.co.nz/ was developed by Auckland-based winemaker Graeme Bott.

Hawkes Bay is the second wine region after Waiheke Island to be available to users, and wineries in Martinborough and Central Otago have been added since.

Hawkes Bay Winegrowers is right behind

Bott’s entrepreneurial venture.

As well as offering factual content, Wine Apps can be used by wineries wanting to offer discounts, vouchers and advertise special promotions.

Smaller Bottles Mission Estate has launched New Zealand’s first 500ml bottles of wine adding smaller bottles of Sauvignon Blanc and Syrah to its product range.

Mission chief executive Peter Holley and winemaker Paul Mooney said the devel-

opment was in response to research that showed New Zealand’s population was aging, increasingly urban and living in smaller family units.

The smaller-sized Australian-made bottles were ideal for those who enjoyed quality wine with their meal at home and didn’t want any wastage, Holley said.

They were also well suited to summer picnics.

“We think this new bottle size has the potential to be a real opportunity for New Zealand wine.”

Marlborough Wellington Green Ribbon Award for Yealands New Role for MW Master of Wine Jane Skilton has been appointed wine director of Le Cordon Bleu New Zealand in Wellington.

British born, Auckland-based, Skilton will take up the teaching post in September this year.

With Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) courses, including levels one, two and three as well as the level four diploma course.

“The courses, which will be taught at Le Cordon Bleu’s new building in central Wellington, are targeted at wine enthusiasts and industry professionals wanting to further develop their wine knowledge,” says institute director Cath Hopkin.

At the Ministry for the Environments 2012 Green Ribbon Awards, Yealands Estate was acknowledged as the industry leader in sustainability, winning the Green Economy section.

The awards recognise the outstanding contributions of individuals, organisations, businesses and communities to protecting and enhancing New Zealand’s environment.

Wine for Cancer Johanneshof Cellars winemaker Edel Everling has helped develop a special bubbles that will help to raise funds for the Marlborough Cancer Society. Edel who herself has survived cancer, said the special wine was a way of helping the local organisation raise much needed funds.

Her and co-owner Warwick Foley decided to create a pink bubbly from Pinot Noir grapes, under the name of New Dawn. The wine will be officially released later this year. ■

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 9

VINTAGE REVIEW

VINTAGE 2012 TESSA NICHOLSON

V

intage 2012 was certainly a lot lighter than many people would have hoped for, yet it was still the fourth largest in New Zealand’s history.

A total of 269,000 tonnes of fruit was harvested, which is 18 per cent down on last year. The only regions to see an increase over 2011, albeit quite minor increases, were Central Otago, Canterbury, Wairarapa and Gisborne. The rest were down, with Marlborough being the hardest hit with a decrease of 23 per cent, or 56,000

tonnes. The majority of that was Sauvignon Blanc, although poor conditions over flowering severely affected some Pinot Noir and Chardonnay blocks as well.

It was a similar story right across the country, with decreases in every major variety – with Sauvignon Blanc down 19 per cent, Pinot Noir down 25 per cent and Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Riesling also down. Despite the big drop in Sauvignon Blanc, it is still by far the most dominant variety emerging out of New Zealand, making up just under 70 per cent

SELECTIV’ PROCESS WINERY L

REGION Northland Auckland Waikato Gisborne Hawkes Bay Wairarapa Marlborough Nelson Waipara Canterbury Central Otago TOTAL Tonnes

2011 111 1,464 51 14,450 35,533 3,598 244,893 7,854 9,231 254 7,104 324,591

2012 92 1,220 7 15,590 32,793 4,271 188,649 6,129 6,697 382 8,115 263,944

Change -18 -244 -44 1,141 -2,740 673 -56,244 -1,725 -2,534 128 1,010 -60,647

% Change -17% -17% -86% 8% -8% 19% -23% -22% -27% 50% 14% -19%

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of the country’s total production.

Close to 72 percent of the vintage came from Marlborough, with Hawkes Bay contributing 11 per cent of the total yield, Gisborne 4 per cent and the rest of the wine regions combined making up 10 per cent.

Does This Solve the Over Supply Issue?

That is the big question, which is not surprising given how much over supply has been on the lips of industry and media for the past four years.

New Zealand Winegrowers CEO Philip Gregan said this year’s lower than expected vintage follows on from 12 months of strong volume sales. Admittedly, many of those have been made at unprofitable levels, which is something

the low 2012 vintage will hopefully alleviate.

“Sales will have to decline and we expect our largest declines will be in our most established markets .That will be New Zealand, UK and Australia. That’s where most

of the cheaper wine that has been available over the last few years has sold and it’s (this area of sales) where we expect volume declines to be,” he said.

To the year ending June, New Zealand wine sales equated to 240

million litres, or the equivalent of 330,000 tonnes of fruit. If we were to experience similar sales in the next 12-month period, New Zealand would not be able to meet the orders.

We would be close to 45 million

WE HAVE MATCHED A FINE SELECTION OF LEGAL EXPERTS TO COMPLEMENT YOUR BUSINESS. RESOURCE MANAGEMENT David McGregor, Marija Batistich PUBLIC LAW Simon Watt HEALTH & SAFETY Tim Clarke FOOD STANDARDS Tania Goatley CORPORATE STRUCTURE Gavin Macdonald To access the full breadth of our team, please contact David McGregor in the first instance on 09 916 8920 or email david.mcgregor@bellgully.com W W W. B E L L G U L LY. C O M

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 11

litres short, Gregan said. There will be some draw down in stocks to help with that shortfall, but he said there was very little Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc left to draw down, given the strength of sales in the past 12 months.

So What Does That Mean?

It means some wineries will have an issue this coming year, maintaining their place in the market and managing their shelf presence, built up over the past three years.

It means there will not be the volume to feed the bulk market that there has been in the past – (something most people will be happy about).

And it means the only room for growth in the immediate future is in terms of value, rather than volume.

“It’s unlikely from where I am standing that I can see any sustained growth in our volume sales in the next five or six years. It’s all going to be about value growth.”

12

Why Won’t There be Volume Growth in the Near Future?

Given there has been near to no new vineyard development since 2008, the producing hectares we have at the moment are unlikely to increase for some time yet.

Gregan said based on nursery capacity and rootstock availability, there is unlikely to be any substantial plantings this or next year.

“So 2014 is the first year that we will start to see much increase in planted area, leading to an increase in producing area in 2017/18.

Any production increase over the next four to six years is yield dependent. That will depend on the weather and the management techniques vineyard owners employ.”

Last year’s vintage, the largest ever at 328,000 tonnes, shows the ability for larger than this year’s crops. (There was also a lot of fruit that went unharvested, so the total could have been much higher.)

Gregan said with perfect condi-

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

tions, New Zealand had the ability to harvest up to 350,000 tonnes, but Mother Nature was unlikely to allow to happen year in, year out.

And quality wise, would anyone want to produce yields that high?

But given the sales of the past 12 months – there is going to need to be a drop off somewhere – which as pointed out earlier, Gregan expects will be in the unprofitable bulk wine market.

“We have had 240 million litres of sales in the past year and as we know, some of that has not been profitable. But 240 million litres is the equivalent of about 330,000 tonnes – a little bit more.”

And there has only been one year in New Zealand’s history that we have got close to that total – 2011.

What about the Growers and Wineries?

It has been a tough ride for a few years now for all involved in the wine industry. Gregan said the low yields this year, won’t help matters.

“Growers are going to be hit by low yields and relatively low grape prices. It’s going to be a real struggle for some.

“And clearly the wineries have had lower intakes and their fixed prices will be up.”

The wineries also face the fluctuating New Zealand dollar, which is stripping them of a large percentage of their profit margin, when exporting to the UK or US. When asked if he expected grape prices to rise in the future, Gregan said it was economics one O one, that when supply dropped, prices rose.

He also pointed out that while some growers had to accept Sauvignon Blanc prices that were well below $1000 a tonne last year, he had not heard of anyone being in that situation this year. As a consequence he felt the average price being paid this year would be higher than last.

(Grape prices were not available at the time of writing.

They are due out later this month.)

■

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BIODYNAMIC WORKSHOP

BIODYNAMIC MECCA IN CENTRAL OTAGO MAX MARRIOTT

A

near full moon, descending behind the hills of Bannockburn as the sun rose, presented a most auspicious backdrop for the first morning of the National Biodynamic Conference held in Central Otago in early June. Whilst there was a bias towards winegrowing – the first day of the conference

a Biodynamic Wine and Vine Day – other disciplines and industries were represented, including bees, animal husbandry, farming/gardening, water and international marketing.

For the uninitiated, biodynamics is often (rightly or wrongly) referred to as organics on steroids, or the thinking man’s

organics. Based on the lectures of an Austrian anthroposophist called Rudolf Steiner, the teachings are aimed at providing greater thought, awareness and care for the land that we are farming.

The workshops began at Felton Road. The first station looked at livestock, particularly the use of goats as a resource for invasive

weed control outside of the vineyard. There were roughly twenty mixed aged does on display and half a dozen kids. Two highland steers were in the pen next door and the manure from these cattle is used in the making of the Cow Pat Pit (CPP) and 500 preparations. The preparations used in biodynamics were actually given

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Any wines using milk or egg in processing that are to be exported to the EU are required to have less than 0.25ppm casein or albumin residues.

To find out more about our allergen test, call 03 377 7176 or visit our website, www.hill-laboratories.com/winelab

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

codenames during the Second World War, as to not arouse suspicion of their outlawed use, which is why they are now referred to by the Preparation 500, 501, -508 nomenclature. The preparations are a unique mix of teas and tonics used across the vineyard and in compost to boost, stimulate and foster the microbial life and energy of the property.

Station number two was all about compost. Aside from the mix of grape marc, cow manure and hay, Felton Road incorporate prunings, used filter pads, cardboard and leaf litter. The compost heap can become too hot, especially if the grape marc is already quite warm before it’s mixed in, so wet hay is applied on top as necessary. The compost is broadcast inter-row using a spreader.

The third station covered machinery and the different tractors and implements used in the vineyard.

Colin Ross (Seresin) and James Millton (Millton) both mentioned the importance of knowing your machinery; its limitations, the correct use, and also actively thinking about reducing the number of required passes. If you can multitask and do two or three jobs at once, you’re reducing compaction, energy, fuel and time.

The final session delved into the preparations themselves, described in Steiner’s 1924 lec-

tures as a homeopathic approach to soil health. Yellow cows never open doors very easily = Yarrow, Chamomile, Nettle, Oak, Dandelion, Valerian and Equisetum – a great way of remembering the main ingredients of Preparations

502-508. It was more of an open forum and discussion, covering everything from the size of cow horns and clay plugging, to valerian and dandelion as warming agents. There was also an opportunity to touch, feel and smell the

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 15

Rudi Bauer

different preparations and look at the difference between a 6wk old CPP and a one year old CPP. The second half of the day was an international biodynamic masterclass held at Northburn Station that looked at a flight of Chardonnay and a flight of Pinot Noir. Here, delegates heard from some of New Zealand’s most highly regarded

16

and influential winemakers, who just happen to be staunch advocates of biodynamics. Tasting panels consisted of James Millton, Rudi Bauer (Quartz Reef ), Blair Walter (Felton Road), Nick Mills (Rippon), Mike Weersing (Pyramid Valley), Claire Mulholland (Burn Cottage), Nicholas Brown (Black Estate), Sam Weaver

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

(Churton) and special international guest Vanya Cullen of Cullen Wines from Margaret River.

Vanya presented an opening address that spoke about her reasons for switching to biodynamics and the changes that she’d seen.

“We feel we now have a better expression of fruit, lower alcohol wines, no need for additions and

a consistency in the vineyard. In 1998, I thought the vineyard was dying, and I can see now it has a very bright future of production and health. That’s the most satisfying and important part of it for me; the custodianship of the land and leaving it better than we found it.”

The winemakers all shared some wonderful, analogous approaches to their biodynamic craft. Mike Weersing’s was particularly poignant, likening biodynamic wine to the spheres of wooden blocks one would make as a child; when pulled apart, the individual parts are identical, as they would be when assembled.

But when combined to form the sphere, despite being the exact same constituents, they now possess a spatial harmony. There was also discussion about what it meant to be a biodynamic practitioner. Nigel Greening (Felton Road) regards it as “a process undertaken by curious people who are trying to observe and see what is happening; trying to make sense of something that we can’t

understand” and Rudi Bauer said “it’s a deep desire for a sense of belonging”.

Colin Ross had a neat way of wrapping it all up, “Biodynamics is just an opportunity for farmers to strengthen and deepen their relationship with their farms. John Ridout would say ‘don’t let the perfects become the enemy of the good’ and if Peter Proctor was here, he’d say ‘just do it’. And they’re really similar things. If it’s not quite right or it doesn’t quite fit, you’ll actually wriggle into it and grow with it as opposed to farming conventionally where there’s only one way or this is the way.”

A third of the country’s Demeter certified vineyards are located in Central Otago – with several

Nick Mills

others practicing or in conversion – and here in this spectacular,

unspoiled landscape, biodynamics has certainly found a welcome

home. ■ max@maxmarriott.com

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 17

DVD REVIEW

NZW’S PRUNING DVD TESSA NICHOLSON

I

t has been more than a year in creation, but the first NZW Best Practice DVD is now available to members.

Entitled Sharpen Up, the DVD is the one stop for all pruning advice and information. It is accepted that pruning is one of the most important jobs undertaken in the vineyard. Yet many pruners come to the job with little or no experience.

The ability to transfer information and knowledge on to the wider community has always been

a tricky issue for sector leaders. It becomes even more difficult when the information you are attempting to get across, is going to people who are new to the industry.

Hence the production of Sharpen Up, which has been spearheaded by James Jones of Wine Marlborough.

“Pruning is the most costly job a grower will undertake in a year, setting up the vines for the next vintage. The pruner has to know how to get the bud numbers right, what canes are best left and what

ones should be removed. We need to know that those doing the work are doing it right.”

Filming began last year, and was completed earlier this year.

Aimed at being easy to navigate, it is broken down into 11 chapters; • Health and safety • Vineyard terms • Timming and wrapping • Spur pruning • Cane pruning • Sylvos pruning • Pruning Young Vines • New Cordons • Hand stripping • Preparing for Langlois stripping • Preparing for Klima mechanised pruning The chapters will allow the viewer to concentrate on the area that applies to them and Jones says it will also allow them to watch and learn at their leisure – prior to arriving in the vineyard.

“Currently when we recruit workers in the Islands, we tend

to go over with some photos and secateurs trying to explain to the people what they have to do. A DVD will explain it much better.

And it will be able to be used to up skill staff as well, as they are often shown just once or twice how to prune a vine. At least with a DVD they can go back time and again to check they are working correctly.”

An array of viticultural specialists from Marlborough have been involved in the filming, each offering their own specialised skills. They include Mark Allen, Jeremy Hyland, Stephen Bradley, Nigel Sowman, Tracy Taylor, Peter Rogge and Stephen Dempster.

The DVD can be viewed at www.nzwine.com/media-centre/ video/sharpen-up-a-user-guideto-perfect-pruning.

Copies will be available to buy from regional offices and at the upcoming Romeo Bragato conference. ■ tessa.nicholson@me.com

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It is an exciting project, undertaking what is one of the largest investments into the wine industry in recent times.

Both Wine Bottlers Marlborough and Wine & Beverage Systems share many of the same clients, from the supply of grape processing machinery, filtration equipment to complete bottling plant operations. There is a direct benefit to both company’s clients and a firm knowledge base of all facets, from harvest to finished wine.

The latest plant up-grade supplied to Wine Bottlers Marlborough by Wine & Beverage Systems has included:

• Cames bottle washer dryer • Cavagnino & Gatti Labeller c/w Optical Orientation • Carbonation line componentry This has taken Wine Bottlers Marlborough from 1 fixed bottling line to 3 lines. All of which are fully integrated to allow for dynamic solutions, risk management and cross over of plant equipment, this gives the client the benefit of knowing the best plant equipment is being utilised for the specifics of the wine to be bottled.

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RESEARCH NEWS

SAUVIGNON BLANC RESEARCH JOELLE THOMPSON

A

rmed with a PhD in chemistry, a passion for wine and a desire to marry the two together, researcher Rob Keyzers has a fridge full of pungent aromas in his laboratory at Victoria University in Wellington.

The aromas are the results of

20

tests he’s conducting into what makes Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc tick. There are two theories. The first suggests the taste of Sauvignon Blanc originates within the grape berry. The second theory posits that the flavour of Sauvignon Blanc comes about as a result of fermentation; from the interac-

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

tion between yeast and grape.

The Victoria University researcher is working on making Sauvignon Blanc taste and smell better to create designer wines for overseas markets. Sauvignon Blanc is New Zealand’s most successful wine; worth over $1 billion of exports in 2010.

Rob Keyzers

The wine gets its distinctive smell from both volatile, sulphurcontaining molecules called thiols, and methoxypyrazines with capsicum aromas. At low levels, these molecules give the wine its characteristic aromas; at high levels they can make the wine smell akin to what some have likened to ‘cat’s urine.’

While thiols are crucial to the aroma and flavour of Sauvignon Blanc, it is not fully understood how they are created — free thiols are present in wine but not in grapes. Understanding how thiols are synthesised, and at what stage of the winemaking process, is now a major area of wine research in New Zealand. Keyzers’ aim is to create a sampling device which will operate with a gas chromotagraph (a ‘GC’) anywhere in the

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“Once you delve into the flavour and aroma of wine you rapidly find there are two kinds of people; those who say that all the flavours in the grapes are fundamentally important to a good bottle of wine and that there’s intrinsic value in the juice; others who say all flavours in wine are yeast-derived.” world; enabling similar research work on other grapes in other winemaking zones.

His current analysis began at Victoria University in the summer of 2010 and has since developed into a BSc Honours project last year.

He wants to dispel the myths about what gives wine its flavour by uncovering exactly where tastes

do derive in grapes.

The trouble is that current methods to study thiols use a particularly controversial method to try; organo-mercury columns.

Consequently. he is trying to find alternatives to their use. Toxic to humans and time consuming to run, organo-mercury columns are usually considered “a big no-no due to the detrimental effects of

their toxicity,” Keyzers says.

“The problem is that the thiols are present in less than a billionth of a gram per litre of wine and, while these are tiny quantities, we can detect them at that level, so to be able to analyse how much is in there you need to be able to use something to give a concentration effect.

“You can’t analyse for a stored form of it without knowing you’ve released it. You need to have an accurate, reliable safe method for analysis of the end product and then you can work your way back to find how it’s produced and stored in the grape berry,” he says, citing the two different theories relating to how thiols come to be found in grapes or wine in the first place.

“Once you delve into the

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flavour and aroma of wine you rapidly find there are two kinds of people; those who say that all the flavours in the grapes are fundamentally important to a good bottle of wine and that there’s intrinsic value in the juice; others who say all flavours in wine are yeast-derived.”

His focus is slanted towards the grapes. This is a result from his work with the CSIRO in Australia, where the main target was Cabernet Sauvignon; the prodigy of Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc, as it turns out, so understanding the methoxypyrazines was important as these chemical compounds result in flavours (asparagus, peas and capsicum), which are desirable in Sauvignon Blanc though not in Cabernet Sauvignon.

When he returned home to New Zealand in 2009, Keyzers decided to focus his research at Victoria University on the role of thiols; the chemical compounds which relate to the supposed ‘cat’s pee’and green flavours, many of which make Sauvignon Blanc so distinctive.

“Initially we found an incredibly bad reproduceability from sample to sample; the numbers jumped all over the show, so what we figured out was a

memory effect from one analysis to the next, to enable the device to remember the previous thing that ran on it. We sometimes got elevated levels, other times not, so we’re not sure what’s causing that.

I’ve got a Masters student who started this year to try and enable us to get past it and enable our device to be reproducable 100% of the time.

“We know it works but we just haven’t got it to work properly – yet,” Keyzers says.

“We’re not disheartened. We were a little bit irritated

but we’ll keep plugging away because once we crack it, I imagine it will be quite straightforward.

That’s science for you. It’s in some ways part of the joy of the work we do – problem solving.”

To date there has been internal funding from the university, which is limited. The plan is to licence the technique to companies to get some broader funding.

“We need something to show them when we go to them but of course they may not want a piece of the action. It’s an unknown quantity at this point whether it’s going to make any money or not.

“Hopefully it will become an instrument which can be used in wineries too, not only in research institutions.” ■ jthomson@xtra.co.nz

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REGIONS HAWKES BAY

ROLLING A BAD LEAF JOELLE THOMSON

F

or every infected Chardonnay vine Steve Smith and Terry Peabody rip out, they lose $50 and since they have now removed almost eight hectares of a total of 80, it’s a big hit to the bank balance. But that’s not the only problem caused by the leaf roll virus on their Char-

donnay vines. It’s made worse by the presence of mealy bug, which is thought to have been spreading the virus from Peabody and Smith’s Craggy Range Chardonnay vines grown on the Gimblett Gravels, onto their red grapes.

“We started to see an increase of mealy bug around our Chardon-

nay vines in 2009 and we believe it was being spread mostly downwind onto the red grapes, which is why we now have to remove these vines. It’s been on the Chardonnay at a very low level for the past 10 years but in the early days it wasn’t affecting the quality of our Chardonnay (Les Beaux Cailloux – ‘the

beautiful stones’) at all; the wines were becoming better each year,” Master of Wine Steve Smith says.

The big trouble began when the virus started infecting the red grapes on the vineyard.

“We cannot put them at risk, so that’s why we’re pulling out the Chardonnay, which has been

Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Vineyard.

26

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

a heart-wrenching decision for me but a hugely financial one for Terry Peabody because it’s a really big cost,” Smith says.

The spread of the virus is not the only thing that’s changed in the past 10 years; the technological ability to identify leaf roll virus has grown too. Known as Eliza technology, it has become more accurate and cheaper to identify exactly where leaf roll virus is affecting grapevines today.

The heart breaking aspect of this vine pull for Smith is that it means starting all over again with new plantings of Mendoza Chardonnay.

The latest Craggy Range Les Beaux Chardonnay 2010 is now made from grapes grown on 11 year old vines and Smith says he saw a big qualitative difference when the

vines were 10 years old; compared to when they were first planted.

The 2011 Les Beaux Cailloux will be the last made from these vines before nearly all of them are pulled out. Production each year wavers from between 400 to 650 cases of Les Beaux Cailloux and there is a parcel of clone 95 Chardonnay which will remain; once the vines are mature, the grapes they yield will be contenders for Les Beaux Cailloux again.

The reason leaf roll virus was noticed so strongly on these vines is the impact it has on the colour and flavour of red grapes, says Smith.

“It’s a huge problem on our top quality red grapes because it reduces sugars. We can’t take that risk. For grapes like Sauvignon Blanc, people don’t worry about it

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as much in the short term because it tends to reduce sugars and lower sugars are not a worry with that variety, although it seems circumstantially that mealy bug is getting more established around the country and that is a problem.”

The financial blow, risk of disease spread and threat that the growth in mealy bug virus potentially pose are all cause for alarm, says Smith, who laments an ever bigger problem still for a country with vineyards as young as New Zealand’s are: “It’s a real worry when we’re trying to gain a wealth of older vines around the country and this virus means we’re losing some of our best.” ■

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REGULATORY UPDATE

ALLOCATING WATER IN THE FUTURE TESSA NICHOLSON

F

resh water is one of New Zealand’s greatest assets, vital for continued economic growth and environmental integrity. To ensure the resource isn’t compromised in the future, the Government has implemented the Fresh Start for Fresh Water National Policy Statement, (NPS).

This will directly impact on the major grape growing regions throughout the country, as district and regional councils reassess their allocations.

The goals of the NPS are to safeguard the life supporting capacity of eco systems, reduce and avoid over allocation, improve efficient allocation and use, and protect significant values of wetlands.

The over allocation issue is the one that has the most impact on winegrowers throughout the country. Given the major regions of Hawkes Bay, Marlborough, Canterbury, Central Otago and Nelson are all in drought prone areas, water for irrigation is essential. However all these areas are also in a situation, where

28

water resources have either been fully or over allocated. Meaning there is no fat left for further development or growth.

Lawyers Bell Gully released a report a few years back that highThis map compares the maximum amount of allocated water from rivers and streams (surface water) as a percentage of the catchment’s modelled minimum river flow expected during dry periods. This shows the ‘worst case scenario’ ie, if full allocation use occurred during the low flow period. Darker coloured areas highlight catchments that have potential allocation pressure during dry periods and may require closer attention.

MAP: MINISTRY FOR ENVIRONMENT

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

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lighted the issue of water allocation and the potential consequences. “A study in 2000 found that 134 water resources were fully or over allocated, including 122 rivers or streams. However only 60% of this allocated volume was actually used.”

Transferring water allocations may become more commonplace in the future, allowing those with rights but not using them, to on-sell.

Here in lies the problem for councils throughout the country. On paper, the allocation may in fact be over what the natural resources can provide. But, and it is an important but, in many cases it is on paper only. The over allocation status means that if every individual was to draw to the limit of their permit, then the resource would not be able to cope. But in reality, that is not what is happening.

Pere Hawes, Environment Policy Manager at the Marlborough District Council says regardless of whether that water is being used

or not – the over allocation issue has to be dealt with.

“Irrespective of whether we are fully or over allocated at present, we can’t allocate any more under the NPS. That is the issue. So the only water we have to play with or create growth with, is the water that is already allocated.”

It is a similar situation in other grape growing regions. The Government has therefore instructed the Land and Water Forum to provide a consensus view on how to maintain freshwater quality and how to manage allocation. They have just released their second report to Government (available at www.landandwater.org.nz/ report) and a third on allocation is due later this year.

In the meantime, councils are having to reassess the allocation rates for various crops, including viticulture. In Marlborough’s case, Hawes said the original belief was that vines required 2.2mm of water per vine, per day.

“That was based on the information at the time and there was nothing wrong with that, but we now know that grapes in most situations use a lot less water, which is reflected in the meter records. We need to identify more accurately what the different areas require.”

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

WATER METRE REGULATIONS In 2006 it was estimated that only a third of all consented water takes were being measured (metred).

The Measurement and Reporting of water takes came into power in 2010 and is being phased in over the next few years

By November this year the regulations will mean anyone taking 20litres/second or more will need to be metered.

It’s estimated the regulations will see 92% of water allocated by resource consent being measured by this November 98% will be measured by 2016.

It will be a similar situation in all other grape growing regions.

That may cause some consternation for growers who already have water permits allocated. Will those permits be renewed at similar rates? If not, what are the implications of any potential changes?

It has to be remembered that having a permit to take a certain level of water, is no lifetime guarantee, as all permits need to be renewed under the Resource Management Act. Hawes says there will be changes, in Marlborough’s case at least.

“In a state of full allocation, if we can’t allocate any more water, and if there is demand for extra water, the only options as we see it are; you shut up shop, or if you want on-going economic development, you enable access to some of the water that’s already been allocated but not being used.”

Transferring water allocations may become more commonplace in the future, allowing those with rights but not using them, to onsell. While that is already allowed under the RMA, it has not been utilised in many parts of the country, due to the lack of flexibility. It is expected the Fresh Start for Fresh Water will alleviate some of those issues.

Regional and District Councils have to have provisions in place within their plans by 2014 and if they don’t then they must have a proposal notified that it wil be dealt with by 2030. The long time frame is in recognition that the NPS will require a significant amount of work by councils, and the fact that it will require considerable liaison with the community before new settings are established. ■ tessa.nicholson@me.com

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WINERY SALE

AIMING FOR A MILLION CASES The Bill Foley Story BARBARA GILLHAM

A

merger between Marlborough’s struggling New Zealand Wine Company and Foley Family Wines owned by California based billionaire Bill Foley, will take him well on his way to achieving his goal of a million case New Zealand wine business.

The deal which is subject to shareholder approval and consent from the Overseas Investment Office will see Foley take an 80 percent stake in the NZ Wine Company, whose brands include Grove Mill, Sanctuary and Frog Haven.

While much has been written about the merger a recent interview with Bill Foley provided the opportunity to discuss more fully his plans and a glimpse of the man behind Foley Family Wines.

“We are keeping the (Grove Mill) winery as it gives us a great opportunity to move product back and forth between the Awatere Valley, the Renwick Valley and Grove Mill.

“For example Vavasour has a really upscale red wine production facility with small tank fermenters and punch down system for Pinot Noir. Grove Mill doesn’t really have that. So they are going to have to sort out and work through the red wine programme.

32

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

So the reds will go down to Awatere Valley which will be much more efficient. If one of the Wine Company’s brands isn’t as strong as say Clifford Bay which is selling well in the USA with good margins, we can just move product into the brand that’s doing well. As long as we can maintain the taste for a while and maintain the profile, we have to do that.

“So now we can pick and chose how much of each brand we are going to make and we’ll be able to maintain our supply chain.

“We want to get to a million cases in New Zealand, that’s our goal. With Grove Mill, Vavasour and Te Kairanga combined in a normal production year, there would be about 700,000 cases, that’s about 640 out of Marlbor-

We want to get to a million cases in New Zealand, that’s our goal. With Grove Mill, Vavasour and Te Kairanga combined in a normal production year, there would be about 700,000 cases, that’s about 640 out of Marlborough and 60 from TeKairanga in the Wairarapa. It’s going to take us one more acquisition to get there, but it will happen, there will be opportunities.

“We’ve taken Goldwater and Dashwood and we’ve made them more of a blend between the two valleys so now we can easily move product into those two packages.

One’s a little more premium and one’s more everyday price. Plus it gives us another 112 hectares in terms of owned and leased vineyards. We need every vineyard we can get our hands on right now because supply is tough.”

Foley says the ‘glut’ of wine that has been experienced in previous years has gone for the time being and this can be seen in a 40 percent drop in production at both Grove Mill and Vavasour. Based upon analysis from last December he believes this year will be down about 30 percent.

“We went through our analysis just in terms of our current sales programmes and we were actually short of Vavasour.”

He said the merger with Grove Mill that will help to decrease that shortage considerably.

ough and 60 from TeKairanga in the Wairarapa. It’s going to take us one more acquisition to get there, but it will happen, there will be opportunities.

“Something will come along like the NZ Wine Company. That was an opportunity because they had fallen on tough times and again distribution is important for these wines in the US and New Zealand. However, we own half a distributor in New Zealand, Eurovintage so that’s a big advantage versus someone who is trying to get their wine through a distributor which can be very difficult, it’s hard.

“In the US there are totally different jurisdictions. We have the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, so you’ve got to be qualified into them. Then you’ve got 50 different jurisdictions in terms of 50 states. All are different.

Each state has its own rules and regulations so you have to have a distributor in those states. We

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have our own internal sales force so our advantage is that we can bring a product in from overseas domestically and we put it through our distribution network. Constellation does it, so does Fosters and Lion Nathan but for the small guys its hard, it’s very hard.”

So why did Bill Foley choose New Zealand and not another successful wine producing country?

“I really didn’t want to buy in France it didn’t excite me, I didn’t understand the Spanish wines, Italy was too confusing for me and Argentina has an unstable currency and an unstable government.

“I thought why not go to a place where they speak English and have a common ethnic background like Scottish, Irish or British which is what New Zealanders are. Also

there is a rule of law here and you don’t bribe judges. You have an independent judiciary. It’s a process when we do things, but it’s a process everywhere and you can rely on that process. I haven’t seen an ounce of corruption in New Zealand, but if you went to Indonesia or Argentina it would be a risk and one I didn’t want to take.”

Foley’s not alone with his love for this country, wife Carol and two of their four children share the same feelings.

“Well my wife is really keen on it and so is my youngest son and youngest daughter, both of them are going to Lincoln University next year to do a masters degree in Viticulture so they will be down here. We will just have to wait and see how it goes.” ■ barbarag@value.net.nz

Efficiency starts here...

WHAT HAPPENED? In December the NZ Wine Company, which produces Grove Mill, Sanctuary and Frog Haven, agreed to undertake a capital raising process for a minimum of $5 million to reduce its debt by June 30, 2012.

The ANZ National Bank has confirmed the merger agreement satisfies its requirements.

NZ Wine Company Chairman Alton Jamieson said Foley Family Wines NZ would be issued 34.7 million new shares in return for all its New Zealand assets and a cash component of about $5m.

According to its June 30 accounts the NZ Wine Company had group loans and borrowings of $17.25 million, and posted a 2011 net loss of $3.17m and a $1.9m loss in 2010.

Shareholders will meet on August 14 to vote on the merger proposal. If they give approval, the merger will then still require Overseas Investment Office approval.

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NZW EVENT

PINOT NOIR 2013 TESSA NICHOLSON

O

ften described as the Holy Grail of wines, Pinot Noir is a variety that aficionados can never get enough of. With descriptors such as subtle, elegant, silky, mouth-filling, and rich it’s easy to see why it is placed on a pedestal by both winemakers and consumers alike. The ultimate challenge in terms of viticulture and winemaking, Pinot Noir is a variety that truly expresses its sense of place. Nowhere more so than in New Zealand, where Pinot Noir is our signature red variety.

The intricacies, terroir and

regionality of New Zealand Pinot Noir is the focus on an international event to be held in the capital over four days next January.

Pinot Noir 2013 will feature a total of 114 wineries from throughout the country and Chairman Alastair Maling MW says it will be an event that shouldn’t be missed.

The first New Zealand Pinot Noir event was held in 2001.

How will next year’s event differ from those held previously?

At the beginning it was an event set up to say to the world; “Look,

we make Pinot Noir down here in New Zealand. Why don’t you come down and have a look.” Each year since, the level of understanding and the level of maturity in the winemaking and viticulture has seen New Zealand established as a high positioned world class producer of Pinot Noir.

So now it’s not about the fact we make Pinot Noir – it’s about how good can this Pinot get, plus the nuances of the regions and sub regionality.

The regional differences will

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 35

Photo: Pernod Ricard supplied by NZW

play a major role throughout the event. How are you planning on getting that message across?

We are bringing the regions to Wellington.

The two main regions, Marlborough and Central Otago will have their own venue, while the boutique regions such as Nelson, Wairarapa and Waipara will be together in a separate room.

The delegates will spend a day in each of those venues, learning and hearing from the locals, about the unique characteristics that delineate them from each other.

The topography, climate, soils and what makes each region so special. With 30 to 34 wineries in each of the regions, each supplying Pinot Noir from the 2010 vintage, it will be a real showcase.

(The 2010 vintage is considered one of the best in New Zealand’s recent history.)

Pinot Noir 2013’s catch phrase is – New Depths, New Characters, New Zealand. What do you mean by that?

This event is all about where New Zealand Pinot Noir is moving to. In terms of depth, we will be delving down into the regions.

New Characters is about bringing out the new people (and wines) and New Zealand is of course the major tie in.

If you were to line up a wine from each Pinot Noir region in New Zealand, you would see quite a difference. But you would also see some common features coming through – such as the purity of fruit.

What is it that makes New Zealand Pinot Noir different to say wines from Oregon and California?

New Zealand is quite unique in terms of its Pinot Noir style.

I often talk about the purity of

36

fruit, the finesse our wines have and the lovely natural acidity that gives the wines longevity. Oregon and California are slightly warmer climates, so their wines have a different tannin structure and the fruit characteristics are different.

For Pinot Noir aficionados they can see there is something quite unique coming out of New Zealand, that has a real sense of place.

In America our Pinot Noir is just starting to raise its head above the parapet. People are starting to take note and starting to see that New Zealand Pinot Noir is a must have on their wine list as well.

The consumer is starting to show interest in diversifying and this is a variety that is incredibly universal.

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

It suits a number of price points and a number of consumer taste profiles. So the person who is after a wine that is not too complex but an easy drinking red would find a Pinot works. And it also works for those who want an absolutely sublime red to go with food.

Will there be any comparison of New Zealand Pinot Noir with those from other producing countries?

In the past we have had an international tasting where we have compared New Zealand against Australia, Oregon, Burgundy and California. And while that is not a bad idea, it is really hard to do every country justice,

when you are only comparing two or three wines.

So the final day will be taken up with a high end Burgundy session, led by Jasper Morris MW (a leading authority on Burgundy) and Nick Mills, son of one of the founders of Central Otago wine region. We will concentrate on either a Domain or appellation within Burgundy, focusing on the history and the outcomes to tie in with the New Zealand regionality discussions that have been held on earlier days.

This will be followed by a formal regional tasting with a panel of New Zealand and International experts. They will choose two wines from each region to be

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Over the next few weeks, the Pinot team will be taking part in a roadshow around the regions, highlighting more about this major event.

For full details on Pinot 2013 visit; www.pinotnoir2013.co.nz ■ tessa.nicholson@me.com

 

  

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You already have a large number of international visitors signed up for Pinot 2013, who are some of those?

Actor and winery owner Sam Neill. He is opening the event, which is pretty special. Plus we have Matt Kramer, (well known wine critic) who will also be addressing the opening. Raj Parr, Sommelier from San Francisco and Master of Wine Lisa PerrottiBrown Asia/Pacific writer for RobertParker.com will also be in attendance. These are just a few of the big names that are coming down.

How can wineries taking part

in Pinot Noir 2013, benefit the event?

W e are encouraging all wineries to bring an international visitor to the event.

You could do it on your own or club together to bring one or two people out. It will only enhance the opportunity for debate and discussion and the chance to expose what we are doing here.

It will also hopefully make those visitors ambassadors for New Zealand wine when they go home.



tasted and compared on a formal basis.

The entire four day event will end with a big Pinot hoolie.

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EMERGING REGION

UNDER THE KAPITI SUN

A new coastal wine region springs up in an unlikely corner of the North Island…

JOELLE THOMSON

A

s descriptions of wine regions go, the word coastal usually brings high quality Tuscan wines to mind. So when a new bunch of Sauvignon Blancs, a Pinot Gris and a Pinot Noir arrived from the Kapiti Coast, it was a tad surprising.

This sunny stretch of coastline starts at the crest of the Plimmerton hill on State Highway 1 north of Wellington, taking in windswept and breathtaking views of Kapiti Island before winding its way inland through Paraparaumu, Waikanae, Otaki, Te Horo and eventually towards the Ohau area.

It is better known as the benign climate to which doctors and dentists from the capital retire to than as a wine region.

Still, it is also home to a vast number of fruit and vegetable growers and to chef-caterer Ruth Pretty’s cooking school – which grows a vast range of herbs and

Ohau Vineyard

produce – so it’s nothing new to successfully grow food crops here.

Why not grapes for wine?

This coast is consistently two to three degrees warmer than Wellington, significantly less windy and also sunnier. Its climate has more in common with Nelson than with the capital city.

The 2012 vintage is the fourth for the relatively new Ohau Gravels wines. All of the grapes are

Kate Gibbs harvests at Ohau.

38

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

grown on alluvial river gravels similar to many of Marlborough’s stony vineyards, which are planted on old river beds, says Ohau Wines viticulture manager Kate Gibbs, who says the area has a microclimate similar to Nelson’s and has recorded minimal frost and low rainfall during the autumn ripening period.

“We have introduced a new vine management technique which has allowed us to open the vine’s canopies of leaves up to further expose the grapes to the sun. This has really assisted with the ripening of the fruit,” she says.

The grape quality for 2012 was the best since the first harvest in 2009, says Gibbs, but quantity is also important this year.

Gibbs says the production of Ohau Gravels wines will rise to 33,000 cases this year from 14,000 cases in 2011.

The wines are made by Jane Cooper at Matahiwi Estate in the Wairarapa; about three hours drive away. Most Ohau Wines have been exported to date, predominantly to China, where the 2010 Ohau Gravels Pinot Gris was listed in the 2012 ISACS Guide ‘100 Great Wines in China’.

At the time of writing, Ohau Gravels was close to confirming its first distributor in Korea and was also listed at Hive 101; the highest restaurant and bar in Hong Kong.

“With the increased volume from the 2012 vintage, we plan to continue to build on the 16 markets we already export to and we plan to expand our local distribution within New Zealand and to grow sales into Northern Europe, especially Scandanavia, The Netherlands and Germany,” says Gibbs. ■ jthomson@xtra.co.nz

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SOMMELIERS CORNER CAMERON DOUGLAS MS

CRACKING THE USA MARKET I’ve been a regular visitor to the USA for more than sixteen years now, with most of my trips centering on some kind of wine ‘event’, whether it’s education, presenting, or hedonistic enjoyment.

A

lways keen to wave the Kiwi Wine Flag, one of my great pleasures is offering samples, gifts or tastings of high quality New Zealand wine to fellow Masters and Sommeliers. This also becomes an opportunity to keep up to date, and to learn from them what’s going on in and around the trade.

Recent experiences have confirmed that New Zealand wine remains popular: screw top closures continue to be a topic of energetic discussions on decisions to list, as does price; and wine buying overall has slowed in an already pressured market (there’s also big differences between East and West Coast listings). In promoting and talking about ‘our’ wine, it’s interesting to learn what is popular drinking, what brands are well-known and which regions from New Zealand fit into perceptions. Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Marlborough and Central Otago appear to have the lion’s share of wine listings, with Hawke’s Bay and Martinborough popping up from time to time. Perception of the wines is that they are of generally high quality; though while there is an increasing awareness of Chardonnay, Riesling and Syrah, wine listings are relatively rare

40

occurrences for these varieties.

(I travel in August to Texsom, texsom.com, in Dallas to present on the varieties that are not widely associated with the New Zealand Wine brand.)

Americans love to dine out and a good restaurant is kept busy, at least in my experi-

wine market and get positive traction for your brand, translating into profile and sales, might be a challenge you are currently considering. It can be a difficult subject to address, especially in a very competitive environment, stressed by the complicated system for moving wine into and

The collective Sommelier community is a key avenue.

In America it is a well established, powerful and growing network, focused on entities like the Guild of Sommeliers. The networking within this group is incredible, with information sharing, online discussions, education and advertising. ence. There is plenty of wine being sold on premise - with the main chunk of sales allocated to American (West Coast), Italian and French wines before anything else. It is the Sommeliers and wine buyers for these restaurants who should be a key target when reaching out to the discerning American palate with New Zealand wine. They understand customer behaviour the best – selling the right wine to their guest is what they do and moving or shifting customer brand inertia is a challenge they enjoy daily.

How to approach the USA

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

around America. Though not impossible, cracking this market and capturing the attention and palates of the professionals who work the dining room floor (or are dedicated retail wine specialists) presents some significant challenges. Once you’re ready to make the entry, you also need to find a distributor who will add your brand to their books and promote and support you appropriately.

Getting your wine under the nose of Sommeliers or wine buyers and hooking into their network of colleagues in restaurants (and retail) is a logical and

critical first step to consider.

Doing this means identifying the right person to set up appointments and follow through – this will provide the tipping point in moving your wine closer to listings and sales.

The collective Sommelier community is a key avenue. In America it is a well established, powerful and growing network, focused on entities like the Guild of Sommeliers. The networking within this group is incredible, with information sharing, online discussions, education and advertising. The opportunities provided by targeting them are currently under-utilised by New Zealand Wine Producers, and identifying individuals who can help should not be overlooked.

The two minute trailer for a movie due to be released later this year (‘Somm’) may provide an insight into their growing influence (http://www.youtube. com/watch?v=3aotPz5_JJs).

One successful alternative approach to the market, in recent times, has been the banding together of a few producers to offer small parcels of wine to a distributor or retailer, splitting costs and allowing a greater focus on brand awareness. New Zealand Wine Growers remain crucial allies in cracking the US market. ■

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BOTTLING NEWS

SCREWCAP FOR BUBBLES TESSA NICHOLSON

E

ver been whacked in the head or face by a flying cork, unleashed from your favourite bottle of bubbles? Not a pleasant way to start a convivial celebration. However those days of ducking whenever the bubbles come out, may well be over, with the invention of a screw cap for sparkling wine.

Guala Closures Australia and O-I launched Australia’s first screw-capped sparkling wine bottles in May, after five years of research and development.

The very first company to launch their wines in the new look closure and bottle was De Bortoli Wines. Three of their Trevi range, along with their on-premise Willowglen Sparkling Brut will be sealed under screwcap.

While there have been others designed for lightly carbonated

wines, this new closure, known as Viva™ is the first to be suitable for 5-gas-volume sparkling wines.

Developing a closure was one thing, but Guala also required a specialised bottle to suit it, which led to the partnership with O-I. They describe the bottles as “maintaining a premium image and key dimensions to match existing filling lines and secondary packaging.”

Given New Zealand’s overwhelming response to screwcaps for still wines, it will be interesting to see if producers of sparkling wines are equally as enthusiastic.

Especially given the development was not driven by quality issues, according to Guala. Instead it was convenience, according to National Sales and Marketing Manager Simon Yudelevich.

“For the consumer, Viva™ is

perfectly suited to sparkling wines which are popular among women who often report difficulties in opening cork-closures and resealing a bottle with alternative closures once opened,” he said. “Viva™ eliminates safety issues associated with opening cork closures and will encourage responsible consumption of alcohol as it enables consumers to drink one glass of wine, while maintaining carbonation days after opening.”

There will be some who will bemoan the romance of popping a cork – but for others the convenience will be something else to savour, besides the wine. ■

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The global economic balance has shifted over the course of the past five years and with the emergence of Asia as a new superpower, the landscape of the New Zealand dollar has changed dramatically.

L

ocal businesses have had to adjust to the solid appreciation of the Kiwi’s value and whilst it may be welcomed by some, for exporters it has tested margins, operating profit and international competitiveness.

However, there are ways to manage the Kiwi’s appreciation and in putting together this article we have spoken to Catherine Keith of Mount Brown Vineyard to gain an insight as to how she

has guided her company through these challenging years.

runs with her father, Tony. They produce Pinot Noir, Sauvignon

In the fast-paced and challenging market environment businesses face today, adaptation and risk reduction are critical in the pursuit of a healthy balance sheet. The effect of currency movements is unique for each and every business Nestled in the western Waipara Valley is the familyowned vineyard that Catherine

Blanc, Riesling and Pinot Gris and since 2008 their wines have been exported to countries such

as the UK, Singapore and more recently, China. With the business now exporting over 75% of its output, foreign exchange risk is a key concern, especially seeing as the New Zealand Dollar has appreciated around 32% against the Pound and 25% against the USD over the last three years*.

“The current strength of the NZD has a huge affect on our ability to compete internationally and as a result our margins

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are very small... a small movement in currency can make the difference between making a profit and not on a shipment,” Catherine said.

When considering risk mitigation strategies it’s sensible to first recognise what you can and can’t change. It’s also pivotal to establish clear objectives for any hedging strategies, be consistent with these strategies and this is something Mount

ate the pressure of a high New Zealand dollar, is to consider pricing in the local currency and shifting the FX risk to the counterparty. Catherine admits pricing in Sterling for Mount Brown’s first export market.

However since expanding into other markets she has re-evaluated and begun pricing shipments in NZD “moving the risk over to the importer”. Implications of such a strategy would

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Brown Vineyard has embraced.

Although volatility of the NZD is a factor that cannot be changed, Catherine has used this in her favour, hedging currency at relatively favourable levels in order to reduce the volatility of her own cash-flows and protect what have been acknowledged to be thin profit margins. In her own words, the benefit for the business “(makes) for some certainty over the income we will receive and (locks) in a profit.” Market orders are also a great tool to consider as they enable the user an opportunity to benefit from quick swings in the exchange rate that may occur in offshore hours or at a time when attention may be focused elsewhere.

Another strategy to reduce foreign exchange risk and allevi-

of course be the need to revise price points on a regular basis to avoid currency movements greatly affecting competitiveness.

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 45

REGIONS HAWKES BAY

HOSPICE AUCTION A star lot in the 2012 Hawkes Bay Winegrowers’ Charity Wine Auction, Riks Terstappen’s sculpture was reproduced in a limited number of prints.

MARY SHANAHAN

A

changed format worked for Hawkes Bay Winegrowers’ 21 st charity wine auction, with the event raising $65,000 for the region’s hospice.

As always, Hawkes Bay wineries donated generously, to the Queen’s Birthday event, with many fine wine lots created specially for the event.

For the first time, the auction included a sculpture rather than a painting as a feature lot. Cranford Hospice commissioned Hawkes Bay sculptor Riks Terstappen to create the artwork, which has become a traditional highlight at the annual event.

His piece for the auction, Still Life with a Bed of Red, featured a “clothed” table, wine glass and “bottle” sealed in red.

The successful bidder for

the lot was Emma Easthope, whose husband Rod Easthope is Hawkes Bay-based winemaker for the UK’s Naked Wines.

The sculpture was reproduced in limited edition prints, signed by the artist, and offered for sale.

A change in the format was the move from an evening dinner to an afternoon event, with Orton @ Sileni catering the tapasstyle food.

While the auction realised less than in previous years, Hawkes Bay Winegrowers’ executive officer Lyn Bevin put that down to the economic times. Over the years, as a result of enthusiastic support from wineries and bidders alike, the event has raised more than $2 million for the hospice. ■ maryshanahan173@gmail. com

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lowing a tasting of those wines, the final 10 were selected by a panel of judges that included wine buyers worth $600m.

Included in the top 10, were Grasshopper Rock from Central Otago, and te Pa from Marlborough. Both companies were given the opportunity to present their marketing case in person, or via Skype Phil Handford, one of the directors for Grasshopper Rock, received an email from Wine-Stars organizers confirming they had made the top 20.

“By the end of the day, I had booked flights to London, and the wines were in my luggage”, says Phil. “With an opportunity like this, I had to be there in person – there was no use doing a presentation over YouTube – and this way I guaranteed that the wines would arrive.”

What followed was a presentation of wines to the judges and from this tasting, 20 producers were whittled down to 10. They had just two hours after that to compile a three-minute pitch that would make or break their entry into the UK fold.

“It was a hugely valuable exercise to squeeze a compelling story into three minutes that would wow the judges enough so that

they believed in you and what you were doing with your wine. Three minutes really forces you to keep cutting until you get down to what you and your winery really stand for. For Grasshopper Rock, it was a story about the people, the place, and our very clear focus on being a great Pinot Noir vineyard.”

Phil is currently talking with two significant wine buyers that will lead to sales in the UK and possibly the EU, although initial volumes will be modest given the brand’s position at the premium end of the market. The whole exercise has attracted significant attention for the company, with raised awareness through its website and various social media, in addition to increased domestic sales.

“This gives us an opening into a tough market and we will see what opportunities eventuate from here. I have already been

surprised how aware distributors have become about the Wine-Stars event and to make the Top 10 is a big deal. It’s allowed us to take a shortcut to market without going to wine shows or travelling extensively to establish relationships.

It’s been one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The whole team is thrilled.”

Scott Wilson, marketing manager of Marlborough’s te Pa winery said the judges were very specific about what they were looking for.

“What they wanted was something that was innovative, to show that you had a point of difference in your marketing. They said that the UK market was very stagnant,

people had stopped thinking outside the square and no one was exciting.”

Given their marketing byline is te Pa – Our Home for 800 Years, there was more than enough to intrigue the panel. te Pa is a newcomer on the Marlborough scene, with its first vintage just last year.

However the 140-hectare vineyard is 10 years old and is part of the original MacDonald family property on an area known as the Wairau Pa – a significant Maori landmark in Marlborough. Signifying the relationship with the land, the wine label is self-embossed with a hand drawn map of relative sites in the area.

These include the best spot to catch eels, where certain members of the family have lived and even soil types. The Waru on the label represents the number eight (tying into the by-line of 800 years) as well as a fish hook – which Wilson says embodies living off the land.

While only producing 5000 cases of Sauvignon Blanc last year, Wilson says te Pa has expanded this year and after a number of talks with UK distributors following the competition, is hopeful much of that will be on its way to the UK later in the year. ■

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INDUSTRY NEWS

SCRUB THE DIRT NOT THE TOAST, FROM WINE BARRELS A

s the level of toast can greatly affect the taste and aroma of the wine within the barrel, it is important that it is not damaged or removed. However, tartrates and other soils do need to be removed, leading to a dilemma when the wine barrel needs to be cleaned.To solve this problem, Spray Nozzle Engineering supply

50

the Gamajet GentleJET barrel cleaning machine. This cleaning machine uses Gamajet’s rotary impingement technology at low pressure (60 psi) to gently scrub the wine barrel’s interior and remove tartrates and other soils.

Operating at low pressure means the GentleJET minimizes the cleaning fluid’s impact within the barrel, ensuring that the all impor-

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

tant toast remains as is. The gentle cleaning action also prolongs the wine barrel’s use by 1-2 years.

The GentleJET ensures a thorough clean every time, using less time and water than traditional wine barrel cleaners and as it does not contain a pressure washer, costly repairs and maintenance is avoided. The GentleJET does not contain exposed gears, ensuring

no cross-contamination and a 100% clean, every time.

The GentleJET barrel cleaning machine is ideal for use on both oak and stainless steel wine barrels. Spray Nozzle Engineering are the sole supplier of Gamajet Cleaning Systems Inc tank cleaning machines in Australia and New Zealand. ■

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SUB REGIONS

WAIRARAPA’S SUB REGIONS Brought to you by BioStart BARBARA GILLHAM

L

ocated just an hour and a half ’s drive north east of Wellington is New Zealand’s sixth largest wine producing wine region; the Wairarapa.

When you mention the Wairarapa to wine enthusiasts they tend to immediately think of Martin-

borough and its world renowned Pinot Noir, but Martinborough is only one of three wine growing sub-regions in the district, the others being Gladstone and Masterton.

These sub-regions are linked by the Ruamahunga River that begins in the towering Tararua Ranges to

PHOTOS: BARBARA GILLHAM

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

the northwest and travels southwards through the region to Palliser Bay and Lake Wairarapa.

It is this river and the other contributory rivers that join it as they meander their way across the district on their journey to the coast that inspired the region’s Maori name meaning

‘glistening waters’.

Over thousands of years the river has carved out cliffs and escarpments that have exposed stony sub-soils and built up layers of rich free draining mineral laden alluvial soils. These soils combined with a climate made up of long hot summers, cool nights,

low rainfall and brisk winds have ensured perfect conditions for growing grapes.

The first vines in the Wairarapa were planted in Masterton by the French wife of early settler William Beetham. The conditions and climate reminded her of her native Burgundy and she planted over 3000 vines in the late 1880s successfully producing the regions first Pinot Noir vintage in 1897.

Unfortunately this came to an end in 1905 due to prohibition.

In the 1980s soil scientists found that the mix of free-draining river gravels, temperatures and rainfall were almost identical to Beaune the capital of Burgundy wine; this prompted a vision of cool climate wines from Martinborough. Together with two locals these men went on to form the ‘founding four’ Martinborough wine pioneers.

Thirty years later and today Martinborough is known throughout the world for its award winning Pinot Noir which is certainly the region’s most planted and acclaimed grape variety and has given Martinborough its

international reputation.

However, the region also produces a large range of award winning varietals thanks to the mineral-laden soils and cool climate. These include some remarkable Sauvignon Blanc, aromatic Reisling, Pinot Gris and Rhonelike Syrah. The success of these wines may be due to the similarity in climate to Marlborough, as the Wairarapa is more aligned to Marlborough climatically than to any of the North Island regions.

Martinborough accounts for only one percent of New Zealand’s wine production, from approximately three percent of New Zealand’s total plantings, and its wines are considered to have excellent concentration, texture and depth, which is attributed to its historically low cropping levels and the areas unique soil and climate.

In the 1980s new vines where planted in the sub-region of Masterton which historically is the Wairarapa’s oldest grape-growing centre. Growers were attracted by the climate and gravelly limestone soils. Thanks to the influence of

the nearby Tararua ranges the wide open landscape of this subregion has a cycle of cool nights and sunny days which allows complex flavours to develop in the grapes. Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc are the main varieties grown here.

A little further south of Masterton is Gladstone situated on natural river terraces that rise steeply from the river bed creating the famous ‘cliffs’. The terraces provide everything for growing healthy vines, hours of sunlight, moderate rainfall and vigorous winds. Most of the vineyards in this sub-region are all family owned.

While there are three distinct sub-regions in the Wairarapa there

is little difference between them.

All have a similar climate, although Gladstone is slightly higher than Martinborough and more sheltered from the wind. All successfully grow similar varieties of grapes and produce similar wines.

Over the years thanks to excellent marketing and being established earlier than the two other sub regions Martinborough enjoyed a definite advantage on the international market.

Overseas Martinborough wine was known, people had heard of it, but for growers in the other two sub-regions this presented a problem. How best to market themselves when Martinborough was so well established and known? Many people who knew

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 53

KEY FACTS Average rainfall is around 600-700mm a year, which mostly falls in winter and spring.This makes the Wairarapa the driest place in the North Island.

With 1200 Growing Degree Days on average, conditions are good for flowering and ripening grapes.

The climate is described as semi maritime, influenced by the long coastline to the east and south.

Summer temperatures peak on average at 32-34C with nights of 10C. Strong north-west winds through spring regulate flowering and crop levels while reducing vigour in the growing season.

Long ideal growing season for Pinot Noir.

Budburst – early September Veraison – February Harvest – Late March through to April.

TERRAIN: The ancient river terraces are covered by 20-50cm of silt loam soils Generally very deep alluvial deposits up to 15m deep give very free draining soils Some vineyard plantings are on limestone and clay loam soils.

The Wairarapa region accounts for only three percent of national average by vineyard area and produces only one percent of the national average by volume.

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

of Martinborough did not know of the Wairarapa, they didn’t realise that Martinborough was a small town and Wairarapa was the region. Today this has changed but for some years it raised a lot of issues for growers in Gladstone

and Masterton who were trying to establish themselves.

Today many of those vineyards are now not only known but have won numerous awards for their excellent wine. ■ barbarag@value.net.nz

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The patented footing at the base of the strainer and intermediate posts gives up to four times more retention than a parallel post. If you have soft or loose soils we recommend the use of a GRF plate which slips over the top of the post to prevent lifting or under the bottom of the post to prevent sinking - no more welded anchors!

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EVENTS BRAGATO

ROMEO BRAGATO CONFERENCE This is the 18th Romeo Bragato Conference and the focus this year is Driving the Export Advantage Through Sustainability.

R

omeo Bragato 2012 will see some changes when compared with previous years.

The conference, which is being held in Marlborough, will run from Wednesday August 22, through until Friday the 24th.

It is a shorter time frame than previously, but the content is still geared to provide members with a vast array of information.

On the Wednesday, the conference will feature The Bragato Address, the Industry Leader’s Forum and a tasting of the Bragato Wine Award entries.

On Thursday, there will be a full day of plenary sessions and concurrent forums, covering everything from pest and disease management, through to Where to next with SWNZ? On Friday the plenary sessions continue, prior to the early afternoon finish.

Some of the highlights of this year’s event include the Markham’s National Young Viticulturist of the Year

56

competition.

The five contestants will be put through their paces on the Wednesday, prior to presenting a prepared speech to the Gala Dinner on Thursday night, where the winners of the Bragato Wine Awards will also be announced.

There is a long list of guest speakers, ranging from Rabobank’s Marc Soccio, to Rod Oram.

And for the first time a motivational speaker – John Anderson who founded the world famous Contiki Tours.

Along with the latest in research being undertaken in New Zealand, there will also be a session focusing on the growth of South American wines and their direct impact on New Zealand in the export market.

Plus the AGMs of both the WINZ and NZGGC will take place during the conference.

To register, visit www.bragato. org.nz We look forward to seeing you there!

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

SITE ALLOCATIONS Site Number

Organisation

20

AgriSea New Zealand Ltd

43

AsureQuality

11 & 12

BASF New Zealand Ltd

54

Bayer CropScience

8

Bertolini Australasia

44

Bioag

59

Biological Solutions Ltd

7

BioStart Limited

49

Croplands Equipment

71

Crown Sheetmetal Ltd

13

Cuddon Limited

66

Dnature Diagnostics & Research

1

Empak Distribution

55

Enartis Pacific Pty Ltd

61

Endeavour Glass Packaging Ltd

39

Extenday

28 & 29

FMG Advice & Insurance

35,36,45&46

FMR Group Ltd

50

Fruitfed Supplies

27

Fruition Horticulture

5

GrapeBase

24

HD Process NZ Ltd

10

Hill Laboratories

32 & 33

Horticentre (Tasman Crop Protection 2006 Ltd)

INDUSTRY EXHIBITION LAYOUT

RSA Building

Fire Exit/ Call point

Fire Exit/ Call point

Entrance/ Call point French door

Entrance/ Call point French door

Fire Exit/ Call point 4-4m x 4m Marquee’s Roof only

15m x 25m Frame Marquee

21m x 30m Frame Marquee

Fire Exit/ Call point

Alfred Street

Site Number

Organisation

Site Number

Organisation

26

Indigo Systems Limited

51

Ryset (Aust) Pty Ltd

60

Inland Revenue

22

Scarecrow (Charles Parsons)

21

Kauri NZ

18

Silvan NZ Pty Ltd

56

Klima

67

Southern Hospitality Ltd

15

Leading Label

6

Sustainable Winegrowing NZ

47

Machinery Services Ltd

64

Syngenta Crop Protection Ltd

48

Mantissa

2

The Metal Company

68

Misty Valley Nursery

9

TracMap NZ Ltd

19

Muddy Boots Software

17

Tractor Repairs & Spares

4

Netafim NZ

25

United Fisheries

52

New Holland NZ Operations

3

Valtex Horticultural Products

69

New Zealand Tube Mills (Eco Trellis Systems)

14

Vintech Pacific Limited

38

O-I New Zealand

41 & 42

VITIS (NZ) Ltd

65

Omnia Primaxa Ltd

57

Water Supply Products

70

Pacific Rim Oenology Services Ltd

58

WaterForce Ltd

37

Winequip Products Ltd

30 & 31

Plant & Food Research/Marlborough Wine Research Centre

40

Woodshield

23 & 24

Rabobank

16

Zelam Ltd

62 & 63

Riversun Nursery

53

Zymus International Ltd

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 57

Bragato conference 2011

EXHIBITORS & SITE NUMBERS See us at Sites 11 & 12

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See us at Sites 35,36 & 45,46 Refer to our advert Pg 88

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See us at Site 27 Refer to our advert Pg 76

58

Refer to our advert Pg 93

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

See us at Site 24 Refer to our advert Pg 74

See us at Site 10 Refer to our advert Pgs 14, 15 & 17

See us at Site 26 Refer to our advert Pg 79

See us at Sites 32 & 33 Refer to our advert Pg 97

See us at Site 56 Refer to our advert 102

See us at Site48

See us at Site 68 Refer to our advert Pg 96

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See us at Site 15 Refer to our advert Pg 105 See us at Site 4 Refer to our advert Pg 110

See us at Site 52 Refer to our advert Pg 43

See us at Site 69 Refer to our advert Pg 55

See us at Site38 Refer to our advert Pgs 2, 51

See us at Sites 62 & 63 Refer to our advert Pg 95

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N U T R I O L O G Y *

*the science of growing

See us at Site 65 Refer to our advert Pgs 41, 91

O SCARECROW superior crop protection

Freephone: 0800SCARECROW

See us at Site 22 Refer to our advert Pg 63

See us at Site 18 Refer to our advert Pg 66 See us at Site 9 Refer to our advert Pg 65

See us at Site 2 Refer to insert

See us at Site 3 Refer to our advert 84

See us at Site 14 Refer to our advert Pg 82

See us at Site 25 Refer to our advert Pg 111

See us at Sites 41 & 42 Refer to our advert 93 See us at Site 40

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Refer to our advert Pg 18

See us at Site 37 Refer to our advert Pg 132 See us at Site 53 Refer to our advert Pg 22

Romeo Bragato 18th Annual Conference Marlborough Convention Centre 42A Alfred Street, Blenheim August 2012

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 59

NATIONAL COMPETITION

MARKHAM’S YOUNG VITICULTURISTS W

ith no national Silver Secateurs competition at this year’s Romeo Bragato conference, the Markham’s Young Viticulturist of the Year will take on a higher profile.

There are five contestents vying for the National title, representing Hawkes Bay, Wairarapa, Marlborough, Nelson and Central

60

Otago. On the opening day of the conference, they will be put through their practical and theoretical paces, along with the more light hearted Horty Sports section.

At the Bragato dinner on Thursday night, all five will present a prepared speech, prior to the winner being announced.

This year’s event is the seventh held in New Zealand. Since the

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

inception, this competition has attracted a high caliber of entrants from throughout the country and is now recognized within the industry as being a leading accomplishment for young viticulturists to aspire to and achieve.

The Markham’s Young Viticulturist winner will go on to the Grand Final of the Young Horticulturist of the Year for the 2012

competition. The wine industry has shown its strength at this major competition, with Young Viticulturists taking out the title in four of the last seven years.

They were; 2006 - Marcus Wickham, 2007 - Emma Taylor, 2009 - Caine Thompson and 2010 - Stuart Dudley.

The following are this year’s finalists.

CENTRAL OTAGO DAVID SALMON

Central Otago viticulturist David Salmon will represent Central Otago at the nationals, after taking out the regional title in June.

It was Salmon’s fourth attempt at the title, finishing runner-up last year.

“It has been an ambition of mine for a long time,” the 30-year-old said.

“This was my last attempt as I’ll be too old for the competition next year. I’ve fought hard for this and it’s been my dream to represent Central Otago at the nationals,” he says. Salmon has worked at Kawarau Estate, Cromwell for the past eight years.

WINERY ENGINEERING ASSOCIATION

NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION MARLBOROUGH |I SEPTEMBER 6-7, 16-17, 2010 2012 For further information visit www.wea.org.au Or contact Trevor Leighton +61 417 597 956 tleighto@bigpond.net.au

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 61

HAWKES BAY

MARTINBOROUGH BRADEN CROSBY

JONNY LA TROUBE

Braden Crosby of Martinborough’s Borthwick Estate, who finished among the top four contestants in the Hawkes Bay competition, will represent the Wairarapa wine region.

MARLBOROUGH MATT DUGGAN

It was the second time for Matt Duggan in the local competition.

The 26-year-old technical supervisor from Treasury Estate, has had a break between last year’s competition and winning this year’s title. He has been overseas playing rugby in Wales. Enthusiastic about the competition, Matt says it has given him the chance to stretch himself both theoretically and practically. With a background in bio chemistry, his entry to the wine industry came after taking on a vintage during a break from university.

Jonny La Trobe of Sacred Hill will be the Hawkes Bay representative, after heading off two close rivals in the day’s two final events.

The 27-year-old Clive man has been in the industry for five years and competing since 2010, and has been runner up and third placed before.

“Anybody could have taken it out this year,” he said. “Seriously it was very competitive, and the calibre of the guys I was up against was really high.”

NELSON DAN MANUGE

Dan Manuge had only been working at Sea Level Wines in Nelson for a matter of weeks before he took part in the Marlborough Young Viticulture competition. His second placing means he will represent his new region at this year’s finals.

Prior to moving to Nelson, Dan was the Assistant Vineyard Manager at Sherwood Estate in Waipara for six years.

Having always wanted to take part in the competition, Dan says he was thrilled with the opportunity to now represent Nelson at a higher level. ■

62

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

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NEW TECHNOLOGY

TRACLINK TASK ALLOCATION SYSTEM FOR VITICULTURE T

his 2012 harvest season saw the first use of TracMap’s new TracLink System in New Zealand vineyards at Giesens.

TracLink is a web based system allowing for 2 way wireless sending of jobs to and from a vehicle in the field.

The process is simple, a task and vineyard map is created, important information is added to assist the operator in the field, such as showing no go zones, potential hazards and access ways.

“Valuable time and expense can be lost by errors especially in the middle of the night,” says TackLinks General Manager Lance Nuttal. “However the TracMap system clearly shows what is required, important information is added to make sure the operator in the field knows clearly where and what the task is.”

The TracMap system displays the vineyard map on screen which allows the operator to see clearly what is required. They can refer to the special instructions at anytime during the task to ensure they are in the right area.

“There were some initial ‘hiccups’ such as we never had our systemes operate 24/7 before, so when it came to data been sent to and from the units we had to make some small tweaks to make sure it could handle the extra work load” “The TracMap system is com-

64

The TracMap system displays the vineyard map on screen which allows the operator to see clearly what is required. Inset: General manager Lance Nuttal.

pletely unique in the world,” Nick Winter Giesen’s viticulturist said.

“It has provided me with easy to use job and vineyard map allocation which has allowed my team to know exactly what is required.

Just as importantly I receive complete records of tasks carried out instantly which allows me to provide growers with accurate proof of tasks completed, kilometres travelled and hectares harvested.

Sure there were a couple of minor issues to start with, it was new for us and for TracMap, but together

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

we got these sorted quickly, we now have a system that allows for complete accuracy and a piece of mind in knowing that the machinery and staff know exactly where they are going and what blocks and rows they should be harvesting.”

Justin Weaver, Giesen’s vineyard manager who was at the sharp end of harvesting this year was also happy with how it went. He said it was also used in a number of other vineyard jobs.

“For any task where allocation and proof of completion are

needed then TracLink should be looked at as a solution”.

The team from TracMap will be at this year’s Romeo Bargarto Conference. ■

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NZ AT THE IWSC JO BURZYNSKA

N

ew Zealand wine won 305 awards, including a record 18 gold medals, bagged The Bouchard Finlayson Pinot Noir Trophy and The London International Wine Fair Trophy for Single Vineyard White, at last year’s International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC).

One of the world’s largest and longest running wine shows, the IWSC was founded by the wine chemist, Anton Massel in 1969.

Massel’s scientific influence remains evident in the competi-

tion today, which differs from most in its assessments, being based on a two tier process of professional blind tasting followed by detailed technical analysis.

It’s also rare in being a show that works out of its own premises, which allows it to stagger its tastings across the year, starting with European wines in March and finishing with the New Zealand category in September.

This shift to judging New Zealand’s wines to later in the year was a result of the IWSC consulting the opinion of the country’s

wineries. Some voiced frustration over the UK-based competitions

judging all the categories early in the year, then releasing the final

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Trophies towards the end, often at a point when producers had sold out of their award winning wine and moved on to the next vintage.

“Given the increased importance of the New Zealand category at the IWSC, we were keen to make the Competition work better for the country,” explains David Kelly, Sales and Marketing Controller at the IWSC Group. “We moved the judging dates back to allow New Zealand wineries to submit their new vintages and have been proactive in working on a number of other initiatives within the New Zealand market on top of the IWSC’s existing promotion of its award winning wines internationally.”

This includes forming partnerships with key retailers across the country to promote the winners in-store. These include Glengarry in the North Island, Vino Fino in Christchurch and Wines Tastes in Queenstown.

This year will also see Glengarry host a special awards release event on 30th October at its flagship Victoria Park store in Auckland, which will showcase some of the top wines from the 2012 Competition and invite their winemak-

ers to present them.

This month (August) the IWSC also held a benchmark tasting in Marlborough for winemakers of some of the competition’s top award winning international Sauvignon Blancs.

Wine NZ magazine has also come on board as the IWSC’s official media partner in New Zealand this year.

As well as the general press release about New Zealand’s results circulated to local media on their release in late October, Wine NZ will be providing more in depth coverage of the winners in the magazine.

New Zealand wineries are now being invited to enter their products into the IWSC before its 24th August deadline, when wines need to be both registered with and received by the IWSC in the UK. Wineries that have not yet received a Competition Entry Kit by post can download an entry form from or register online on the IWSC’s website www.iwsc.net, or contact the IWSC direct at info@ iwsc.co.uk. ■ Jo Burzynska is an active judge at the IWSC and its representative in New Zealand

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 67

OUR WINES MAKE IMPACT REBECCA GIBB

N

ew Zealand continues to punch above its weight in international competitions, reinforcing the country’s image as a purveyor of fine wines.

New Zealand placed sixth of 50 countries on the medal’s table at this year’s International Wine Challenge – a feat for a country that makes less than 1% of the world’s wine. Yet the industry is still winning too many bronze medals and commended awards, suggesting there is room for improvement.

While Central Otago and Martinborough have dominated the Pinot Noir awards in recent years, the best Pinot entrant from New Zealand came from north Otago.

The win for the John Forrest Collection 2009 Waitaki Valley Pinot Noir suggests the region’s pioneers have got something special.

“I do expect most Pinot Noir drinkers and producers in New Zealand to be surprised once they

hear, as I would say a fair proportion have not yet taken Waitaki Valley seriously,” said John Forrest. “The trophy helps both build the brand and assist sales growth for sure. In this case, when the wine is from a new wine region its importance may well be more for the region than the brand. Internationally and domestically we hope our distributors use the award to in-turn promote their own offering, as a business sourcing world class wines, of course we hope for more listings from specialist wine sellers as well.”

In addition, the International Wine Challenge is the only competition that provides full fault assessments during the competition, which provides interesting reading for winemakers and closure companies. New Zealand entries, dominated by screwcap closures (92%), had the lowest fault rate of all 50 countries, pushing Australia into second place. Just 3% of Kiwi entries

Central Otago Trophy: Bald Hills Central Otago Single Vineyard Pinot Noir 2010 Martinborough Trophy: Cambridge Road Pinot Noir 2009 International Sauvignon Blanc Trophy; White Marlborough trophy: Marks & Spencer Single Block Series S1 Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (Yealands) New Zealand Syrah Trophy: Mills Reef Elspeth Syrah 2010 New Zealand Chardonnay Trophy; New Zealand White Trophy: Ngatarawa Alwyn Winemakers Reserve Chardonnay New Zealand Sparkling Trophy: Cuvee Number 8, No 1 Family Estate Red Marlborough Trophy: Saint Clair Pioneer Block 14 Doctor’s Creek Pinot Noir Waitaki Trophy; New Zealand Pinot Noir Trophy: John Forrest Collection Waitaki Valley Pinot Noir 2009

were deemed faulty compared to the IWC average of 5.4%. Of the few New Zealand and Australian entries deemed faulty, approximately half were affected by sulphides, with the remainder mostly affected by volatility or oxidation.

- A consumer tasting of the trophy winners plus a ‘learn to be a judge’ session will be held at Auckland’s Fine Wine Delivery Company on August 29, 2012 from 6-8pm. Tickets are $25. rebecca@rebeccagibb.com■

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GISBORNE WINE AWARDS C H R I S T I N E B OYC E

T

he successes and innovations of Gisborne’s wine industry were celebrated at the second annual Gisborne Regional Wine Awards held in May. Out of 132 wines judged, seven gold and 14 silver medals were awarded, with the supreme award of the show given to the 2010 Villa Maria Reserve Barrique Fermented Chardonnay.

Millton Vineyard and Winery took out the highest number of awards, with James Millton also awarded the lead viticulturist trophy.

Geoff Thorpe of Riversun Nursery was awarded the Bill Irwin trophy for his efforts to import and evaluate new clones.

Chairman of the judges, Sacred Hill senior winemaker Tony Bish said having the facility to provide

clean, virus tested material was a real asset for a region looking to diversify.

“Overall the quality of the wines we tried were good, there’s a lot of experimentation in Gisborne with new varieties which is bold and pioneering. Good on those growers for having a crack. It will take a bit of time to figure out the best way forward with these new varieties, and of course there is the challenge of consumer education,” he said.

The judges found Chardonnay and Viognier to be the most promising, while Gewurtztraminer was another variety some local growers were excelling in.

Malbec and Merlot were stand outs among the red varieties, Bish said.

“Some of the other varieties were a bit ordinary. The Pinot Gris

Villa Maria viticulturalist Tony Green – with the Supreme Award.

class was a little disappointing but it is a very fickle variety – one year it is good and the following year it can be very different. It’s not easy

to get it to a high level.”

Regional wine awards had an important role to play in terms of benchmarking and providing the

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GISBORNE CHARDONNAY Diversifying has been a focus for Gisborne wine growers after a challenging few years but it seems the region’s signature Chardonnay is still coming up trumps.

Feedback from the judging panel at the Gisborne Regional Wine Awards was that Chardonnay continues to be a real strength for the Gisborne region, yet just a handful of growers were placing strong emphasis on it.

“In my view there aren’t really enough of the wineries there carrying the mantle,” said chief of judges and Sacred Hill senior winemaker Tony Bish.

These comments were echoed by James Millton of the Millton Vineyards and Winery.

“We have a greatness and ripeness, with good fruit characters and alcohol levels of 12.5 percent and this is the style wine drinkers want to find from a modern Chardonnay,” he said.

The Milltons’ also received an award for their Late Harvest Viognier – a variety that Millton says is another string to Gisborne’s bow, especially when blended with Chardonnay.

“This blend– CV, is coming to the fore, after being instigated by TW Wines. The good thing it is we get very fine aromatic fruit producing wines of complexity and fullbodied flavours with haunting salinity in the style of white wine blends we are seeing in the south of France or northern Italy. It is an exciting new consumer development.”

Millton said this was just one example of using innovative approaches to traditional varieties and Gisborne was an ideal place to do it. ■

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opportunity to “compare apples with apples,” he said.

“They were judged on international standards and I think Gisborne wine producers need to look at the results to see were they sit and how they can strive to lift their game.

“If all of the wineries are doing better, the region’s reputation will build. To enter a wine in a competition you don’t have to make thousands of cases, just the minimum amount required but of high quality. If there were a few more doing that, it would change the whole profile of Gisborne completely.

“There are a lot making good wines but I think there need to be a few more making great wines.” ■ christinejboyce@gmail.com

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VINE HEALTH

EUTYPA RESEARCH TESSA NICHOLSON

A

joint New Zealand Wine project between Plant & Food Research and the South Australian Research & Development Institute, is currently looking at the best fungicides to prevent Eutypa dieback.

Eutypa is a fungal disease that directly impacts on cropping levels and fruit quality, spreading slowly through the wood of the infected plants. If left, it will eventually destroy the vine. Given there are more than 80 hosts of the fungal disease, it is not easy to prevent its spread. There are ways of managing it though, given the spores are spread by wind or rain onto open wounds to infect the vine. Those wounds are most likely to occur during pruning.

Hence choosing your time to prune is one way of mitigating the disease. The other way is using a fungicide on the wound, to kill off any latent spores.

Project leader, Dr Mark Sosnowski from SARDI says it is the fungicides and their efficacy that the joint research project is investigating.

‘We have set up a trial in Hawkes Bay where we evaluated a number of fungicides for protecting vines. There were five different products, which are all commercially available and have shown varying levels of control in Australian trials. However only two of them are actually registered for grapes in New Zealand.

The other three are registered for other crops.”

Following pruning in 2011, the researchers applied the different

72

After the vines were pruned they were treated with one of the fungicides.

treatments, at differing concentrations, then inoculated with the Eutypa fungus. There was also a control vine, where the wounds were inoculated with the fungus, but no treatment added.

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

“We allowed those to incubate for the season. Then we came back a few weeks ago and collected the canes and removed them from the vine. Dion Mundy (Plant & Food Research, Blenheim) is now work-

ing on isolating from each of those to see if the fungus persisted, or whether the treatment was effective and blocked the fungus getting in.”

It is still too early to give con-

clusive results, although Sosnowski says there are early signs that some of the products are controlling the disease. The full report of the trial will be available towards the end of this year.

This trial will hopefully lead to a much larger project in the future encompassing other trunk diseases.

“We want to further evaluate the products that we have been testing and perhaps look at a couple of others as well. We will be evaluating them against Eutypa but also Botryosphaeria, the other dieback disease. We want to find treatments that are effective for both diseases, so that we can recommend treatments for dual control.”

Sosnowski says that shouldn’t be a difficult task, as the pathogens

are related and some chemicals have been shown to be effective against both in previous research.

Prior to that though, he says the research requires more data and the chemical manufacturers also need to be on board.

“We need them to carry on through with the registration of products for this purpose, as that is a really important outcome.

Then after we have some more data and we are comfortable that those products are effective, we will look at timing of applications.

Growers need to know whether these products need to be applied within 24 hours of pruning or do you have three or even five days to apply it? Also once the product is applied, how long is it effective for? In other words, if you apply it straight after pruning and a week

Following the treatment of the vines, the wounds were then inoculated with Eutypa spores.

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later you get an infection, is it still active or do you need to re apply after a week?”

Another question that needs answering, is what is the best form of application?

“In this trial we just applied liberally with a brush, so the wound was soaked. But this is not a practical commercial approach. In Australia we are starting to apply these products with commercial sprayers and we are planning to demonstrate the same process in New Zealand.”

The issue of trunk disease is one that is becoming more apparent in New Zealand as the vines grow older. Given both Eutypa and Botryosphaeria are slow moving diseases, it can take some time before the symptoms become apparent.

“What the signs are showing in New Zealand, is the incidence is increasing quite quickly now as the age of the vines progresses and especially if there is no disease management.

“We have some emerging regions in Australia where there are similar examples to what New Zealand is experiencing.

For instance, five or six years ago we surveyed Dr Mark Sosnowski (left) and Dion Mundy the Adelaide Hills region begin evaluating the results. and saw there were some problems looming, at very low growers. By no means is it out of incidence, but the disease was hand and they can manage the there. disease and New Zealand is in the Since then it has exploded, same situation. Trunk disease is the incidence has increased and emerging in New Zealand, it is become much more obvious to starting to become more obvious,

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15 YEARS LATER

LOOKING BACK In 1997 I was running a wine shop in central London. On my shelves, which were groaning with wines from across the world, there were just a handful from New Zealand: a Sauvignon Blanc from Vavasour - then one of the only wineries in the now extensively planted Awatere Valley - another from Ponder Estate.

JO BURZYNSKA

I

t was a time when screwcaps on a New Zealand bottle was a rare sight; there was more Chardonnay in our vineyards than Sauvignon Blanc and just over a dozen wineries down in Central Otago. How things have changed, with the last 15 years witnessing the most radical transformation of New Zealand’s wine industry in its entire history.

Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir may be the undisputed flagship white and red varieties in New Zealand today, but 15 years ago our vineyards harked back to an earlier era when the country was still getting to grips with what it could grow best.

Chardonnay was our most widely planted variety, although Sauvignon Blanc was hot on its heels and just hectares away from pole position. Now it’s 12,000 hectares ahead of any other variety and has grown by over 1000%.

It was also a time when we had more mundane Muller-Thurgau in the ground than prize winning Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon was still our number one red.

It’s been a period when New Zealand wine really started to be taken seriously in the world of wine. In 1997 we shipped 25% of our wine overseas, while today it’s 75%, and worth $1.2 billion.

As well as this success encour-

Steve Smith MW

aging local wineries to proliferate – from 262 to 698 in the period – it also whetted the appetite for international investors. This witnessed some of New Zealand largest labels, such as Montana, Nobilo and Matua Valley, gobbled up by global drinks conglomerates.

As well as big changes in boardrooms, there’s also been a green revolution in the vineyards with the commercial introduction of Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ) in 1997. Now encompassing over 95% of the

country’s vineyard area, SWNZ has helped drastically cut the chemicals used on our vines and inspired a growing number to join the ranks of our rapidly increasing organic wine movement, which was virtually nonexistent in the nineties.

Our population is also drinking more wine now, with a per capita increase of 50% in the last 15 years.

And we’re choosing more of our own labels, assisted by a fivefold increase in our wine production.

I caught up with wineries cel-

ebrating 15 year anniversaries this year to discover what the last decade and a half has held for them:

Steve Smith MW Director of Wine and Viticulture, Craggy Range

1997 was an interesting time: just before the real boom in Marlborough and Central Otago happened, Martinborough was very much centered on the township, and no one outside New Zealand knew of the Gimblett Gravels. It was a time of untapped possibili-

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 75

we were mad buying such large parcels of the Gimblett Gravels in Hawkes Bay and Te Muna in Martinborough, at the time they were pioneering. The approach we took to viticulture and winemaking, and cornerstone principal of 100% Single Vineyard was different and it’s worked. I would have bet a very large amount that Syrah would not have been the most famous wine in our portfolio, but look what happened. It endorses the “anything’s possible” attitude!

Blair Walter

Blair Walter

ties particularly driving the New Zealand wine story outside Marlborough.

W h e n Te r r y P e a b o d y approached me to set up Craggy

Winemaker, Felton Road

Range in 1997, I knew the area soon to be known as the Gimblett Gravels was special, while Martinborough would create New Zealand’s most serious Pinot Noirs

and some very good Sauvignon Blanc, so away we went. It was unbelievably exciting, a chance to really create something special.

At the time people thought

Back in 1997 when we released our first wine, Felton Road was only a dirt track and wasn’t even on the local council’s 10 year plan to be sealed. With the increase in traffic and other vineyards being

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developed it was tar-sealed two years later. It was a time when there were just 151 hectares of vineyard planted in Central Otago (today there’s more than 1,500ha).

Felton Road always had solid aspirations to make the best possible wines and to be distributed internationally.

However, we had no idea that the quality had the potential to be so globally recognised and accepted as some of the most interesting wines of the world.

We are now in 35 countries in distributors’ portfolios that contain the world’s best wines.

The image of Central Otago wines in general has certainly helped immensely to establish such premium positioning. Being quickly globally recognised for the quality of our wines put us amongst a peer group where organics and biodynamics is almost a given. This inspired us to explore this area in 2000, begin our conversion in 2002 and become fully organic/biodynamic by 2006.

Graeme Avery President & CEO, Sileni Estates

When Sileni was established in 1997, there were just over 200 registered wine producers and apart

78

Graeme Avery

from the UK, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc had not really been discovered in other export markets.

Sileni did not have a Sauvignon Blanc until 2002 as we believed it would become a commodity and at the time preferred to use Semillon as our New Zealand white wine.

Our aspirations were to build a strong export oriented company, but not having Sauvignon Blanc from the outset was recognised as a major mistake. From 2004, when we had reasonable quantities and we picked up three trophies for the Cellar Selection Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2004 at the London International Wine Challenge, this

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

acted as a calling card and allowed us to more readily establish export markets in over 60 countries.

The New Zealand wine industry has grown enormously on the back of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, as reflected in export earnings today of over $1billion annually. Sileni has also grown, now ranking in the top 10 New Zealand wine companies, not a bad achievement in 15 years and considering there are now over 600 wineries!

Lorraine Leheny and Warren Gibson Founders and winemakers,

Bilancia

We returned to New Zealand at the beginning of 1997 after making wine overseas. The wine industry seemed to be in a very positive, forward motion. Lots of new companies were established over the next five or so years, both big and small.

One fortunate break for us was to secure a small parcel of Pinot Gris in 1998. There were less than 10 producers of Pinot Gris at that time and early success with that variety continues to be associated with our brand.

The 15 years since establishment have been an interesting

highway. We made the first wines under the Bilancia label from the 1997 vintage, released these wines in 1998, purchased the land for the la collina vineyard in 1997 and we began planting in 1998. Planting Syrah, particularly on a hillside in 1998 now almost seems pioneering. Syrah remains the reason we will leave our winemaking roots in Hawkes Bay. Good Hawkes Bay Syrah is one of New Zealand’s truly unique wine styles.

the North Bank didn’t exist as wine growing regions.

We did intensive soil research, which was one of the first times ever undertaken to that extent.

The multi-block irrigation system that we installed following this was regarded as innovative and resulted in us winning the Environmental Award by the Marl-

borough District Council in 1998 for the economic usage of a scarce resource such as water.

The last 15 years have been such an exciting ride in this industry, to watch it grow and to grow with it, the co-operation, respect, shared knowledge, support and friendship amongst most wineries. We have arguably the youngest wine

industry in the world yet we are one of the biggest success-stories in the wine industry in the 20th century.

The veterans’ view I also touched base with some long serving industry members to place the last 15 years within a wider context.

Dorien Vermaas Co-founder, Staete Landt Wines

When me and my partner, Ruud Maasdam bought our derelict apple and cherry orchard on Rapaura to change into a state-ofthe-art vineyard, Marlborough was the only place that had already some internationally well-known brands.

But back in 1997, it was still filled with orchards and sheep paddocks, and the bank manager of one of NZ’s biggest banks didn’t shake hands with me as a woman.

The Marlborough wine region was relatively small; the Awatere barely existed; there was no Southern Valleys water scheme so the Southern hills were hardly planted and Ward, Blind River and

Warren Gibson and Lorraine Leheny

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 79

Sir George Fistonich Founder and owner, Villa Maria

In the last 15 years we experienced huge developments. First,

there was the change in closure.

In the late 1990’s Villa Maria trialled screwcap and we decided to become 100% cork free in 2001.

The majority of New Zealand

wines are now sealed with screwcaps.

In the wines themselves we have seen, especially in the last 5 years, a huge leap in wine quality with far more discriminate use of oak (i.e. less new oak).

We discovered a new face of Sauvignon Blanc by developing single vineyard sites, focus on sub-regionality and introduced new styles, for example sparkling Sauvignon Blanc.

We also achieved a far greater sophistication of New Zealand Pinot Noir and are reaching new heights due to vine age, experimenting with natural yeasts, and ensuring malolactic fermentation takes place naturally.

Between 1982 and 1997 we saw a huge change in terms of plantings of new varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Riesling, Pinot Noir and the first plantings of Sauvignon Blanc. The knowledge of clones and vineyard sites was also much lower than in the last 15 years.

Philip Gregan Chief Executive Officer, New Zealand Winegrowers

What a ride! The last 15 years has probably been the most exciting and equally the most challenging in our industry’s history.

We have seen great success with exports rising to close to $1.2 billion and New Zealand wine becoming a major New Zealand export story. With success has come big challenges though, notably the supply demand imbalance since 2008 and tumultuous state of markets following the financial crisis.

Through it all, however, the fundamental reason for our success has gone from strength to strength – our fabulously high quality and distinctive wines just get better and better with each vintage!

Based on a piece originally published in the Viva section of The New Zealand Herald. ■ joburzynska@talk21.com

FIFTEEN YEARS IN FIGURES 1997-2012 Number of wineries: Hectares of vines: Value of exports:

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ost in the winegrowing industry will be aware that Dr Wendy Parr is a member of the Sauvignon Blanc multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional project.

82

It has been funded by the wine industry via New Zealand Winegrowers, The Ministry for Science and Innovation and some of the larger wine companies that provide in-kind resources like grapes

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

and access to vineyards for trials.

However most people are probably unaware of Wendy’s background and the skills she brings to this research. With a PhD in Psychology and working

in the areas of memory and decision making her interest in wine sensory science developed in the late 1990’s as she observed people assessing and judging wine.

She wanted to know what mental

processes were being triggered, what was going on in the mind of the taster?

She was intrigued by “what kind of memories do these people have to be able to taste a wine and say Chateaux such and such from 1964 or something similar” and started thinking about the tasting process from a scientific point of view.

At about this time her husband, ecologist Philip Simpson, was publishing his first book through Canterbury University Press and Parr was a little tired of being an academic so decided to go to Lincoln to learn how to be a winemaker and “do a little thesis on what this wine memory is all about”. Having previously bought a little piece of paradise in Golden Bay the couple decided to plant

a boutique vineyard at about the same time.

After the first year of study Lincoln University offered her a

scholarship if she would continue to PhD level in wine science (she

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completed her second PhD in 2003) and this gave her the opportunity to study in depth these ideas about how people could remember smells and tastes and what were the mental processes taking place when they were tasting wines.

Specific research like this can be a pretty lonely place and it was no different for Parr. She couldn’t find any researchers or colleagues in the English speaking world working in this field until about 2000 when she found some papers written in French by people thinking about the same issues.

After communicating with these researchers who were sensory scientists, psychologists and wine scientists they provided a scholarship for her to travel to Burgundy where they found they had a lot of

ideas in common. They have been collaborating ever since.

In 2005 the relationship deepened and she has been travelling to France each year spending time at Universities of Burgundy and Paris Eight and her science colleagues in France have spent time in New Zealand. They have been working together in research, experiments in France and New Zealand as well as writing academic papers, sharing ideas. The current research is looking into all Sauvignon Blanc from around the world to identify the key characters, the wine science behind the characters and how people perceive different flavour characters.

As a sensory scientist a key question for Parr is “how do people interpret one flavour or structure component from another and

what impact does this have on a range of criteria?” One string of the research involves looking at how different population groups perceive different characters and what do we have to do differently as a wine producing nation to alter the subtle characters of a wine, without compromising our base flavour components, to make our Sauvignon Blanc easier to sell in emerging markets. In other words what changes do we need to make to sell wine into the significant emerging Asian markets in particular.

Of course these changes need to take place firstly in the vineyards then in the wineries and finally in how we present our wines to these emerging markets. Hence the multi-disciplinary approach and the support from New Zealand

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Science and Innovation because this is all about increasing New Zealand wine exports.

As to Parr and Simpson Limestone Bay wines from Golden Bay, well this is the ultimate boutique, experimental vineyard. One acre of vines perched high on the limestone hills above Port Tarakohe is planted primarily in Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a few heritage vines from the Kermadec Islands. Micro ecologies around the vineyard include a small pond and plenty of herb borders to attract the good bugs.

Dr Wendy Parr is a person who is making a difference to the wine industry in New Zealand and contributing to international research, all from her little piece of paradise in Golden Bay. ■ neil@hodgson.net.nz

EDUCATION NEWS

EIT CERTIFICATE PROGRAMME T

he merger of Tairawhiti Polytechnic and EIT Hawke’s Bay early last year prompted a rethink of programmes and, as a result, EIT Tairawhiti’s Level 4 Certificate in Viticulture and Winemaking is now offered as the Certificate in Grapegrowing and Winemaking.

It will be led by Brent Laidlaw, who has been a winemaker for 17 years, working vintages in France, Marlborough and Waipara, although most of his career with Montana and then Pernod Ricard has been Gisborne-based.

The Certificate in Grapegrowing and Winemaking covers the same content as EIT Hawkes Bay’s like-named certificate, although there are some different aspects associated with the two campuses.

Most notably, Tairawhiti has a commercial winery on campus.

Programme coordinator Tim Creagh says the opportunity to study with a winemaker is a major attraction for students.

While the winery doesn’t handle a large crush, it does operate as a business doing contract work for local growers.

The students use the facility to make wine under various labels, including the institution’s own Cognoscenti.

Creagh says learning at EIT Hawkes Bay is structured around on-campus teaching, the institute’s own research winery and vineyard and field trips to the region’s wineries and vineyards.

Tairawhiti students learn vine management on the 1.6ha Waimata vineyard, which grows both red and white varieties.

Both campuses offer full and part-time study options. ■

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NEW TECHNOLOGY

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‘hands-free’ torch holder allows the wine to be seen in the sight glass during filling or emptying with ease. The unique cam lock on the Rack-it-Teer allows for quick and easy bung expansion & release and the retractable locking fingers stabilize the Rack-it-Teer during use, thereby reducing manpower during racking. The locking fingers also provide a positive seal without leakage or drawing in unnecessary air or losing purging gases.

The Rack-it-Teer contains dual gas ports, which allow for easy connection and bleed off, with a safety pressure release valve at 13 psi to prevent damage to the barrel from overpressurizing. Made of stainless steel, it is safe from corrosion and the wand is available in two standard lengths. *Assuming use of nitrogen as purging gas and dependant upon the size of barrel used. With certain ‘T’ cylinder connections, the Rackit-Teer can empty 18-20 barrels per cylinder of gas. ■

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 87

SOCIAL MEDIA

MAXIMISING CELLAR DOORS TESSA NICHOLSON

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ocial media could be utilised far more from the winery cellar door, than it is currently. That was one of the messages to come out of the first Cellar Door Initiatives, held in Marlborough and Hawkes Bay recently.

The aim of the programme, instigated by wine consultant Belinda Jackson, winejobson-

line’s Heather Battersby and social media expert Jamie Roy, is to future proof cellar doors, while increasing their viability and profitability.

Roy said while New Zealand wineries are already doing a great job with social media, it is not being leveraged by the people who come in daily contact with visitors.

“There is an opportunity to get

more of an impact from your cellar doors and pull those visitors into your social media channels.”

He believes there is no better fit, than wine and social media, given people who drink wine often want to talk about it and share their experiences with others. But there are numerous examples of people checking into different wineries, and instead of

being directed to one of the many pages like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare or G+ where the conversation can become global, they end up in cyberspace.

“Say someone comes along and says they are at this vineyard and they have checked in, (that message) creates a page on that network. Then other people have seen it and checked in to a page, which

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the business hasn’t actually created. It’s a missed opportunity.”

While not advocating that all social media should be directed from the cellar door, Roy says there needs to be a consolidation of effort between the marketing department and the people at the coal face. He also explained there is nothing to fear from the medium, given it doesn’t take an “IT geek” to establish or operate it.

“If you can search on Google, you can use social media. You do need to learn the tools and you do need to invest in the time, but you don’t need to be an IT geek to make it work for your business.”

What is important he said, is to ensure that someone is regularly posting, if not daily then at least every two or three days. That person needs to be able to engage the consumer/customer, with bite size pieces of information. That information can be about anything to do with the winery, vineyard, cellar door and happenings within the region.

“It’s not really all about con-

tent, it’s about creating a relationship. Don’t put a whole heap of content that is just about you.

You need to share and collaborate – that’s how you grow a presence in the on line space.”

And remember to relate to people in just the same way you would if having a conversation face to face.

“The conversation on social media is no different to the conversation you have when you meet someone. Make sure you have good manners. If there is a negative comment, then don’t have a go at the person. Listen to them and communicate in a way that allows you to take that problem off line so it can be dealt with.”

Most importantly though, don’t expect social media to be the answer to all your problems.

“You have to make sure you do all the things in the off line world first, before you go online. If your brand is not right in the off line world, it’s not going to correct itself in the online world.” ■ tessa.nicholson@me.com

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GRAZING SHEEP IN VINEYARDS TESSA NICHOLSON

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igher density sheep grazing with regular moving, is far more ideal than placing a few sheep among hectares of vines for long periods of time. That’s according to American holistic management expert, Kelly Mulville.

In New Zealand recently as a guest of NZWinegrowers, Mulville explained the benefits of using sheep as an alternative to expensive manual and mechanical labour.

Citing from Californian examples he said there can be between 12 and 25 tractor passes every row on an average vineyard. That compacts soils, impacts on beneficial insects and adds to the vineyards carbon footprint and fuel costs.

Sheep however are a different story, so long as you use them correctly. And to do that, Mulville said, you have to consider high-density placements, moved regularly.

“By high intensity I mean somewhere between 375 and 1000 sheep per hectare and grazing periods of no longer than three days. If you have more animals in a tighter space you are getting a more even graze of your plants, you get more even distribution of dung and urine. You end up with tighter plant communities, more litter distribution and it makes

all those eco system processes more effective. You get less run off and quicker improvements in soil health.”

Leaving small numbers of sheep on large areas for long periods of time tends to lead to over trampling of soil and patchy grazing of plants. Both are non beneficial to the vineyard overall.

Ideally Mulville said the vineyard should be split into sections for the sheep to move to. If that is not possible, moving the sheep into pasture away from the vineyards for a period of time, is another alternative.

On his own vineyard in America, Mulville has planted the rows so close together, that machinery is unable to operate, meaning he uses only manual labour or sheep for his day-to-day maintenance.

They do all the mowing, bud rubbing, early leaf plucking, and under vine maintenance. He has even designed a system that ensures the sheep don’t become enamoured with the fruit. It involves two wires either side of the canopy, set up prior to bud break, with a voltage of between 7,000 and 10,000.

“What I wanted to do was train the sheep so there was no incentive to get up and eat the leaves.

Basically what they are doing is leaving everything alone above that wire. Everything below it is

fair game.” The sheep also assist in seed sowing.

“We used grass and clover and literally hand sowed the seed and let the sheep do the job of trampling it in.”

The cost savings are high,

especially given the meat from the sheep can be on sold at high prices. (Between US$7.50 and $10 per pound of meat.)

With more and more New Zealand vineyards now adding sheep to the mix growers do need to be

aware of sheep measles. Lambs are prone to this disease, which while it doesn’t affect humans, does show up as unsightly cysts in lamb muscle tissue. Dogs are the primary carrier of the parasites responsible for the cysts. One dog

can shed as many as 250,000 eggs a day in their faeces and the eggs can survive on pasture for up to six months, If you are planning to graze sheep, then you need to ensure foreign dogs are not allowed to roam the vineyard. ■

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BRAGATO EXCHANGE

EXCHANGE STUDENT WIDENS HORIZONS MARY SHANAHAN

I

talian Bragato Exchange Scholar Andrea Bresolin expects his experience of the New Zealand wine scene to be among his most significant ever.

While he’s a bit nervous about travelling so far from his home village of Pasiano in north-eastern Italy, the 19-year-old is also excited about his first taste of a southern hemisphere winegrowing country.

During his month away, he is touring New Zealand’s wine regions, attending the Romeo Bragato Conference in Marlborough and visiting the School of Viticulture and Wine Science at the Eastern Institute of Technology in Hawke’s Bay – the sister school of the Scuola Enoligica di Conegliano where he is a weekday boarder.

Established in 2003 and co-sponsored by EIT and the Rotary Club of Taradale, the scholarship is aimed at fostering

When he isn’t at school, Bragato Exchange student Andrea Bresolin enjoys playing the trumpet.

an ongoing link between the Scuola di Viticoltura di Conegliano – where the father of New Zealand viticulture Romeo Bragato studied – and EIT. Bresolin already has an idea of

what to expect on his trip, having been told by last year’s Italian Bragato Scholarship winner, Nicola Manzan, that New Zealand is an amazing country and that Kiwis are very different from Italians.

His own preconceptions are that New Zealand understands the relationship between the vineyard and the environment and the role of new technology and machinery in a modern competitive viticultural industry.

Last year, his class, accompanied by a teacher, had an exchange with the School of Oenology in Oppenheim and visited wine cellars and vineyards in the heart of Germanys’ Rheinland-Pfalz – a wine region he found very different to those in Italy.

In his own region, he points out, every family has its own vineyard. But while viticultural methods are mainly traditional, modern growing systems are gaining ground.

The area is known for its Friuli Grave, Prosecco and the IGT designated wines Alta Livenza and Tre Venezie. ■ maryshanahan173@gmail.com

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INDUSTRY NEWS

EXPANDED NEW HOLLAND RANGE N

ew Holland has been at the forefront of speciality tractor innovations for sixty years, and has further enriched its industryleading range with the introduction of a brand new range topping 106hp T4060 F/N/V model. Kyle Baxter, New Holland Operations Manager says, “The entire T4000 F/N/V range has been significantly enriched with an upgraded hydraulic and PTO offering, and

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our customers operating on steep terrain will appreciate the mechanical park lock, which holds the tractor dead still when parked, significantly enhancing safety.”

available, and it is activated from the comfort of the cab via an on-off switch, a specific dial guarantees precision flow control.

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Speciality customers are becoming ever more demanding and are increasingly undertaking highly specialised tasks that necessitate a high power-output in a compact package. The T4060 model satisfies this requirement and is available in all three variants, orchard, narrow and vineyard. It boasts a 4.5 litre turbo charged and intercooled Nef engine that is fully compliant with B100, 100% biodiesel. Maximum power of 106hp is achieved at 2,300 rpm and a 31% torque rise means the T4060 is able to tackle the most demanding tasks, such as power harrowing, in the most challenging of environments.

The T4000 F/N/V range now features a factory-fitted dedicated mid-mount block with up to four remote valves that will satisfy the needs of vineyards. Intricate tasks such as pruning and mowing between vines can be carried out in absolute safety, free from trailing pipes.

The zero-leakage, proportional electronic mid-mount valves are intuitively controlled courtesy of an all new electronic joystick which falls perfectly to hand on the end of the right hand side control console. A dedicated motor connection guarantees up to 20 litres/minute of flow is always

ing environment encompasses extreme gradients of up to 45%, so safely holding the tractor in a parked position is of fundamental importance. In order to increase parking safety, New Holland has developed the mechanical parklock which is available in conjunction with the Dual Command™ transmission. This system guarantees 100% mechanical locking of the transmission, and prevents any forward or reverse creep when parked on steep inclines, even when a fully laden trailer is hitched. The park-lock is intuitively engaged either via a dedicated lever or via a specific ‘gate’ on the Creeper lever.

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RESEARCH POTENTIAL

PRIORITIES FOR ORGANIC RESEARCH W

hile organic winegrape production in New Zealand is expanding, research has been slow to match the surge in interest in this area. Organic Winegrowers New Zealand (OWNZ) commissioned Dr Samantha Scarratt (Wither Hills) to investigate what research has already been undertaken, what past scientific studies recommend for organic growers’ management choices, and where more research could be useful.

OWNZ surveyed organic growers to select the most pressing topics for the research review, in the hopes that New Zealand viticulture researchers will respond directly to organic growers’ needs in future research projects.

The key topics investigated in this research review included; weed management, the connection between soil biology and plant health, grass grubs and alternative sprays for botrytis.

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Scarratt’s investigation.

Weed management There are several different weed management techniques available to organic winegrowers, of which under vine cultivation is the most commonly used in

New Zealand. A few studies have looked at different weeding methods in vineyards (often comparing cultivation and other methods with herbicide), with only a very small number looking at weeding methods in organic vineyards (or comparing methods that organic

winegrowers can use).

In the studies reviewed, under vine cultivation did not damage mycorrhizal colonisation of grapevine roots, which is important, as mycorrhizal fungi may have a positive effect on shoot and root growth. Cultivation also

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 97

resulted in greater weed biomass when compared with herbicides, but more passes with the weeder reduced this. Therefore, it may be worth further investigating the effect of the number of passes with an under vine cultivator on weed biomass and soil properties.

Other ways of managing weeds, such as the use of mulches (including living mulches), showed promise when it came to reducing weed biomass, enhancing microorganisms and reducing soil water erosion; however, the high cost of mulches may make this practice not feasible. This is certainly an area of research worth further consideration in organic vineyards.

Currently, one of OWNZ’s top established research priorities is a more thorough evaluation of the

98

different weeding options available to organic growers. Anecdotal evidence from New Zealand growers suggests that different weeding techniques promote soil health and vine health in different vineyard situations (depending on climate, soil type, site vigour, etc), but formal research has not been done.

As a result, OWNZ recommends a practical study comparing all of the different possible weed management techniques in organic vineyards (cultivation, mowing, mulching, etc.) and their effects on weed biomass, soil properties, and vine growth, including comparisons of the associated costs of each practice.

Finally, the use of weeding techniques in vineyards may be

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

better thought of as an overall weed management plan, where more than one method of weed management is deployed, and this again would be worth investigating. Combining this research with an economic analysis of the different weeding options would prove valuable.

Soil biology and plant health Organic grape growers tend to focus on building soil health in order to build vine health.

However, there is limited information in the current research literature on the precise relationship between soil microorganism communities and a grapevine’s resistance to disease. Also, little is known about the effect of different vineyard management practices

on soil microorganisms.

The research suggests that organic management practices have a positive effect on soil biological activity. However, very few studies have linked the presence of soil microorganisms and a grapevine’s resistance to disease in organic systems. Two Marlborough studies have shown that through the use of different types of mulches, soil biological activity was increased and consequently Botrytis cinerea incidence was reduced. However, how this reduction in disease occurred was not clearly demonstrated.

Methods that have been found to enhance the presence of soil microorganisms include the use of cover crops, vermicomposts, organic mulches, permanent swards, biodynamic prepara-

tions, composts and compost teas.

However, firstly, caution must be expressed when suggesting that these techniques will always increase microorganisms, and secondly, importance must be placed on trying to encourage the right or beneficial microorganisms. Further research is needed in order to determine what microorganisms grape growers should be enhancing and then what effects these microorganisms will have on vine health and growth. There is also a need to further understand what effect various vineyard management practices (e.g. mowing, cultivating, use of cover crops, etc.) have on soil microorganisms.

Grass grubs Adult grass grub beetles have been found to severely defoliate grapevines and are considered a pest of grapevines and other horticultural crops. The larvae have been found to damage trunks and roots of grapevines, but not to the point that they contribute to vine death. In conventional viticulture, a broad spectrum insecticide is used to kill adults and thus reduce crop damage. However, in organic viticulture, only a few approved products can be used to alleviate some of the damage caused.

Grass grubs have been extensively studied, mainly due to their pest status as larvae in pastoral crops.

From this research, the product Bioshield was produced and can be used to reduce larval populations.

However, this product does not target the adults, and it is the adults which cause severe defoliation in grapevines. When it comes

to adult beetle control, organic winegrowers really only have one product available for use. That is the product Pyganic, a broad spectrum pyrethrum product that kills the adult beetles. However, it has not been exclusively tested for use on the adult grass grub and is highly toxic to other insects.

Recently, threshold levels and monitoring methods for grass grub were documented by New Zealand Winegrowers in a fact sheet. This fact sheet suggests that once threshold levels are reached, treatment should be used.

(This is not an overall organic approach, more reactive than proactive. A more proactive approach to Grass Grub control needs to be researched.)

The first priority for future research in this area is to quantify the amount of damage adult grass grubs beetles are doing to grapevines and consequently crop levels.

Secondly, the major priority is to investigate more ways of reducing adult beetles in vineyards (and this may need to be a two pronged approach, focusing on the larvae and the adults to reduce overall populations in organic vineyards).

Recently, there has been an increasing amount of grower interest in alternatives to synthetic chemicals for the management of this disease.

This interest has mainly been driven by the desire to reduce chemical residues in wines, and as a result of this, a few trials conducted in New Zealand vineyards have compared the

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efficacy of some of the biological fungicides available for botrytis control against conventional fungicides.

The results from these trials have varied, with products like Botry-Zen showing promise but having different levels of effectiveness against botrytis at harvest.

There may be several reasons why variation has occurred between trials, including different levels of disease pressure, and different vineyard management techniques (canopy management practices such as leaf plucking, bunch trash removal, and vineyard floor management practices such as sweeping, herbicide use, mulching).

It has not been demonstrated whether the combined use

Botrytis – a major concern for organic growers.

of biological products with conventional ones may affect efficacy of biological products (in one study, Switch was not applied early in the season so that biological products used later on would not be affected).

Studies which have looked at alternatives to synthetic chemical fungicides for botrytis control have shown that these alternative products can reduce botrytis incidence under low to moderate pressure. Some products (i.e.

compost teas) could warrant further investigation for the use of botrytis management in organic vineyards in New Zealand. Recent research reviews also suggest that alternative methods for managing botrytis in vineyards should be deployed in conjunction with each other, resulting in a more integrated method of botrytis management.

The full report is available online at the NZWine member’s page, under the Organics section. It is also available to any interested parties by contacting Organic Winegrowers New Zealand national coordinator Rebecca Reider on organicrebecca@ xtra.co.nz. OWNZ is particularly interested to hear from researchers and from growers interested in investigating these topics in further detail. ■

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DVD REVIEW

WINEMAKING DVD N

Z’s first ever documentary on the process of winemaking has just been released by two Auckland wine experts.

Passion and patience, a wine story, follows the winemaking process from the vine to the glass and offers a rare insight into the level of skill and hard work that goes into creating premium handcrafted wines.

Created by wine retailer, Ben Naden and winemaker Shayne Cox, and filmed in West Auckland, one of NZ’s oldest grape growing regions in New Zealand, the

“Passion and patience really sums up the wine making process, and we’ve tried to capture that, to give people a taste of what wine making is all about.” – Ben Naden project is a first for NZ and possibly the world, as no other film has shown behind the scenes winemaking in such detail.

The informative and entertaining film is narrated by winemaker Shayne, drawing on his 20 years of international wine making experience to show the

process of making white, rose and red wines, from vine grafting, grape growing and fermentation through to the use of wine additives and bottling.

Winemaking jargon is finally explained in layman’s terms, and while not made with winemakers in mind, it is an ideal staff-training

tool for both the general wine and hospitality industries.

Director Ben Naden said: “Passion and patience really sums up the wine making process, and we’ve tried to capture that, to give people a taste of what wine making is all about.

“So many of us love to learn about the different flavours of wine, and the regions the grapes come from, but there is very little out there about the labour of love that goes into the creation of it.

We believe even the most ardent wine drinkers will learn a lot from this film.” ■

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 101

EMPLOYER NEWS

WORKERS TAKING DRUGS NOT MY PROBLEM? K AY C H A P M A N FROM CHAPMAN E M P LOY M E N T R E L AT I O N S , NELSON

O

ne in six New Zealand adults uses drugs for recreational purposes. Ministry of Health statistics show regular drug users have four times the rate of accidents of others.

What does this mean for your business when you engage contractors?

It is a commonly held belief that the actions of your contractors’ employees are not your responsibility. After all they are not your employees so how can you be held responsible for their actions? This is not the case.

It is the Health and Safety in Employment Act that holds you responsible for the health and

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// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

safety of everyone at your workplace - contactors, their employees, and visitors, as well as your own employees.

You are responsible for managing and coordinating the overall health and safety programme of the workplace. Contracting out work doesn’t remove your responsibilities. It therefore follows that if there is a problem with drug use

amongst your contractors, you have a legal obligation to manage that problem to protect everyone at your place of work.

Managing your health and safety risks in relation to drug and alcohol use can be complex and getting expert assistance will help.

That said, the first step is developing a Drug and Alcohol Policy and the Department of Labour has a sample policy on their website for free. It is fairly basic, but it provides a starting point.

As part of the policy you may want to consider introducing drug and alcohol testing. Before doing this there are a number of fundamental questions you will need to ask yourself, a few of them being: What is your tolerance to drug use? If someone has a joint on a Friday evening and they are not

due at work until Monday, is that ok? What about the night before work? Where do you draw the line?

Both scenarios will be detected in drug a test.

When will you carry out a test – pre-employment, post-accident, reasonable cause or random testing (can you justify this)?

What will you do if a test indicates drug use – offer rehabilitation, dismiss for serious misconduct, tell the contractor that person isn’t permitted at your workplace?

Ultimately you are responsible for managing the risks of drug use at your workplace, irrespective of who the user is. Failure to do so can result in reduced productivity, injuries and potentially Department of Labour prosecutions, costing thousands. ■

RESULTING FINES If you need any further convincing to take action within the workplace, here are two examples of the fines businesses faced when health and safety went wrong with their contractors.

• Two electricity companies were fined $36,000 each for a mistake by one of the companies that resulted in injuries to two employees of the other company.

They were also ordered to pay a total of $20,000 in reparation to the employees.

• Silver Fern Farms were fined $40,500 and had to pay reparations of $20,000 to an employee of a contractor after she was injured when her arm was caught in an infeed conveyor.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

SIEGWALD UNDERVINE MOWER M

arlborough Tractor Services in Renwick is now the sole New Zealand importer and distributor of the Siegwald undervine mower and mulcher – a machine that allows for herbicide free undervine mowing.

They have been trialled in Marlborough and Marlborough Tractor Services’ Martin Roberts is now distributing the machines nationwide. “Organics is a growth market and growers are moving away from spraying, looking instead for other means of weed control,” he said. “While the organic market in New Zealand is still small, in Europe they have been practising organic farming for years and have designed machines that do the job.” Roberts notes that although there are alternatives in New Zealand the Siegwald is a mechanical mower as opposed to a hydraulic driven one.

“The biggest advantage is that the cutter heads are driven by cable drive versus hydraulic-driven motors, meaning lower costs of maintenance for the owner.” Even more beneficial, says Roberts, the components for the machine are available in New Zealand.

The machine addresses a number of organic philosophies not least the fact that it provides a herbicide free means of undervine mowing, weeding and mulching.

A combined four in one approach means that there is reduced soil impaction created by the mower and improved fuel

104

The Siegwald can be attached to the smallest of tractors further reducing the mower’s impact on the environment, and making it easy to use. efficiency. Low hydraulic demand also means that the Siegwald can be attached to the smallest of tractors further reducing the mower’s impact on the environment, and making it easy to use.

In a nutshell, the entirely mechanical driven machine uses swing discs and vine buffers which cut the grass and then sweep debris away from the vine trunks.

In one pass the machine performs four tasks:

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

• Swing discs with rotary blades cut between the vines using tension springs which allow the discs to lightly swing in and immediately out again on contact with the vine trunk.

• Rotating rubber buffers sweep the area directly under the vine trunk; performing a job similar to bud rubbing, acting to remove debris as well as working to slow regrowth around the vine trunk.

• Rip spikes integrated into the buffers loosen the soil around the vine trunk • A rotary mulch system mulches organic matter between the rows.

Trials have shown that the Siegwald’s tension springs allow discs to lightly swing in and out between the plants, and are sensitive enough to use on young vines.

The Siegwald undervine mower can operate in rows as narrow as 1.2meters and comes in ranges of up to 3.3meters making it ideal for vineyard or orchard use.

The mower can be viewed in operation at www.youtube.com/ tractorsnz ■

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 105

NZW GRAPE DAYS

TRENDRILS – SHOULD YOU REMOVE THEM? TESSA NICHOLSON

R

emoving rubbish from the vineyard floor after pruning is seen as an essential part of the botrytis prevention strategy. But what about the tendrils left on canes? Are they a botrytis risk?

Botrytis is an opportunistic disease, with spores hanging around until conditions are right before flaring into a major epidemic. NZ Wine’s fact sheet on the

106

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

The tagged tendrils.

disease says to control botrytis, it requires an integrated approach involving vigour control, canopy management, fungicide application and a reduction in botrytis inoculum. Achieving that reduction means growers have to ensure all material potentially carrying botrytis spores is removed dur-

while in Marlborough the spores develop only in certain climatic conditions. In Marlborough’s case all the tendrils were taken from Sauvignon Blanc, whilst a range of varieties made up the Hawkes Bay research.

“They were placed onto flagging tapes and returned to a single

Removing tendrils from canes laid down is estimated to be between 10 and 15 cents per vine, which means the industry is paying anywhere from $2.5 million and $5 million per annum on this one task.

ing the winter months. Up until recently, that has meant removing all dead wood after pruning, clearing rachi out of canes and removing tendrils. Research has shown the inoculum does survive on rachi, petioles and canes. But there has been no research determining if tendrils are also a source for over wintering spores.

Dion Mundy from Plant & Food at the Marlborough Research Centre said at a previous Grape Day, growers asked if there was any scientific reason to support the removal of tendrils. Not surprising when you consider the estimated labour cost of doing just that.

Removing tendrils from canes laid down is estimated to be between 10 and 15 cents per vine, which means the industry is paying anywhere from $2.5 million and $5 million per annum on this one task.

During the research project, dozens of tendrils were removed from previously botrytis infected vines in both Marlborough and Hawkes Bay. The two regions have differing levels of botrytis infection, with the spores known to be always present in the north,

vineyard in each region prior to the flowering sprays going on. Half of the samples were taken prior to pre flowering and the other half were collected after the pre bunch closure had gone on,”Mundy said.

The tendrils were incubated and then washed to dislodge any spores. The results were very different to those involving rachi.

The highest number of spores was 6000 per centimetre, which Mundy said may sound like a lot – but actually isn’t. He said in research trials they would inoculate an item with tens of thousand more spores, than those discovered on the tendrils.

“These were quite low spore numbers and by the second sampling (at pre bunch closure) they had been reduced greatly.”

In general the average number of spores per centimetre was higher for Hawkes Bay than Marlborough, which was consistent with other research undertaken. In terms of how the spore numbers compared to the research on rachi, Mundy said the tendrils produced quite a few less spores.

“And the spores we produced were incubated at optimum tem-

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peratures for seven days with high humidity. That was the maximum potential. We don’t expect you to ever experience those conditions out in the field. So in most situations, tendrils from a disease point of view could be left on. They are not really posing a big risk. And if you are spending a lot of money cutting them off and it’s affecting your profitability, I would recommend you don’t do it.”

But he did have a word of warning.

“If you are going to change any of your vineyard practises, either leave a small area where you do leave them, as a control, to see if it does make a difference to your final disease or vice versa. But our findings show that there is no need to have to cut those tendrils off to reduce disease risk.”

Botrytis on a dead berry.

There are two key periods when Botrytis infections are likely to occur: Flowering to bunch closure, when Botrytis infects senescing flower parts (such as flower caps and aborted berries); and Veraison to harvest, when ripening berries become susceptible to infection. Botrytis infections are favoured by warm wet weather.

ROTARY TRIMMERS

Disease pressure tends to be higher and more frequent in northern and western areas of the North Island, with lower pressure in eastern areas. Disease pressure is generally lower in the South Island, although Botrytis outbreaks may occur following warm rainfall at the key infection periods.

It has to be remembered that

- VTR Series

not all botrytis infections are a result of spores surviving over winter, Mundy said. They can also come in from other sources, such as a neighbour’s vineyard or other plants, given botrytis is not confined to grapes alone.

There are a multitude of options open to growers to help prevent an outbreak following fruit set.

These include shoot thinning, sprays, trash removal, leaf plucking, canopy exposure and even mechanical thinning.

In terms of preventing any spores hanging around the vineyard over winter, the advice is to remove cane prunings, either through mulching, burning or burial so they are no longer a source in the coming year. ■ tessa.nicholson@me.com

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REGIONS CENTRAL OTAGO

INNOVATION – FROST FIGHTING PETER OWENS

S

wiss-born Otto Muller is one of the pioneers in Central Otago, with a small nut farm based in Cromwell. He is also a highly qualified engineer, and has combined both his skills to invent and create machines to counter the harsh conditions of his new home.

Now aged 88, Muller emigrated to New Zealand in 1958, hving previously worked in India, and the US. Looking toward professional

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BIOLOGICAL & ORGANIC

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retirement he and wife Valda bought 80 hectares near the town of Cromwell with a view to establishing a walnut farm. Despite being advised that the ground was so barren it would grow nothing, he wasn’t deterred. Instead he set about improving soil conditions with a view to producing an organic product.

Among the issues he faced with the Central Otago environment, was a scarcity of water. Much of this problem has been solved by the design and introduction of sophisticated irrigation schemes.

It was the availability of such technology that made the commercial introduction of viticulture into Central Otago possible. However the region’s dramatic climate also produces some of the severest frosts in New Zealand. These have proved a very expensive problem for horticulturists and viticulturists alike.

Having lost young walnut trees over the years because of frost strike, Muller decided to take a fresh look at the problem. Using his engineering skills he concluded that the solution lay in the correct application over the young trees of the right combination of air, moisture and heat.

The machine he went on to build disperses warm air over his nut trees. However, unlike traditional heat-based frostprotection methods, the warm air stays low around trees instead of immediately rising into the atmosphere.

By forcing water into a furnace burning wood and other vegetable matter, Muller is able to combine moisture with hot air, making it heavier than cold air.

The warm, humid air is then sucked into a giant tractor-powered fan connected to the furnace, and blown out over crops. A rack in the furnace means water doesn’t extinguish the burning wood below.

Using tree prunings to burn in a former diesel tank to heat water to high temperature, it is surprisingly cost effective. The water is then sprayed as a very fine mist to circulate throughout the orchard. ‘‘Being warm moist air, the mist rises above ground level and replaces the colder air,’’ Muller says. “It is ideal for protecting young vines and at a very low cost.”

Since inventing and creating the machine, Muller has since patented the idea. ■

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BOB’S BLOG BOB CAMPBELL MW

CHINESE EDITION I am writing this in a hotel room in Shanghai. For the last three weeks I have been travelling in China. What a fascinating country!

M

y original reason for travelling to China was the opportunity to judge in the Shanghai International Wine Challenge.

That trip coincided with NZ wine promotions in Shanghai and Beijing and at VinExpo Asia Pacific in Hong Kong so NZ Winegrowers invited me to run tastings for the press and wine trade in each centre.

News of my impending travels spread to the Chinese owners of Paritua Vineyards in Hawke’s Bay who invited me to visit local wineries in Yantai, a Chinese wine region. Guangzhou-based Chateau Kiwi asked me to visit their underground wine storage caves before running a tasting of NZ wines in Xi-An, home of the Terracotta warriors. It was going to be less of a visit and more of a tour!

China makes more wine

YANTAI

than either Chile or Australia according to the font of all knowledge, Wikipedia. It ranks as the world’s fifth largest wine producer.

Wine was made in China 4600 years ago although the modern wine industry really started in the late eighteenth century when the country’s largest winery Changyu was first

established. I visited Changyu’s wine museum in Yantai and discovered that it is the fourth largest wine company in the world with wine investments in many countries including New Zealand. Changyu owns a share of Karikari Estate winery in Northland.

Chinese wine falls into two categories; cheap and prestige.

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Cheap Chinese wines are pretty ordinary while the prestige labels seem to be outrageously expensive. The most expensive Chinese wine I tasted was a red wine by Changyu winery that my host told me had a retail price of $1,500. It was a blend of Cabernet Gernischt and Cabernet Sauvignon. Cabernet Gernischt is believed to be a rela-

tive of either Cabernet Franc or Carmenere brought into China from France in the late 1800s.

An elegant, supple and quite complex red it rates as the most impressive Chinese wine I’ve tasted by a comfortable margin.

But for a similar price I could buy top Bordeaux red from an outstanding vintage or nearly two cases of Te Mata Coleraine 2009. In terms of value it simply doesn’t stack up.

That might be about to change. Serious investment into the development of quality Chinese wine from heavy-hitting international wine producers means that someone is likely to hit pay-dirt in such a vast country.

Thirteen out of China’s 22 provinces are currently producing wine. In the north of the country it gets so cold in winter that the vines have to be buried under 30cm of soil to keep them alive. Coastal regions such as Yantai, can battle to fully ripen grapes while disease can be problem during the humid summer months – although I was fascinated by the ancient, crumbly clay/schist soils in some of the vineyards I visited. One promising areas is Yunnan in the south.

Although it is roughly parallel to

Sir George Fistonich in Hong Kong talking to local media.

Hong Kong, vineyards are at high altitudes of around 2000 metres and looking promising.

drain our glasses. I was warned it would be offensive to refuse.

I survived by discretely asking the waiter to pour very small portions.

I was told that Chinese people find the western habit of drinking a glass or two of wine without offering toasts rather odd and fairly anti-social. There is little doubt that the practice of Gan bei stimulates wine, beer and spirit consumption. It’s worth noting that China has a zerotolerance drink/drive policy.

The market for NZ wine Drinking traditions One Chinese custom that I know many visiting Kiwi winemakers find slightly unnerving is the toast, or gan bei. Gan bei literally translates to “dry glass” and is the equivalent of “bottoms up”. I was frequently invited to join perhaps a dozen people at dinner. As soon as the wine had been poured one of the dinner guests would leap to his feet and say “gan bei”. We would then click glasses and drink every drop. The glasses were quickly refilled.

There was always a constant stream of dinner guests wanting to click glasses with me, the honoured guest. We were obliged to

China is apparently this country’s fastest growing wine market. Faced with a vastly different language and culture it is probably one of the most difficult wine markets to crack although the potential for growth is exciting.

I attended a session with the local press in Hong Kong where four winemakers talked about the trials and tribulations involved in selling wine to China and Hong Kong. Nick Nobilo of Vinoptima stressed the importance of spending a great deal of time in the market to better understand it. He has his own “man in China” to fast-track a path through a cultural jungle.

Jim Robertson of Pernod Ricard NZ was probably the target of a little peer envy when he revealed how their well established sister company handles distribution for Brancott Estate’s wines. He did stress the importance of wine education to an audience that is so obviously ready to learn.

Martin Tutty from Babich mentioned that after a few false starts they had found a distribution company that had sympathetic values to their own family company. Working closely with a distributor that is on the same wave length is the key to their success.

Charlotte Read, representing Villa Maria, also emphasised the importance of having a good distributor and offering them plenty of support, particularly educational support. Although New Zealand’s two top export wines to China are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Charlotte believes that will soon change and that Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir are destined to become top sellers. In the past few days she had conducted tastings for several large groups of relatively young people. Sauvignon Blanc was voted favourite wine in every case. ■

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 113

INDUSTRY NEWS

BIOLOGICAL VITICULTURE AT GLADSTONE VINEYARD K Y L E M A S O N , V I T I C U LT U R A L I S T

G

ladstone Vineyard has been with BioAg since the products were first released in New Zealand four years ago(2007). We were very much conventional growers with high chemical inputs focusing on the symptoms not the cause.

The change came at a seminar

Steven Haswell presented which challenged the conventional system and exposed its flaws. Leaving the seminar I was inspired to start looking at the whole picture.

With the help of Steven and Bruce Smith (BioAg agent) my vineyard management moved from applying quick fix prod-

ucts to looking at the underlying causes and building a solid foundation from the soil up. The new approach required us to stand back and see the patterns around us. The initial vineyard walks with Steve and Bruce opened my eyes to a new and exciting world.

If I am honest the first couple

of years in which pest, disease and weed control products were slowly dropped from the system were nerve racking. I was worried that for example when Systhane was removed from the system we would have powdery outbreaks and that the reduction in botryticides would lead to the fruit being

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un-harvestable. At the time I was obsessed with herbicide because having a weed free strip under the vines all year round was seen as “good vineyard management”.

Our Home Block has had 20 years of herbicide applied to the undervine strip and until we changed our system had major Mallow problems. I thought I needed to increase my rates to wipe it out but it just seemed to be getting worse.

I now know that Mallow thrives in unhealthy soils and by significantly reducing herbicide rates and applications and applying BioAg’s Soil & Seed regularly as a soil drench Mallow has disappeared and the under-vine strip is now dominated by grasses and clovers; worm numbers are on the increase also.

In the first 2 years under the

new system the vines quickly came into balance. Shoot size and growth are very even and we have not needed to shoot thin for 3 years. The vine balance means fruit thinning is hardly ever required – the vines are naturally at target yields. We have had a very consistent crop across all varieties regardless of the season for a number of years now.

Another early observation is that the vines are much better

equipped to handle heat stress midsummer with a full crop load and limited or no irrigation - basal leaves are not senescing and the canopy is staying cool.

Our cover cropping along with strategic mowing and the use of the BioAg products has brought the vineyard alive both above and below ground.

Botrytis is no longer the major issue it used to be. Over the last 4 years we have slowly reduced

the number of botryticides we apply. We originally had a 5% and 80% capfall application then a pre bunch closure application. Last season half the vineyard had one botryticide at 80% and the other half had an extra BioAg Roots & Shoots at flowering but no botryticides. Both parts of the block had no botrytis at harvest even though we had a long period of high botrytis pressure near the end of the season. ■

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NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 115

REGIONS HAWKES BAY

HAWKES BAY CLOSURE MARY SHANAHAN

P

ernod Ricard New Zealand has closed a winemaking plant in a Napier industrial suburb to consolidate its Hawkes Bay operations at the higher profile Church Road Winery in Taradale.

Managing director Fabian Partigliani said the Hawkes Bay Winery had been “significantly under-utilised” since the company sold a dozen brands – including Lindauer and Corbans – to brewing giant Lion and its joint venture partner Indevin in 2010.

Located at the far end of a cul de sac in the industrial area of Pandora, the winery was operated as a production facility and did not offer cellar door sales or other visitor facilities. However, the plant underwent a considerable upgrade a decade or so ago.

The lights at the Hawkes Bay Winery, formerly called the Corbans Winery, were turned out

at the end of June. The closure impacted on 13 full-time jobs.

Pernod Ricard took ownership of the winery as part of the French company’s acquisition of Allied Domecq in 2005.

New Zealand’s largest win-

emaker plans to invest new capital into the nearby Church Road Winery, which Partigliani said was considered a core strategic brand for the company. The winery, founded in 1897, underwent extensive renovations in 1989.

“As a company operating in a highly competitive market, our strategy is to focus on growing core brands through strong brand investment and innovation supported by an efficient, flexible and cost-effective operational base.” ■

MORE NEWS Sacred Hill Vineyards has signalled an expansion of its operations with the launch of a new company to drive sales and distribution within New Zealand and overseas.

Sacred Hill Vineyards managing director David Mason says that after 25 years of focusing on crafting some of New Zealand’s best wines, the Hawkes Bay-based business will be more actively promoting its portfolio.

“The launch of Sacred Hill Wine Company will create approximately a dozen new jobs domestically and in the medium term will see further expansion of our portfolio into international markets such as Australia and the USA.” Brands include Sacred Hill Orange Label, Halo and Special Selection tiers as well as Ti Point, Whitecliff, Gunn Estate and Wild South.

“Previously, Hancocks Wine & Spirit Merchants has distributed Sacred Hills’ award winning wines in New Zealand,” Mason said, “and we would like to acknowledge their long support of our brands.”

Sacred Hill also acknowledged assistance provided by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise in developing markets and building internal capability over recent years.

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CALENDAR AUGUST 22–24

Romeo Bragato Conference – Marlborough Convention Centre – Blenheim

22

23

Wednesday 22 August 1.45 pm (in the lunch session at Bragato)

Thursday 23 August 12.45 pm (in the lunch session at Bragato)

NZGGC AGM

WINZ AGM

Full details and registrations at www.bragato.org.nz

SEPTEMBER 1

Gibbston Valley Celebrates 25 years of winemaking with 5 course degustation meal

GIBBSTON VALLEY WINERY

Tickets $120, available by phoning 03 442 6910, or email RSVP@ gibbstonvalleynz.com

4–6

Spieglau International Wine Competition Blenheim

10 -12

New Zealand International Wine Show judging Auckland

14

Entries close for Air New Zealand Wine Awards

14 – 16

The Food Show CBS Canterbury Arena

17

New World Wine Awards Winners announced

29

Awards Dinner – New Zealand International Wine Show – Crowne Plaza – Auckland

OCTOBER 11

23

Wineworks Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc Yacht Race 2012

Final day for Judging samples for Air New Zealand Wine Awards

Celebrating the new release of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2012 Email Juliet at race.wine@gmail. com for more information.

In both Wellington and Auckland

15 – 17

The Marlborough Wine Show judging Blenheim

NOVEMBER 5-7

Air New Zealand Wine Awards Judging Auckland

24

Air New Zealand Wine Awards tasting at Westpac Stadium

24

Air New Zealand Wine Awards Dinner TSB Arena, Wellington

Wellington

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

26 – 28

2

Pinot Noir 2013 Wellington

117

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

Nelson International Aromatic Symposium

WHERE

EVENT

ATTENDANCE

AUDIENCE

UK

The Three Wine Men Consumer Fair (London)

NZW

C

22-23 Sep

UK

The Three Wine Men Consumer Fair (Cardiff)

NZW

C

6 – 7 Oct

UK

London New Release Trade Tasting

NZW

TM

24 Oct

UK

The Wine Gang Consumer Fair (London)

NZW

C

3 Nov

UK

The Wine Gang Consumer Fair (Edinburgh)

NZW

C

10 Nov

UK

The Wine Gang Consumer Fair (Bath)

NZW

C

24 Nov

UK

The Three Wine Men Consumer Fair (Manchester)

NZW

C

1-2 Dec

UK

The Three Wine Men Consumer Fair (London)

NZW

C

8-9 Dec

Sweden

New World Wine Day – Stockholm

NZW

C

date to be confirmed

Ireland

Dublin Annual Trade & Consumer Tasting

W, A, NZW

T,M,C

7 Feb 2013

UK

London Annual Trade & Consumer Tasting

W, A, NZW

T,M,C

15 Feb 2013

Japan

NZ Wine Fair For Japan (Tokyo)

W, A, NZW

T,M,C

19 Feb 2013

W=Winery A=Agent NZW=NZ Winegrowers

2029-08 layout 9/5/08 10:51 AM Page 1

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY CMY

M=Media T=Trade C=Consumer

EVENT DATE 2012

K

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STATISTICS

SUMMARY OF KEY INDICATORS

PRINCIPAL EXPORT MARKETS Exports up again

Following is a summary of key indicators at intervals:

1985

1990

1995

2000

2010

No. of Growers

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

1128

Exports for the 12 months to end of June 2012 (Moving Annual Total)

No. of Wineries

n/a

n/a

204

358

672

Producing area (Ha)*

5,900

4,880

6,110

10,197

33,428

Country

8.0

$/L 2012 $/L 2011

Average yield (t/Ha)

13.2

14.4

12.2

7.8

Tonnes crushed

78,000

70,265

74,500

80,100

266,000

Total production (m.L) 59.6

54.4

56.4

60.2

190.0

Domestic sales (m.L)

42.6

39.2

30.9

41.3

56.7

(litres NZ wines)

13.1

11.7

8.7

10.6

13.0

Export volume (m.L)

0.8

4.0

7.8

19.2

142

Exp. value (m.$NZ fob) 3.0

18.4

40.8

168.4

1041.0

Litres (m)

United Kingdom 57,656

$ Fob Average Average

284,020

$5.55

Per capita consumption:

*estimate of probable total scaled up from actual returns

USA

39,480

251,329

$6.37

$7.20

Australia

53,473

380,472

$7.12

$7.46

Canada

6,508

70,906

$10.89

$10.37

Netherlands

4,585

26,743

$5.83

$6.74

Denmark

1,004

6,565

$6.54

$6.81

Ireland

2,158

16,326

$7.56

$8.48

Japan

1,118

12,890

$11.52

$12.28

1,429

7,639

$5.35

$7.09

2,200

25,233

$11.47

$11.33

Hong Kong

1,523

18,392

$12.07

$13.49

Singapore

1,149

114,514

$12.63

$12.02

Finland

0.219

2,134

$9.72

$9.16

Norway

0.199

1,451

$7.27

$9.07

Sweden

1.397

11,424

$8.17

$8.31

Others

4.706

46,637

$9.91

$9.81

TOTAL

178,813

1,176,685

$6.58

$7.07

MAJOR NZ VINEYARD AREAS Region (Actual)

2010 (Forecast)

2012 (from 2010)

% Change Area (2010)

% Total

Marlborough

19295

19570

+1.4%

57.7%

Hawkes Bay

4947

5046

+2.0%

14.8%

Gisborne

2083

2003

-3.9%

6.2%

Otago

1540

1543

+0.2%

4.6%

Canty/Waipara

1779

1828

+2.7%

5.3%

Wairarapa/Wgtn

871

885

+1.6%

2.6%

Nelson

842

880

+4.6%

2.5%

Auckland

550

573

+4.1%

1.6%

Waikato/BoP

147

147

n.c.*

0.4%

National total

33428

33600

+0.5%

100.0%

Germany

China

MAJOR VARIETIES IN MAJOR AREAS New Zealand’s total producing vineyard will increase by only 0.5% over the next 2 years. This table shows the variation for major varieties (in Ha), with % change and percentage of total in 2012.

Variety (Actual)

2010 (Forecast)

2012 (from 2009)

% Change Area (2011)

% Total

Sauv. Blanc

16910

17297

+2.2%

44.3%

Chardonnay

3865

3792

-1.9%

11.3%

Pinot Gris

1763

1764

n.c.*

4.3%

Riesling

986

1009

+2.3%

2.7%

Gewurztraminer

314

290

-7.7%

0.9%

Semillon

185

182

-2.7%

0.5%

Pinot Noir

4773

4828

+1.1%

13.9%

Merlot

371

1403

+2.3%

4.0%

Cab.Sauvignon

519

521

+0.4%

1.5%

Syrah

297

300

+1.0%

0.8%

Cabernet Franc

161

162

n.c.*%

0.5%

+2.5%

0.5%

Malbec Total

157

33428

161 33600

+0.5%

*(npr = not previously recorded separately) *n.c. = no change

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 119

RESEARCH SUPPLEMENT Information and Updates on NZ Winegrowers Research Programmes.

Associate Editors: Philip Manson, Science & Innovations Manager • Dr Simon Hooker, Research Programme Manager

A regular feature at the back of each issue of WineGrower to inform industry people about research projects being undertaken for their benefit. Newly approved projects (when available) are briefly summarised in the first section ‘Introducing New Projects’. Longer reports in the section headed ‘Progress Reports’, will describe what has been achieved so far. Scientists in charge of each project have been asked to make these reports reader-friendly rather than to follow the usual format of scientific papers. When completed, each project will be reported in full detail, with references, on the website: http://winenf.nzwine.com/research:asp

LIST OF PROJECTS Quality Wine Styles for Existing and Developing Markets Identification of natural genetic variation in grapevine contributing to pathogen resistance Lincoln University (Chris Winefield) Unlocking New Zealand Pinot noir aroma through aroma reconstitution approach Auckland University (Paul Kilmartin) Understanding the accumulation of fruit based green aromatic methoxypyrazine compounds in Marlborough Sauvignon blanc grape berries Plant and Food Research (Jeff Bennett) Early defoliation: carryover and hand versus mechanical Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) (Mark Krasnow) Potassium nutrition of grapevines Plant and Food Research (Mike Trought) The development of a functional genomics tool for the capture and characterization of transposon mutants in Vitis Vinifera (PhD Scholarship) Rod Bonfiglioli Scholarship Lincoln University (Darrell Lizamore) The Effect of Post-Harvest Defoliation on Carbon and Nitrogen Balance of High Yielding Sauvignon Blanc Vines Plant and Food Research (Marc Greven) Identification of metabolites in high-thiol grape juices Auckland UniServices Ltd (Silas Villas-Boas)

120

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

Investigation of perceived minerality in white wine Lincoln University (Wendy Parr) Identification and quantification of chiral volatile compounds in New Zealand wines that affect aroma Lincoln University (Roland Harrison) Tools for manipulating Sauvignon blanc wine flavour and aroma: Harvest and processing of grapes Plant and Food Research (Claire Grose)

Pests and Disease Implementation of Virus Elimination Strategy Various (Nick Hoskins – Project Manager) Supported by MPI Sustainable Farming Fund A sex pheromone as a citrophilus mealybug monitoring tool (2011-12) Plant and Food Research (Jim Walker) Cryopreserved grapevine: a new way to maintain high-health germplasm and cultivar imports with less rigorous quarantine regulations Plant and Food Research (Ranjith Pathirana) Managing Botrytis in New Zealand Viticulture Vino Vitis Ltd (Ruby Andrews) Botrytis decision support (BDS) industry training & botrytis sampling protocols Plant and Food Research (Rob Beresford)

Understanding causes of slip skin Plant and Food Research (Rob Beresford) Improving management of grapevine trunk diseases in New Zealand South Australian Research & Development Institute (SARDI) (Mark Sosnowski) Detection of Plasmopara viticola (grapevine downy mildew) oospores in New Zealand Plant and Food Research (Peter Wood) Describing GLRaV-3 sequence variants in New Zealand Plant and Food Research (Robin MacDiarmid)

Sustainability/Organics Organic Focus Vineyard Project Organic Winegrowers New Zealand (Rebecca Reider) Supported by MPI Sustainable Farming Fund Residue profile in grape leaves and sheep meat and offal from leaf plucking in vineyards Agrivet Services Ltd (Ben Vlaming) Satellites for improved irrigation advice Plant and Food Research (Marc Greven) Supported by MPI Sustainable Farming Fund Cost Reduction/Increased Profitability New opportunities for sustainable grape thinning Plant and Food Research (Mike Trought) Supported by MPI Sustainable Farming Fund

PROGRESS REPORTS

Can canopy management be used to determine grape composition at harvest?

Professor Brian Jordan, Scott Gregan and Linlin Liu. Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Centre for Viticulture & Oenology, Lincoln University 10 - 101 Talking with industry colleagues, we have always got the impression that they want advice from scientists to be as clear and unambiguous as possible. Essentially, they require advice that they can “act upon” without unnecessary details.

Scientists however, by their nature and discipline tend to be less willing to commit themselves; i.e. “the need for further testing”. There is nevertheless, a middle ground in which scientists can give the best advice based on the present state of knowledge. The industry person is then very capable of deciding if this advice can be beneficial to their own vineyard management strategy. In this article, we hope to be able to provide such advice relating to canopy management and light exposure. Over the last 4 years we have investigated changes in Sauvignon Blanc grape biochemical composition throughout development, mainly in response to canopy manipulation and light exposure (Figure 1). We have determined the effects in detail on a number of major chemical groups that are important to viticulturists and winemakers including flavonoids/flavonols, antioxidants, amino acids and

aroma compounds.

Methoxypyrazines Methoxypyrazines are essential components of the aroma profile of Sauvignon Blanc. To predict the grape juice composition of methoxypyrazines a number of factors are important: Maximum levels are achieved pre-veraison and as the decline is consistent this preveraison level will reflect the final outcome at harvest.

The climate has a significant effect on levels of methoxypyrazines. In particular cool climate gives slow development and increased levels pre-veraison.

Although maintaining leaves, particularly early in the season, may increase levels of methoxypyrazines, the role the leaves play is extremely unclear (provide shade, lower temperature or provide assimilates).

The fact that the methoxypyrazines are predominantly in the skin and are water soluble should be taken into consideration (for

Sauvignon Blanc bunch exposed to direct sunlight, showing pigmentation at harvest.

The reverse side of the same bunch, naturally shaded from sunlight.

Figure 1.

Two sides (exposed and shaded) of the same Sauvignon Blanc bunch showing the effect of direct sunlight irradiation on the outer berries compared to natural shading on the inside of the bunch.

Figure 2.

The effect of leaf removal on (a) methoxypyrazine concentration, (b) proline concentration and (c) total UV absorbing compounds in Sauvignon Blanc grapes during berry development.

instance, effects of skin contact and pressure).

It is important to note that some chemicals in the juice (or additives) could potentially reduce methoxypyrazine levels by precipitation.

The region and climate will determine the methoxypyrazine levels. Taken together, these factors will have a major influence on the methoxypyrazine content of the wine.

General experience suggests levels in the wine are a reflection of juice levels. It is therefore important to optimise the juice levels at harvest. For example, in a cool year maintaining the leaves over the fruiting zone pre-veraison will lead to higher methoxypyrazine levels at harvest (Figure 2a). In a warm year, the overall

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 121

Table 1. Amino acid concentrations in Sauvignon Blanc berries from samples taken at harvest.

concentrations can be expected to be lower and canopy manipulation (leaf removal) may not be as important for maintaining methoxypyrazine levels. What-ever the season though, post-veraison leaf removal does not appear to influence methoxypyrazine levels substantially.

Amino Acid (uM)

Canopy Management treatment Canopy control

Leaf removal

NON-YAN Proline

1153

610

YAN Argnine

974

771

Amino Acids

Lecuine

613

366

Amino acids are a major source of nitrogen in grape berries. In contrast to methoxypyrazines, there is little ambiguity about the effects of leaf removal on amino acid levels.

Remove leaves virtually at any stage of development and you will reduce the amino acids in the berries/juice at harvest (Table 1).

This reduction is significant and must be considered for yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) and for the role of amino acids as precursors for other important compounds (see Jordan (2009) NZ Winegrower 13(2) 86-87). The high levels of non-YAN proline produced late in berry development are also a problem (Figure 2b). Why this takes place will require further study and could provide future approaches to prevent this increase.

For instance, proline shares common pathways with other biochemical intermediates and therefore some preferential selection could be achieved. Alternatively screening could potentially be used to identify low proline producing clones. However, in the short-term this issue could be addressed to some extent by using microbes that can utilise proline during fermentation such as Pichia kluyveri.

Glutamine

853

502

Flavonoids Flavonoids, specifically flavonols (quercetin and kaempferol) in Sauvignon Blanc increase on exposure to light/UV-B radiation (e.g. by leaf removal). Leaf removal at any stage will induce an increase in these compounds, but different types are formed depending on the particular developmental stage the light exposure occurs (e.g. particularly after veraison). After a canopy manipulation, if leaves are allowed to naturally re-grow, the levels of flavonols in the berries will decline (Figure 2c). Thus there is an ability to manipulate flavonoid exposure throughout berry development by exposure to UV/light. Flavonoids have a number of properties that are important for wine making, including being strong antioxi-

122

// NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012

Theronine

817

465

Others

2930

1791

TOTAL

7340

4505

dants. In addition, we believe that a similar UV-B induced response will take place for other antioxidants, such as glutathione (see below).

Overall, we believe an increased antioxidant potential could be a major benefit of canopy manipulation.

will increase antioxidants such as flavonoids and glutathione (collaboration with Otago University indicate this) and increased enzyme activity such as from polyphenol oxidase (causing browning).

These complex metabolic events in the grape/juice could lead to many important changes in aroma compounds such as thiols, alcohols and esters in the wine. In relation to thiols, we have also observed that maintaining leaves increase the thiol levels in the wine.

Other Compounds There is little doubt that UV/light exposure through leaf removal will influence many aspects of the juice composition. For instance, UV increases pathogenesis-related (PR) protein levels that are a major cause of “haze” in wine and need the addition of finings (e.g. bentonite) to remove them.

UV/light exposure gives a different appearance to juice which may reflect increased polyphenols and oxidation potential. UV-B

Conclusions It is important for the winemaker to know the composition of the grape juice to give them flexibility and potential to develop wine styles.

Given the clear objective of a defined composition, the viticulturist should have a knowledge

Table 2: The effects of UV/light exposure on Sauvignon Blanc biochemical composition

• Levels of flavonoids, specifically flavonols, can be used as an indicator of bunch exposure to light. In particular the UV-B component regulates the levels of these compounds.

• Levels of methoxypyrazines are difficult to predict with any certainty.

However, a number of factors should be considered that will influence the likely levels at harvest (see text).

• Amino acid levels will be influenced substantially by leaf removal.

• Amino acids are not likely to be influenced by UV-B exposure.

• UV/light exposure will influence many other components of the grape juice and resulting wine.

• Antioxidant levels are raised by exposure to UV-B/light.

• Other environmental parameters will influence the UV-B response.

• Different cultivars may respond differently to UV-B. • The developmental stage will determine the nature of the UV-B response.

• UV/light exposure will affect grape disease: – by direct impact of UV-B on pathogens – by regulating the plants cellular defence mechanism.

base to create an environment in the vineyard that will give the appropriate grape juice composition. Clearly there is a balance of what compounds are required and the requirement to reduce the prevalence of disease in the vineyard. Given the results from our research, the timing and extent of canopy manipulation can be used as a mechanism to achieve the desired

outcome (Table 2). It is however also possible to consider complementary approaches such as different trellis regimes or row orientation.

Acknowledgments We would like to acknowledge the contribution of colleagues at Lincoln University, Massey University, Otago University, Plant and Food

Research, International collaborators and in particular wine industry colleagues for sharing their experience and insight.

Financial support has been provided by the Ministry of Science and Innovation Sauvignon Blanc programme, New Zealand Winegrowers, Lincoln University and International Travel Fellowships.

New opportunities for sustainable grape thinning Mike Trought, Sue Neal and Dion Mundy 11-101

The production of high quality wine starts in the vineyard by growing fruit capable of delivering optimum grape flavour attributes. This has to be done profitably, minimising costs and maximising the return to growers and wineries. In recent years (2008 to 2011), grape yields above target have meant that growers had to remove fruit. This was generally done by hand thinning vines after fruit set, a labour intensive and expensive exercise. A programme was started in 2009 investigating the use of machine harvesters to thin Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling vines shortly after fruit set. Initial concerns that mechanical thinning may increase disease (in particular the incidence of botrytis bunch rot) proved unfounded.

In fact, the machine-thinned vines had the same or lower severity of botrytis bunch rot as the control vines at harvest.

The programme has been extended in the 201112 growing season to evaluate mechanical thinning on different varieties (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Merlot and Riesling) in Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay. Unlike previous trials, which used a standard machine setting, the current project is intended to develop protocols to thin vines to predetermined levels by adjusting machine settings (ground speed, beater frequency, beater pinch etc.).

The amount of fruit removed by the machine at thinning was determined by placing plastic trays under the canopy and weighing the amount of fruit shaken off during thinning (Figure 1). The fruit in the canopy above the trays was harvested to give a total vine yield at thinning. Using data collected from this and trials conducted from 2009 (funded

Thinning vineyards after fruit set using a Gregoire harvester. Trays laid out under the vines to catch thinnings (left); sieving thinnings to remove trash and berries <5 mm in diameter .

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 123

Joanne Brady, Constellation NZ Ltd, left; Sue Neal, PFR.

Weighing the fruit removed, Joanne Brady and Mike Trought.

by New Zealand Winegrowers), the proportion of fruit removed from the vines could be estimated (Figure 2).

When the weight of fruit collected in the trays under the vine was expressed as a proportion of vine yield at thinning, a relationship could be developed which suggested that the total vine yield loss at harvest was 56% greater than that measured under the vine at thinning. The reduction in yield at harvest reflects the additional losses caused by shrivelling of bunches/berries and the smaller berry size following machine thinning.

In 2012, when the project was extended to these different regions and varieties, no increase in disease was detected with the mechanical thinning treatments. In fact, field incidence and severity of botrytis were the same at four sites and significantly lower at two of the sites. Additional analysis is currently underway to determine if bunch openness, trash removal or berry resistance can accurately predict when observed disease will be lower in the mechanically thinned treatments.

Acknowledgements: We appreciate the funding from New Zealand Winegrowers and The New Zealand Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI Grant No. 11/110), and also the support of Matador Estate, Villa Maria (Hawke’s Bay), Pernod Ricard NZ (Marlborough), Constellation NZ Ltd (Marlborough), Wither Hills Ltd (Marlborough), Mt Riley Wines (Marlborough), Chaytor Vineyards Ltd and all their staff who have made this project possible.

Relationship between the proportions of Sauvignon blanc fruit removed at thinning and the reduction in yield at harvest. Note: one value (circled) has been removed from the regression (yield reduction at harvest = 1.56 x the fruit removed at harvest). The regression has been forced through the origin. The difference between the one-to-one relationship (red line) and the fitted (black) line is a reflection of fruit losses caused by shrivelling in the canopy and/or smaller berries caused by machine thinning. Thinning in 2010 was undertaken on two dates in January.

Harnessing the value of bud-sport mutations D Lizamore & C Winefield, Lincoln University Rod Bonfiglioli Scholarship 11-115 Despite a low contribution by volume to the global market, the New Zealand wine industry has managed to build a respected international

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reputation. This has largely been achieved by exporting wines that present flavour profiles that are both interesting and sometimes unu-

sual for their variety. By taking advantage of the diversity of flavours that can be obtained from established varieties, the local wine industry has

Fig. 1: A white bud sport mutation on a Pinot gris vine.

Collected in April 2010 in the Booker vineyard on the Brancott estate.

Fig. 2: Transposon profiles of various grape varieties.

Examples of insertions characteristic of specific clones or varieties are highlighted by circles.

been able to place itself at the high-value end of the market. However, in order to maintain this reputation as the industry matures, a continued effort to offer unique and diverse wine styles will be essential.

The ultimate source of natural diversity lies in the shuffling of the genetic information of two parents during sexual reproduction. However, with the domestication of crops comes the need for plants that are true-to-type. This has led to the adoption of cloning as the industry standard.

Far from being a modern technology, cloning has been employed for thousands of years (by way of plant cuttings) to maintain homogenous, predictable crops. Unfortunately, the price paid for crop stability comes in the form of rapid and efficient removal of diversity from the population.

But the story doesn’t end there.

The appearance of occasional bud sports in the vineyard (such as a white grape bunch on a Pinot Gris vine, fig. 1) reveals a low level of genetic change that continues in the absence of sexual crossings. Current research shows that within the DNA lie regions of code that behave much like viruses. Known as transposons, these shorts pieces of DNA are able to jump from one location to another, scrambling the code, disrupting genes and affecting plant growth and development. The loss of berry pigmentation in the “Blanc” clones of the Pinot lineage is an example of such a mutation which has become not only accepted but of significant economic value to the industry.

In a project co-funded by the New Zealand Winegrowers Rod Bonfiglioli Memorial Scholarship and Lincoln University, we have been tasked with developing a method to map and track the movement of these transposons in grape DNA. The result is a unique molecular fingerprint that can be used to compare plant samples (fig.

2). When a transposon moves, the fingerprint changes, allowing us to investigate the exact change to the DNA and thereby determine the likely effect on the plant.

Over the past year we have been exposing grape tissues in our lab to a variety of stresses (fig. 3), and analysing the subsequent changes caused by transposon activity.

We have identified certain treatments, such as temperature shocks and pathogen attacks,

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 125

Fig. 4: New transposon insertions (circled) following stress treatment of grape tissue. Colours represent different transposon families.

Fig. 3: Grape plantlets showing physical and developmental differences one month after stress exposure.

which can trigger changes in grapevine DNA (fig. 4).

By studying the rates of these changes, we are developing an understanding of the forces driving the mutation of grape clones.

In this way, we are harnessing natural genetic variation to produce populations of altered vines. In effect, we are accelerating the rate of bud sport appearance to rapidly increase diversification within popular clones.

As they mature (fig. 5), these plants will form a resource that can be drawn on by the local wine industry to replace lost diversity in a crop with a desperately limited gene pool.

The potential advantages of increasing diversity within varietals through this approach

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Fig. 5: Pinot noir plantlets regenerating after exposure to stress treatments

apply throughout the process of wine production. There is value in allowing grape growers to select vines that are well suited to the conditions of a specific vineyard. Likewise, there is also merit in providing winemakers with a range of juice styles to allow them to craft wines

that stand out in the local and global markets.

As the New Zealand wine industry seeks to expand its global impact it will be served well by continuing a program of crop improvement that takes advantage of the latest insights in plant molecular genetics.

Botrytis decision support (BDS) Rob Beresford, Alistair McKay, Peter Wood, Rob Agnew (Plant & Food Research) Mike Barley (HortPlusTM) 11-120 The online Botrytis Decision Support (BDS) system was successfully trialled with wine company VSOs and viticulture consultants in Hawke’s Bay and Marlborough during 20112012. Training included one-on-one sessions on the BDS website and early-season risk model during December and January. Use of the lateseason model and vineyard sampling for botrytis disease assessment were the topics of training from February to April. An improvement to the late-season botrytis model was made, allowing it to predict the impact of pre-harvest rainfall on botrytis disease severity at harvest. Botrytis risk predictions by the BDS models were made available in Marlborough during 2011-2012 through the Vinefax service.

This project is also developing rapid botry-

tis sampling to provide wine companies with efficient protocols for vineyard disease assessment. The aim is to reduce the cost of data collection for the late-season botrytis prediction model and to provide accurate pre-harvest botrytis data that will allow wineries to better predict effects of botrytis on wine making.

Vineyard trials to validate sampling protocols were carried out from February to April in Hawke’s Bay and Marlborough.

A scientific paper on statistical theory of botrytis sampling was submitted for publication from work in the “Low Impact Disease Control” programme, funded by the Ministry for Science and Innovation (AH McKay, GN Hill, RM Beresford 2012.

Comparison of sampling procedures for

estimating botrytis bunch rot incidence in New Zealand vineyards. New Zealand Plant Protection 65, submitted).

This project also plans to develop a BDS training programme as a wine industry resource to up-skill users in the BDS system.

This part of the project is pending a decision on how the BDS system will be provided as an ongoing service to users. The perceived value of the BDS system to the wine industry and a suitable business plan for ongoing delivery will contribute to the decision about whether the training programme will be developed and whether BDS models will continue to be available after the 2012 vintage.

We gratefully acknowledge the ongoing funding of this BDS project by New Zealand Winegrowers.

The overwintering stage of downy mildew in grapes has been discovered in New Zealand vineyards Peter Wood, Brent Fisher, Rob Beresford, Phil Elmer and Ian Horner, Plant & Food Research 11-122 Wine grapes in New Zealand are produced under temperate, cool climate conditions and require treatment to control a range of pest and diseases, including downy mildew caused by the fungus, Plasmopara viticola. This pathogen can cause significant crop losses in vineyards, especially during warm, wet growing seasons. All green tissues are susceptible, including young developing berries up to the 5-6 mm diameter stage. Thereafter, berry infections are rare.

During the season there are two growth stages

where leaf infection occurs: in early summer during active shoot growth, and in the autumn before leaf senescence. Typical leaf spotting symptoms on the upper and lower surfaces of grape leaves are shown below.Where severe leaf infection occurs, there is a significant loss of photosynthetically active leaf area in the canopy, resulting in poorly ripened fruit.

Recently, the wine industry in New Zealand has become concerned about reports of an increase in downy mildew severity in vine-

yards. Analysis of vineyard spray programmes indicated that in some cases vineyard managers had cut back on protectant sprays, to reduce costs, while in other cases good protectant programmes in some vineyards failed to keep downy mildew under control. An Australian expert on downy mildew in grapes, Peter Magarey, was invited to New Zealand by New Zealand Winegrowers Inc. (NZW) to assist with identifying gaps in downy mildew ecology and epidemiology in this country. A major

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 127

Upper surface of a downy mildew-infected Sauvignon blanc grape leaf.

Source: Peter Wood, Plant & Food Research.

gap in our knowledge thus identified was that the oospore stage of the fungus, which is recognised as the overwintering stage in other world areas where grapevine downy mildew occurs, has never been found in New Zealand.

Overwintering in leaf litter is well described in the overseas literature.

In summary, two genetically different mating types of the fungus in leaf lesions (oil spots) come into contact in the autumn and result in the formation of the thick-walled, overwintering oospores. An example of the overwintering oospore found on Pinot Noir leaves of in autumn 2012 is shown below in Figure 2.

Overwintering oospores within infected leaves germinate in the spring when the air

A single oospore of Plasmopara viticola on a glass microscope slide at 200x magnification, showing the very thick characteristic cell wall and textured outer surface. Source: Peter Wood, Plant & Food Research.

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Underside of a downy mildew-infected Sauvignon blanc grape leaf. Source: Peter Wood, Plant & Food.

temperature reaches above 10-12°C and there has been at least 10 mm of rainfall over a 24-hour period. After these conditions have occurred, the germinating oospores produce sporangia, which contain another spore type called zoospores that are released into films of water or onto very moist soil (Kennelly et al. 2007).

These zoospores are then dispersed onto vine leaves near the soil by rain splash, where they germinate and penetrate tissues through the leaf stomata. Secondary spread occurs when sporangia, yet another type of spore produced by P. viticola, are liberated into the canopy under conditions of high humidity.

Typical P. viticola sporangia spore masses on the underside of Sauvignon blanc leaves are shown below.

Overseas, the chain of events described above starts early in the growing season with the overwintering oospore, but this stage had

not been identified and described in New Zealand. NZW commissioned Peter Wood and his Plant & Food Research colleagues to sample a range of New Zealand vineyards during autumn 2012 and to establish if oospores were being produced in vineyard leaf litter samples. Their findings are summarised below (Table 1).

Using a new clearing technique, we were able to see the oospores embedded in leaf samples collected just before leaf fall; a typical example of this at x40 magnification under a microscope is shown below.

Implications of these findingsB Detection of oospores in North and South Island vineyards has resolved the uncertainty about the ability of the downy mildew pathogen, P. viticola, to overwinter in New Zealand vineyards in the leaf litter.

This finding now raises some important scientific questions. For example, does the

Typical downy mildew lesions on the underside of Sauvignon Blanc leaves from Hawke’s Bay, with typical white,’ felt-like’ masses of spores called sporangia. Source: Dr Philip Elmer, Plant & Food Research.

Table 1. A survey of leaf samples from four winegrowing regions of New Zealand in May and June 2012.

Region

Vineyard code

Variety

Sporangia present1

Oospore Density2

Auckland

1

Sauvignon Blanc

Yes

Light

Auckland

2

Pinot Noir

Yes

Light

Auckland

3

Pinot Noir

Yes

Numerous

Gisborne

4

Chardonnay

Yes

Numerous

Gisborne

5

Chardonnay

Yes

Numerous

Hawke’s Bay

6

Merlot

Yes

Moderate

Hawke’s Bay

7

Viognier

Yes

Moderate

Hawke’s Bay

8

Chardonnay

Yes

Numerous

Marlborough

9

Sauvignon Blanc

Yes

None detected

Marlborough

10

Sauvignon Blanc

Yes

Trace

Marlborough

11

Sauvignon Blanc

Yes

Numerous

The presence of sporangia (Plasmopara viticola asexual fruiting stage) was confirmation that the grape leaf tissues sampled were diseased with downy mildew 2 Oospore density was categorised for each 18-mm2 section of leaf observed as; trace = 1, light = 2-20, moderate 21=50 and numerous = > 50 oospores.

1

presence of the oospore stage in vineyards mean that downy mildew epidemics develop earlier in the season? Also, could the production of oospores cause an increase in genetic variability in P. viticola, increasing the risk of development of resistance to some of the fungicides registered for downy mildew control in New Zealand?. Answers to these questions have important implications for future disease management and fungicide resistance management strategies in grapes.

At a more applied level, further research is required to investigate the link between oospore density and downy mildew epidemics.

If a clear association between this overwintering stage and downy mildew is established, strategies to remove leaf litter from the vineyard in autumn cost effectively could be implemented.

Finally, now that we have a more complete understanding of the disease cycle of downy mildew in New Zealand vineyards the implementation of a downy mildew infection risk model becomes a possibility. The implementation of such a tool would assist vineyard managers make well-informed choices about whether to spray. In high-risk vineyards, a webbased decision support tool may predict that more frequent spray applications are required in order to protect young, rapidly growing vine tissues. There is also a need to evaluate biologically-based treatments for downy mildew

Oospores of Plasmopara viticola (15 circular objects stained with aniline blue) within a Pinot Noir grape leaf sampled from an Auckland vineyard on 22 May 2012. The sample was mounted onto a glass microscope slide, viewed at 40x magnification, then digitally photographed. Note. the minor leaf veins are a useful reference scale.

control in organic systems, as well as applications to complement early season synthetic products, thereby extending the effective life of site-specific fungicides in conventional vineyards. Replacements for copper-based fungicides are also urgently required, as overseas markets such as the EU place even tougher restrictions on copper usage.

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank NZ Winegrowers for funding this project (NZW 11-112). We also thank wine company viticulturalists for their collection of grape leaf samples with downy mildew infection.

Kennelly MM, Gadoury DM, Wilcox WF, Magarey PA, Seem RC 2007. Addressing the gaps in our knowledge of grapevine downy mildew for improved forecasting and management. Plant Health Progress (July): 1-5.

NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2012 // 129

Creating cultivars with improved anti-viral defences Kieren Arthur and Robin MacDiarmid The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Ltd 11-123 Currently, we are unable to ‘cure’ vines when they become infected by viruses. New Zealand management strategies for viruses like Grapevine leafroll associated virus-3 (GLRaV-3) focus on preventing virus spread. This relies on early virus detection and removal of infected vines for destruction, an expensive process in our perennial, high-value crop. Coupled with vine removal is control of insect vectors such as mealy bugs which transmit GLRaV3 between vines. However, these strategies target what happens after a vine becomes infected; a more long-term aim is to have vines that resist virus infection.

Could we breed or select vines that are more resistant to virus infection in the first place? To help find out the answers to this question, a postdoctoral research project based at Plant & Food Research is focused on identifying plants with heightened anti-viral defences. This project follows on from previous research at PFR (see article “Can we cure rather than cull virus infected grapevines?”NZ Winegrower, vol.

10, issue 13).

Plants have unique genes or groups of genes that are responsible for their resistance or susceptibility to different viruses.

If we can identify specific genes that stop some plants getting sick from particular infecting viruses, we may be able to breed these genes into elite plant cultivars so they have heightened antiviral defences. Our research group thinks that a group of genes, Calcium-dependent protein kinases (CPKs), might help plants to resist certain types of virus infections. CPKs are a group of genes found in plant species that signal different types of stress conditions, such as heat/cold, drought and pathogen attacks from bacteria, fungi and viruses (see diagram).

These CPKs activate downstream genes

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which then help the plant to manage particular stresses. This project focuses on identifying which CPKs in plants signal virus attack and thereby help to reduce virus infection.

Arabidopsis is a plant that develops fast and

more, sequences will identify candidate grape CPK genes that best match the gene sequences of CPKs from Arabidopsis that respond to viruses. The candidate grape CPK genes will then be tested for responses to virus attack and infection.

Once virus-responding CPK genes in grape have been identified, different high health grapevine varieties will be tested to search for plants that have high and low background levels of these candidate genes. This will allow us to test whether a higher level of a selected CPK gene produces a heightened anti-viral defence.

How can you help with this research?

can be grown easily in the laboratory, making it an ideal model plant system to understand basic plant mechanisms. Arabidopsis will be used in this project to explore which particular CPKs are signalling a response to virus attack.

There are 34 CPK genes in Arabidopsis, and investigation to date has identified 18 in the grape genome. Computer analysis of the 18, or

If you have or know of an individual grapevine or accession that stays healthy in the presence of virus infection – we would be interested to hear about it. (Contact: Robin MacDiarmid ph 09 9257163 or email robin. macdiarmid@plantandfood.co.nz).

Knowledge gained from this research project may help in the breeding of cultivars with increased antiviral defences and reduced virus susceptibility. Additionally, because CPK genes signal a range of stress responses, our approach could be modified for producing plants with heightened defences to bacterial or fungal attack, or with increased tolerance to various abiotic stressors such as drought and cold. This research is also being extended beyond grapes to look at other important New Zealand crop plants.

An update on progress of this project will be in NZ Winegrower this time next year.

Acknowledgements This research is funded by the Agricultural and Marketing Research Development Trust (AgMARDT) and NZ Winegrowers.

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