Winepress - June 2015 by Winepress Magazine

Issue No. 248 / June 2015

Member Referendum

Testing for Brett

Water Transfer

Celebrating Organics

Photo: Jim Tannock

@marlboroughwine

The Official Magazine of

www.wine-marlborough.co.nz

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In this issue... Regulars

Features

10 Member Referendum

Editorial

5 Report Tasman Crop Met 26

Generation Y-ine Laura-Kate Morgan NZW Export News

Top Tweets

12 Water Transfer

ANZ Wine Happenings

News From Home and Away

Editor: Tessa Nicholson 16 Bank Street Blenheim 7201 T: 021 709 571 E: tessa.nicholson@me.com Printed by: Blenheim Print Ltd. T: 03 578 1322 WINEPRESS is printed with vegetable oil based inks on elemental chlorine free paper which is sourced 100% from well managed forests and manufactured under ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems.

Well the voting is over and the members have spoken. So what does the result of the referendum mean to you as a member of New Zealand Winegrowers?

The Marlborough District Council is carefully looking at water allocation, in an effort to provide for growth in the future. The idea of being able to transfer water between properties is one way of doing that. The Mayor explains.

17 On Site Brett Testing

New technology means winemakers can now be proactive rather than reactive when it comes to ensuring their wine is not affected by Brettanomyces bruxellensis. Find out about on site brett testing.

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24 Wine In Tubes

Georges Michel here in Marlborough has become the first person in the Southern Hemisphere to place his wine into tubes. This new form of packaging is making huge waves in Europe and it’s easy to see why.

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WINEPRESS June April

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WINEPRESS June 2015

VINES AVAILABLE FOR SPRING 2015

Ph: 03 577 9299 Web: www.wine-marlborough.co.nz marcus@wine-marlborough.co.nz For Advertising contact: Emily Hope Ph: 03 577 9299 emily@wine-marlborough.co.nz Produced by: Wine Marlborough Free to all levy paying members Associate Members: $77 +GST Wine Marlborough Board Clive Jones: cjones@nautilusestate.com Ruud Maasdam: ruud@staetelandt.co.nz Guy Lissaman: glissaman@xtra.co.nz Laurin Gane: laurin.gane@xtra.co.nz Simon Clark: simon@clarkestate.com Simon Bishell: simonbishell@outlook.com Stuart Dudley: stuartd@villamaria.co.nz Samantha Wickham: samantha@ormondnurseries.co.nz Jason Yank: jason@astrolabewines.com Rhyan Wardman: rhyan@giesen.co.nz Jack Glover: jack.glover@accolade-wines.co.nz

From the Editor Alcohol Advertising If you have ever attended a fundraising event in this region, you will know how much the wine industry supports our community. In just the past few months alone we have seen fundraisers for Vanuatu, Kaipupu Point Wildlife Sanctuary, the MBC First XV to name just a few. At each event, the wine industry was out in force, in terms of donating wine either for the tables, or as auction items to help raise money for the cause. Look around the region and you will see wineries giving donations to ensure community projects go ahead. Think of the Giesen Sports Centre in Renwick, the recently released details of Johanneshof Wines working with the National Whale Centre in Picton. It is hard to imagine how community groups would ever manage to move ahead without wine industry support. However that support may come to an end if a Ministerial Forum on Alcohol Advertising and Sponsorship has its way. The Forum was established in 2014 by the government, to “consider whether further restrictions on alcohol advertising and sponsorship are needed to reduce alcohol-related harm”. Some of their recommendations if accepted will have a major impact on the ability of wineries to sponsor organisations and advertise publically. For example, one recommendation is for a complete ban on alcohol sponsorship of sports and further restrictions on arts and music sponsorship. This would impact directly on the Forrest Grape Ride and the Saint Clair Vineyard Half – big money earners for Marlborough in terms of visitor spend. Another recommendation is to totally ban all outdoor alcohol advertising and promotion, because it recommends banning advertising where more than 10% of the audience is under 18. (Apparently 25% of New Zealand’s population is under the age of 18). That would mean any cellar door advertising, such as the banners at Blenheim’s airport would have to go, and no longer could the Marlborough Wine and Food Festival promote itself in magazines or via flags throughout the town centre. I am sure that most people agree that there are issues around the use of alcohol, but the wine industry has always been one to encourage moderate consumption. There is no binge-drinking ethos supported by it.Yet this $1.3 billion industry may be one of the hardest hit if the recommendations are put into place by government. It is time for industry members to speak up. If you haven’t already, you should be contacting the government ministers who will play a part in whether these recommendations are accepted. Have your say now, while you still can. Contact one or all of the following, and do it today. Minister of Justice: amy.adams@parliament.govt.nz Minister of Health: jonathon.coleman@parliament.govt.nz Associate Minister of Health: peter.dunner@parliament.govt.nz

TESSA NICHOLSON tessa.nicholson@me.com WINEPRESS June 2015

We’re looking for passionate and motivated members to join us.

Two grape growers • Two winery members You can have input into Wine marlborough’s four focus areas of:

governance • markeTing • communicaTion • advocacy

The 2015

Marlborough WinegroWers election is coming up this August Here’s wHaT some oF our board members Have said: Simon BiShell

clive JoneS

“being on the board enables exposure and greater understanding of issues that are relevant to the wine industry as a whole. This knowledge has enabled me to make better decisions on the day-to-day operation and future planning of our own vineyard.”

“if you think it is time to give something back to the industry and help shape the future of nZ’s premier wine growing region, then seek nomination to stand in the upcoming election.”

Jack Glover

rhyan Wardman

“by being on the board i feel i can assist marlborough to be more successful as a region, a brand and a place to live.”

“The broad spectrum of issues covered by the winegrowers board provides valuable insight to the challenges and opportunities we face as an industry. i thoroughly enjoy being a part of that.”

June 2015 | WINEPRESS For4more information, please email: marcus Pickens marcus@wine-marlborough.co.nz or clive Jones cjones@nautilusestate.com

Table 1: Blenheim Weather Data – May 2015 May May 2015 May Period May 2015 compared LTA of LTA 2014 to LTA GDD’s for: Month - Max/Min¹ 70.8 122% 58.0 (1996-2014) 64.5 Month – Mean² 84.1 119% 70.9 (1996-2014) 84.6 Growing Degree Days Total July 14 to May 15-Max/Min 1437.8 105% 1372.7 (1996-2014) 1485.6 July 14 to May 15 - Mean 1496.9 106% 1417.9 (1996-2014) 1518.0 Mean Maximum (°C) 17.2 +0.7°C 16.5 (1986-2014) 17.3 Mean Minimum (°C) 5.7 -0.1°C 5.8 (1986-2014) 6.2 Mean Temp (°C) 11.4 +0.3°C 11.1 (1986-2014) 11.8 Ground Frosts (<= -1.0°C) 8 2.4 More 5.6 (1986-2014) 2 Air Frosts (<0.0°C) 3 1.6 More 1.4 (1986-2014) 1 Sunshine hours 214.5 127% 169.1 (1932-2014) 199.1 Sunshine hours – lowest 114.7 1969 Sunshine hours – highest 207.8 1990 Sunshine hours total – 2015 1183.1 111% 1063.6 (1932-2014) 1058.2 Rainfall (mm) 20.0 31% 63.8 (1930-2014) 16.0 Rainfall (mm) – lowest 13.5 1936 Rainfall (mm) – highest 182.6 1948 Rainfall total (mm) – 2015 129.0 51% 252.5 (1930-2014) 289.6 Evapotranspiration – mm 50.6 114% 44.2 (1996-2014) 61.8 Avg. Daily Windrun (km) 236.4 109% 216.6 (1996-2014) 236.6 9am mean soil temp – 10cm 8.2 +0.4°C 8.6 (1986-2014) 8.9 9am mean soil temp – 30cm 11.3 +0.2°C 11.1 (1986-2014) 11.8 ¹GDD’s Max/Min are calculated from absolute daily maximum and minimum temperatures ²GDD’s Mean are calculated from average hourly temperatures May 2015 was much drier, a lot sunnier and slightly warmer than average. The drought continued. Air Temperatures May 2015 recorded a mean temperature

of 11.4°C; 0.3°C above average, but 0.4°C cooler than May 2014 (Table 1). May was a month of two dramatic halves with regard to temperature (Table 2). The first half of May recorded a mean temperature of 14.2°C; 3.1°C

Table 2: May 2015 temperatures and frosts for Blenheim Total Total Mean Mean Ground Air Mean Max Min Frosts Frosts 1-15 May 14.2 19.5 8.9 0 0 16-31 May 8.8 15.0 2.7 8 3 1-31 May 11.4 17.2 5.7 8 3 Long-term average 11.1 16.5 5.8 5.6 1.4

above average. This first half of May was warmer than the average April temperature of 13.4°C. The second half of May recorded a mean temperature of 8.8°C; 2.3°C below average. This latter half of May was close to the June mean temperature of 8.7°C. This was a 5.5°C drop in the mean temperature, hence the reason that the cold temperatures came as a bit of a shock. The warmest day during May was the 7th, with a maximum of 23.4°C (6.9°C above average) and a minimum of 18.3°C (12.6°C above average). The coldest morning during May 2015 was the 26th, with an air frost of -2.8°C and a ground frost of -6.1°C. Although the frost on 26 May was pretty cold, it was nothing out of the ordinary for May (Table 3). It was just that the frosty weather came after such a balmy start to May. Eight ground frosts and three air frosts were recorded between the 22nd and 30th May 2015. May 2014 recorded only one air frost and two ground frosts. Soil temperature The 30 cm soil temperature is used as a guide for pasture and crop growth. It dropped from a high of 15.5°C on 8 May to 6.7°C on 27 May. Most pasture species cease to grow when the 30 cm soil temperature drops to about 8 to 10°C. Hence, the week of frosts in the latter half of May, which dropped the soil temperature very quickly, would have brought a fairly abrupt end to pasture growth. Sunshine May 2015 recorded 214.5 hours sunshine; 45.4 hours above the longterm average for May of 169.1 hours. WINEPRESS June 2015

Table 3: Coldest May temperatures and frosts for Blenheim 2012-2015 26 May 2015 27 May 2014 29 May 2013 20 May 2012

Minimum Air Temp =Air Frost -2.8 -0.8 -1.7 -1.4

This is now the sunniest May on record for Blenheim for the 86 years 19302015. The previous highest total of 207.8 hours was recorded in May 1990. Blenheim has recorded 1183.1 hours sunshine for the five months January to May 2015; 111% of the long-term average of 1063.6 hours. 1183.1 hours so far in 2015 is 124.9 hours higher than was recorded for January to May 2014. Rainfall and Drought Update The May 2015 rainfall total of 20.0 mm was 31% of the long-term average. Total rainfall for the five months January to May 2015 was 129.0 mm; 51% of the long-term average of 252.5 mm. This is the fifth lowest January to May total

Minimum Grass Temp =Ground Frost -6.1 -4.7 -6.8 -6.4

on record for Blenheim (1930-2015) (Table 4) and only 45% of the 2014 total of 289.6 mm, for the same five months. Table 4: Lowest January to May rainfall totals on record for Blenheim 1939 2001 2003 1973 2015 1943

65.3 mm 67.2 mm 116.8 mm 122.0 mm 129.0 mm 142.0 mm

As the current period of low monthly rainfall in Marlborough began in July 2014, I am continuing to report on the

rainfall total starting July 2014. Total rainfall in Blenheim for the 11 months July 2014 to May 2015 was 260.4 mm (Table 5); or 44.6% of long-term average rainfall for these 11 months of 583.2 mm. The 2014-2015 total is considerably lower than the next lowest total recorded in 2000-2001. Table 5: Lowest July to May (11 month) rainfall totals on record for Blenheim 2014-2015 260.4 2000-2001 318.0 1972-1973 331.0 2002-2003 341.4 1933-1934 357.6 1997-1998 358.1 It is currently looking like the 12 month period from July 2014 to June 2015 will be the driest on record for Blenheim. June will need to receive 97.6 mm rain in order for these 12 months to not be the driest. Watch this space for an update next month.

Figure 1: Soil moisture at three depths in an irrigated vineyard in Rapaura (Wairau stony/sandy alluvium) and shallow unirrigated soil moisture in Blenheim, 1 January 2014 to 14 May 2015

WINEPRESS June 2015

Soil Moisture It has been some time since I have presented the soil moisture graph for a vineyard in Rapaura (Figure 1). The graph contrasts the soil moisture at three depths: Shallow (0-30 cm), Medium (90-120 cm), Deep (150-180 cm). The shallow soil moisture in the vineyard which is subject to irrigation is contrasted with shallow soil moisture at the Blenheim weather station, which receives no irrigation. Shallow soil moisture in both the vineyard and in Blenheim peaked at about 38-40% in June-July 2014. The Blenheim soil moisture dropped a lot faster from July to October than in the vineyard, presumably a function of the soil type. Irrigation maintained the shallow moisture in the vineyard at about 30% from December 2014 to April 2015, while over the same time period the unirrigated soil in Blenheim was close to its minimum amount of approx 15%. Medium depth moisture (90-120 cm) was maintained at approx 25 to

26% from January to April 2014 with irrigation penetrating to this depth. 150 mm rain in April 2014 caused the medium depth moisture to jump from 25 to 31% and then it remained static in May 2014 before jumping again in June 2014 to 33%, with another 98 mm rain. One year later it was slightly lower (approx 23 to 25%) from January to April 2015. Blenheim has only received 72 mm rain in April and May 2015, in contrast to 176 mm in April and May 2014. As a consequence the medium soil moisture has only shown small responses to the rain, with no sudden increase as in April 2014. Deep soil moisture dropped from January to April 2014 indicating that irrigation was not penetrating to this depth. Soil moisture at this depth was hardly affected by high rainfall in April 2014. It took the combined total of 264 mm rain from April to June 2014 for the deep moisture to rise from 18 to 28%. Unsurprisingly, the deep soil moisture has so far shown no response

to rainfall in 2015. A large amount of rain is required over winter to restore the deep soil moisture to field capacity. Rob Agnew Plant & Food Research / Marlborough Research Centre

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WINEPRESS June 2015

OPINION PIECE

Preserving Our Special Landscape PETE JERRAM – CHAIR MARLBOROUGH LANDSCAPE GROUP

Marlborough’s Landscape is something most of our residents value highly. We live in a beautiful place: - big sky, handsome hills and a fertile plain. Yet over the past 150 years it has undergone many changes. For the past 35 of those the wine industry has been at the forefront of landscape change. It’s been dramatic, much of it attractive and positive. But does that change need to be at the expense of established trees? As this great industry has matured, the trend away from small vineyards owned by individuals has shifted to larger ones, often owned by corporations based outside Marlborough and New Zealand. This change seems to have brought a harder edge to the care of our landscape, a more ruthless approach to removing shelter belts and established trees to make the most land available for new vines. Is this the model the industry wants or needs? When the first Europeans came, the Wairau Plain was a mix of wetlands filled with flax, tussock grassland and patches of native

Vineyard in the Rhone

8Valley, JuneFrance 2015 | WINEPRESS southern

podocarp forest. The hills to the north of the river were forested with beech and podocarp, while those to the south were dry, bare of forest and mostly covered in native grasses, with manuka and kanuka scattered in the gullies. William Fox painted this landscape in 1843 as seen from the site of the Wairau Incident in Tua Marina. Later, farming on the plains and the southern hills altered the landscape again. Farmers planted trees to shelter livestock and to save the soil from blowing away as they worked the land. They planted European trees around their homes and farm buildings too, for beauty and a sense of comfort, a reminder of where they’d come from. On the Northbank timber was felled and harvested, and the bush cleared and burnt for farming, and briefly, for goldmining. The landscape continued to evolve under those influences (but less dramatically than previously) until the 1970s

and 80s when grapes became the new crop on the plains. As the wine industry developed, early adopters found there was a problem. Birds were damaging their crop. And birds live in trees. And trees occupy land where grapes can grow. So began a regular - not systematic but steady reduction in trees and shelter belts on the plain. The Marlborough Landscape Group was formed by Council in response to community concern about the loss of trees as vineyards expanded. People like trees. They provide shade and shelter, birds and insect life, grace and beauty. To many there seemed to be a need to slow down the process of their removal, and to keep as many of the older and significant trees as possible. So we need to ask: as the remaining potential areas are converted to grapes, and as smaller holdings are bought up and amalgamated, do we need this “scorched earth” policy of tree removal? Residents in the upper Wairau Valley have been asking this question as established windbreaks on historic farms are bulldozed to offer up more land for vineyards. Is it necessary to take out so many old trees, to alter the slopes, to straighten streams, to grow the last grape? Wine tourism, an important part of the industry’s image, and important to Marlborough’s economy,

Awatere vineyard nestled amongst mature trees in a stunning vista

depends not just on the fine product of the grape, but on the physical environment, the scenic value and enjoyment of being here. The vineyards of France, the spiritual heart of wine, are scattered with trees, and it is very rare to see a hundred or more hectares of grapes sans trees. And in Marlborough there are also some excellent examples of wine companies restoring wetlands and planting areas of native trees as they

enhance the biodiversity and working environment on their vineyards, as well as our landscape. There is economic benefit too as these projects become part of their marketing advantage. As this planet’s climate warms and more areas such as the upper Wairau Valley are deemed suitable for grape growing, the Marlborough Landscape Group is keen to encourage a real and collective sense of social responsibility in the wine industry, particularly from the large

companies. The shareholders of those companies probably wouldn’t like to live in a treeless, windblown landscape. I’m sure they wouldn’t expect us to either. The Marlborough Landscape Group advises Council on how to enhance and protect Marlborough’s landscape and includes representatives from the wine industry, local businesses, forestry, farming and environmental groups.

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Member Referendum – What It Means TESSA NICHOLSON

After months of consultation, members of the two sectors of NZ Winegrowers have voted YES to restructuring – so what does this mean for the future? The basic answer is instead of the organization having three individual sectors, NZGGC, WINZ and NZW, there will now just be the one. The Grape Grower’s Council and Wine Institute will now be disestablished and their assets, liabilities and any contractual arrangements will pass to NZ Winegrowers inc. That disestablishment process will not happen overnight, as a special General Meeting for each organisation will be required and this is not likely to take place until next year. The all important results of the recent referendum are as follows: Overall 37.6% of wineries and 32.3% of growers voted. Those who voted in favour of the recommended changes to the structure and governance of New Zealand Winegrowers represented: • 90.9% of the NZGGC member votes • 90.6% of the WINZ member votes • 84.0% of the value of grape levy payments • 89.0% of the value of wine levy payments So with this support for change the

WINEPRESS June 2015

“look” of the new organisation will mean a major change on how the board or directors will be elected. In the past, if you were a grape grower, you voted only for grape grower representatives. Five moved onto the NZW board. If you were a winery, you voted for one of seven board members, who were representatives of the varying winery sizes; either small, medium or large. That will now no longer happen. Under the new system, every individual and company is termed a ‘winegrower’ and therefore able to vote for any nominee standing. Every winegrower will now receive two votes – one being a Member Class Vote, the other being a Levy Class Vote. In terms of the Member Class – each winegrower gets one Member Class Vote. Companies and other businesses that are related to each other (such as subsidiaries) are treated as a single member. You can vote for as many or as few candidates as you want. The five candidates with the most votes will become Member Class Directors.

The Levy Class Vote will be based on how much you paid in levies in the last vintage. For every dollar you paid, you receive one vote, whether that levy be as a grape grower or a winery. Those votes can be used on one candidate, or spread over a number of candidates, and once again the five with the highest number of votes will be elected as Levy Class Directors. Currently the NZW Board has 12 directors, but under the new system members will elect only 10. There is however, the ability of the board to appoint two extra directors, to ensure all skill sets and sectors of the industry are represented. There will no longer be any alternates. Instead a Regional Membership Council will be instigated, which will include members of all winegrowing regions within New Zealand that receive levy funding. Smaller regions that do not fit within the levy funding criteria may also be included, at the Board’s discretion. Expect the changes to come into force next year, when the first “new” board elections will take place.

WINEPRESS June 2015

Water Transfer TESSA NICHOLSON

The Marlborough District Council is proposing a system where water can be transferred between parties, in an effort to solve some of the water allocation issues that have arisen in recent years. Mayor Alistair Sowman says the proposal is aimed at managing this region’s precious water resource, something he refers to as Marlborough’s “billion dollar asset”. As part of the MDC’s Regional Policy Statement, continued access to freshwater is a strategic imperative. “We all know that droughts and water supply problems are written into the history of Marlborough,” he says. “The explosion of viticulture in the first decade of the new century sharpened up the focus. And the time has now come for some new thinking on the way we are handling this resource.”

Currently Marlborough has a state of over or full allocation in the majority of its sub regions. Those areas where over allocation has occurred are the Wairau, Riverlands and Southern Valleys Aquifers. The fully allocated resources include the Waihopai, Awatere, Upper Pelorus, Rai, Opouri, Ronga and Tunakino Rivers. The MDC can no longer allocate any more water in the affected areas, meaning without some careful planning, there is no room for further growth. However, despite the dire scenario there is some light at the end of the tunnel,

Sowman says. That’s because many of the current permits for water usage, are way above what the permit holder requires or even uses. Council has been researching application rates for different crops and redefining those in terms of soil types and climate. When many water permits were originally issued, they provided for an uptake that was far higher than actually necessary. For example, many vineyard allocations were based on a vine requiring 2.2mm of irrigation per day. These days, that total is seen as higher than what is actually needed to maintain growth, with many permit holders not drawing anywhere near what their permit allows over the irrigation season. This situation will be taken into account when the 1300 permit holders in Marlborough come to replace their water permits under the Resource Management Act (RMA). A “reasonable use test” will be applied to those new permits to ensure the allocation provided is efficient. The reasonable use test will be based on the monthly and annual irrigation requirements of the crop 9 years in 10. However the enhanced water transfer system may be the immediate answer to the severe water issues emerging. If those with spare water could be encouraged to share with those still The image shows the consented rate of take for a water permit holder (red line) versus actual metered use (black).This illustrates the difference between paper allocation and actual use.The difference represents water locked up and not able to accessed by a new user.

WINEPRESS June 2015

needing a source of water, growth could continue. “If a permit holder has more (water) than he needs and his mate down the road hasn’t got enough or can’t get any, how do we join them up?,” Sowman says. “Under this system the two people would communicate to Council, we would look at the situation and on a daily basis we can approve the transfer of water from one person to the next.” Transferring water is nothing new, as there is already the ability to do that. But it is a lengthy process, under the RMA. “This proposal would enable the quick, free transfer of water so that, for example, on any day a grower could give a neighbour water that was not required, without having to go through the consent process,” Sowman says.

Free transfer is the operative term, as MDC is not encouraging individuals to sell their water, Sowman says.

“This proposal would enable the quick, free transfer of water so that, for example, on any day a grower could give a neighbour water that was not required, without having to go through the consent process.” “We are not talking about money changing hands at all.” Instead they are encouraging

communication between parties, to find a workable solution. “The proposal is an enhanced transfer system which would maximize the efficient use of water, allowing access to water that’s already been allocated but not being used.” Sowman says. They are also encouraging people to look at developing their own individual storage source, that could be drawn on during times of low river levels. Last month the Council held a number of public meetings to discuss the proposed Reasonable Use Test and Enhanced Transfer System and are still keen to hear from any interested parties. The draft of the plan will be ready by September when the Council’s Regional Planning and Development Committee will consider it, and the public will be invited to make submissions.

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Mapping Marlborough NICK LANE

As you probably know, a move is underway to map all of Marlborough’s vineyard area.The need for this to be undertaken accurately has never been greater. Why you may ask? Well there are a number of reasons. Geographical Indication The Government passed the GI legislation back in 2006. But only recently have they said they intend implementing it. It would not be surprising and in some ways it would be expected that under this legislation, it will be compulsory to provide maps of all of New Zealand’s vineyards along with supporting data. Doing this now puts us ahead of the game. Bio Security This is one of the greatest issues facing the New Zealand wine industry. Only a few months back there was an outbreak of Queensland fruit fly in the Auckland area. Imagine if something that could devastate the Marlborough wine industry appeared on our doorstep. Having a fully comprehensive map of where vineyards are, what clones or varieties are within individual blocks and how old they are, could be the difference between being able to shut something down in a matter of weeks rather than months. Biosecurity is an increasingly important part of our agricultural landscape as we have such a concentrated area of the same species, variety and clonal material, our industry should be particularly sensitive to this. International Sauvignon Blanc Celebration 2016 An initial driving force behind the mapping project was for Marlborough to have a visual platform to present to the market, in a way that would not only promote the region, but would also help to tell our individual stories. And coming up we have International Sauvignon Blanc Celebration 2016 –

based right here in Marlborough. This is going to be huge for Marlborough wine. Behind the scenes I have heard that the organising committee has received an overwhelmingly positive response from media guests and trade. An intricate, detailed map of our vineyards will help reaffirm our position as Sauvignon leaders by showing to the world that we have developed an intimate relationship with the land. More and more single vineyard wines are being released on to the market from all varieties. The ability to highlight a particular vineyard will add value to any single vineyard offering. The usefulness of maps in the context of marketing and promotion are valuable beyond measure. Visual and Research Tools While we know how many productive hectares we currently have in Marlborough, and how those hectares are broken down in terms of varietals – we have no record of where the varieties are planted. We have no idea of how old the vines are – (an important marketing tool in terms of varietals such as Pinot Noir), and no way of comparing varietal plantings with soil types throughout the region. The mapping project will provide Wine Marlborough with just that information. It is entirely feasible that vineyards and blocks will be

able to be directly linked to NZWG/ SWNZ survey/audit requirements. Plus in time we will be able to overlay the vineyard maps with soil, aspect and climatic information. Again another tool in the marketing box for any winery. For these reasons alone, it is vital that the Marlborough wine industry gets behind this project. There are no negatives – personal information will not be available to anyone. What we want is to ensure we know what is planted where, not who owns what. That is not what this is about. So please, get onto getting your vineyards into the system.Your industry needs your support in this. Sign-in: https://marlborough.maps. arcgis.com/home/signin. html?returnUrl=http%3A// marlborough.maps.arcgis.com/apps/ Viewer/index.html%3Fappid%3D4671 58e4a5bd4fb792f55c806469ae84 For further details contact Marcus Pickens at Wine Marlborough – marcus@wine-marlborough.co.nz

Already a few vineyards have been placed onto the map – but a lot more need to be included.

WINEPRESS June 2015

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On Site Brett Testing TESSA NICHOLSON

Brettanomyces bruxellensis is the bane of winemakers throughout the world. Known simply as Brett, its impact can lead to unpleasant aromas and wine spoilage, if left undetected. In scientific terms, the three most important known aroma active compounds associated with Brett are; • 4-ethyl phenol (4-ep), which has been variously described as having the aromas of BandAids®, antiseptic and horse stables • 4-ethyl guaiacol (4-eg) which has a rather pleasant aroma of smoked bacon, spice or cloves • Isovaleric acid which has an unpleasant smell of sweaty animals, cheese and rancidity • Other characters associated with Brett include wet dog, creosote, burnt beans, rotting vegetation, plastic and (but not exclusively caused by Brett) mouse cage aroma and vinegar. Brett has been isolated from the outside of grapes and from winery equipment, however its favoured winery haunt is the oak barrel. Certain conditions are known to favour the growth of Brettanomyces during winemaking. If low free sulfur dioxide levels are coupled with high wine pH and warm temperatures during barrel maturation, then issues may arise. If older oak is used and the wine has a reasonable amount of dissolved oxygen, …. look out! Furthermore it is thought that Brett can also multiply after bottling if the wine contains residual fermentable sugars, a situation made more likely if the wine was minimally filtered. Until recently the only ways for a winemaker to test for Brett within the wine, has been to do plate tests, which can take days to deliver results, or DNA testing, where wine samples are taken and tested in an established scientific laboratory.

However a new product on the market is promising to revolutionise the testing process, offering winemakers a fourhour testing time, on-site in the winery. Veriflow®BRETT is the brainchild of American company Invisible Sentinel, and while it has only been in the market place for just over a year, it is already getting big raps from more than 150 wineries world-wide, including some here in New Zealand. Ben Pascal is the company’s chief business officer, who says the new technology has made molecular diagnostics accessible to all wineries. “Typical molecular diagnostics are very expensive and cumbersome and the results have

often been inconsistent. It is not something that can be deployed directly at the winery,” he says. “Veriflow allows for a molecular system to be deployed inexpensively within the winery, making it much easier to run samples in less than half a day. Anyone in the winery can do this.” The simplicity of the system is its greatest advantage. All that is

WINEPRESS June 2015

The Veriflow®BRETT testing machine – extremely compact.

required is a 25 ml sample of wine, which is spun down, transferred to a test kit, placed in a thermo cycler, left for two and a half hours, and then transferred onto a test cassette. “This kind of looks like a pregnancy test kit,” Pascal says. “There are either one or two lines. If only one line (shows up) it means you are negative for Brett. Two lines means you are positive. So the read out is something that anyone can understand.You are

WINEPRESS June 2015

basically reading DNA on what looks like a pregnancy kit, and that’s novel, no one has ever been able to do that before. “The intensity of the second line correlates to the level of Brettanomyces, which is important to the winemakers – they need to know how much is actually there.” All this is done within a four and a half hour period, meaning winemakers can move quickly to get on top of the issue if Brett is discovered. Prior to launching the product last April, Pascal says they validated it by working alongside Jackson Family Wines in the US, a company known for their premium product. He said one of the major talking points during the validation was the ability to be pro active rather than reactive when dealing with potential spoilage. “Our groups have put plans in place that they test at four critical points. We test at fermentation, which is very new. It means you can test just what you

are bringing into the winery from the vineyard. “The next stage would be aging. During racking, when you are working with the wine. “The third point of place where you test is at topping. “And the forth place is just before you bottle. “In the past lots of winemakers would do Brett testing because they smelt something or suspected they had Brett in their barrels. Or else they did it as a standard test. But what Veriflow®BRETT allows them to do is be pro active and test before they think something may be wrong.” Which means they can react well before any potential spoilage takes effect. The very portable and small testing kit can undertake 24 samples at a time – meaning multiple barrel lots, or blends can be checked every four and a half hours. In terms of costs, Pascoe says each individual test works out as “typically 50 – 75% less than other molecular diagnostics. And if you look at the capital equipment costs, it is 80% less than other competitor’s capital costs.” Veriflow®BRETT has already gained numerous awards in the US and has been labeled as a “game changer in the vineyard” by Forbes magazine. In New Zealand the new system is being marketed by NZMS.

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Water In The Vineyard LARA CAMPBELL

The following article was first published in the Organic Winegrowers New Zealand newsletter. Given the recent season,Winepress was keen to re-print it. Marlborough has had one of its driest growing seasons in 86 years and it made a noticeable difference. With nine of the 16 water consent areas suspended, farmers and viticulturists alike had some worrying times. Organics Winegrowers New Zealand held a workshop at Clos Henri, which served as a great opportunity for growers to gain valuable insights from Fruitions Jim Mercer and learn from Plant and Food researchers Damian Martin and Marc Greven.

WINEPRESS June 2015

Water, Soil and Vine Jim Mercer, business manager for Fruition Horticulture in Marlborough, was part of the team responsible for supplying soil moisture measurement equipment and data analysis on the Organic Focus Vineyard project. His informative lecture took growers back to the basics of the soil/water dynamic. Although difficult to imagine now, during winter rains our soils become saturated. Over the following days (or months depending on how wet the season is) drainage and runoff occur, leaving the soil at Field Capacity (FC).

When soils are at FC, they hold the maximum amount of Readily Available Water (RAW). It is the RAW that plants (in our case vines) are most easily able to take in. Issues arise further down the track when as a result of evaporation, plant use and lack of rain, the soil water levels drop down to Refill point. Between this point and Permanent Wilting Point (PWP), plants undergo stress but are not in a critical stage. Grapevines rarely get to PWP and usually survive droughts pretty well if managed correctly. Soils are the great influencing factor

in this dynamic. Specific soils tend to hold more water, but may not have this water readily available to the plant. For example, clay or soils high in organic matter (OM) have higher water holding capacity (WHC), but because the water forms hydroscopic relationships with the fine particles the RAW content is not nearly as high. Alternatively, if it is a sandy soil, the size and nature of the particles mean that the increased size of the macro-pores greatly reduces WHC, as drainage via gravity occurs much more easily. At stress point, productivity is affected in terms of yield and quality; this is when the vine really runs out of water. Controlled stress however, can give rise to certain qualities through limiting yield. In Marlborough, the general conservative estimate of where stress point is in the dynamic sits around 6575% of field capacity. Jim had a number of observations from his experience monitoring varying undervine treatments and their effect on water in the soil. The

three treatments he focused on were undervine cultivation, mowing and herbicide. Cultivation assists in opening up the soil structure and removing competition, aiding water entry into the soil profile. However, it can be a culprit causing high evaporation early in the season. Mowing, on the other hand, can maintain soil moisture, but the weeds and grass provide a source of competition to the vines, unless growers are mowing often, actively growing grasses and weeds could use up to 5mm of the irrigation. Herbicide, while removing competition and reducing evaporation, leaves an impenetrable surface layer and leaves water pooling at the surface. A noticeable difference between the other treatments and herbicide is that water only penetrates to 20cm under the surface as a result of the tight compact nature of herbicided soils. It’s not about how the measure of soil moisture is taken; it’s about the way the data is interpreted.

Indirect methods of measuring soil moisture are prevelant in the industry, with the use of neutron probes and dielectric probes. The depth at which the information is taken is very important. Rather than measuring soil moisture in the top 50cm of the plant root system, it is optimum to measure between 1-1.3m deep, as the aim is to see the interchange of moisture across soil horizons and how the soil horizons interact with the soil water. Neutron probes are tried and tested, having been around for a long time. They are fantastic for stony soils, are insensitive to salinity and temperature and are able to measure a large area. However, they are not continuous; they need to be removed from the vineyard once the readings have been taken. Dielectric probes are more frequently used. They are continuous and telemetric – so you have ‘real time’ data measurements – and can measure soil temperature, air temperature and air flow, and measure at varying depths. TDR and TDT (Aquaflex) are current

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WINEPRESS June 2015

products available. Other methods that may be used are soil water potential (such as tensiometers) and stem water potential (e.g. the Scholander pressure bomb). Assessing Stress Marc Greven, a soil scientist with Plant and Food Research discussed his observations about soil moisture monitoring and the environmental influences on grape production and wine quality. Fairly good measurements of water stress don’t always have to be taken by expensive equipment with difficult operation. Plant and Food have utilized neutron probes in their recent research, while Marc intimated that to get fairly good indicators of plant stress you could use a leaf area meter, sap flow meter, leaf temperature and the use of Scholander pressure bomb. Scholander pressure bombs are relatively easy to operate and function on the idea that pressure required to exude sap from the leaf petiole, will be equal and opposite to the suction that pulls the water up from the roots. Although somewhat limited by sunny weather and relatively time-consuming to use, the pressure bomb offers an excellent and easy way to interpret the amount of stress relative to the soil the vine is in. However you test how much water you have, poor water management will still have an effect on the vines, so focusing on the interpretation of the data is definitely more important than the method of collection. Excess moisture can lead to reduced air in the soil affecting plant water uptake; on the other hand, too little moisture can lead to the vine shutting down. Either way you’re going to have a reduction in growth activity. In the short term, roots cannot cope and reduced water and nutrient uptake may follow. In the long term, root systems may extend and look for water sources in alternative places. Root osmosis within the soil creates pressure in the soil. Further pressure is created by leaves as they transpire – sucking water up from the soil. Stomata open and their increased size allows for

WINEPRESS June 2015

greater gas exchange, increasing the rate of photosynthesis. Under water stress, water losses are too great for the plant to sustain a high photosynthesis rate, so stomata close. Principal cells will start lacking water, leading to reduced cell division and cell expansion. Cell desiccation and death may occur. The relationship between deficit irrigation and grape phenology can be broken down into three stages. Stage 1 and 2 represent the period of berry development, prior to veraison and then leading into veraison. Stage 3 is indicative of ripening, where cells developed prior to veraison begin filling with juice and become fleshier. Berries under stress will be smaller than those being irrigated, with higher concentration of sugars. Water’s Effects on Wine Damian Martin is well versed in the language of dry farming. As lead scientist at Plant and Food in Marlborough, he has a PhD in Oenology and Viticulture Sciences from the University of Bordeaux and served as Ara’s general manager for 10 years. His presentation focused on water in the vineyard, centered on the effect that irrigation has on wine quality. The end game is wine, and water management in the vineyard has important influence in modifying wine style. In both red and white grapes, deliberate deficit irrigation has been shown to be beneficial to wine styles. This is true particularly in oak-aged Sauvignon and

Semillon wines. Deficit irrigation results in smaller bunches and berries, thereby increasing bunch exposure. Bunch exposure will have different effects from temperature, as air and light infiltration affect the composition of the berries. With deficit irrigation, you tend to reduce leaf area and put the plant under stress, and basal leaves tend to yellow. No new leaves are produced. This alters the ratio of new leaves to old, which both reduces the ability of the plant to photosynthesise and reduces the amount of feeder leaves for amino acids. Juices therefore have lower primary amino acids and YAN, affecting fermentation dynamics. Amino acids are important building blocks for aroma compounds such as passionfruit and capsicum. In severe cases, vines under stress may lose the ability to form these compounds. So the amount of water you apply is inherently dependent on the style of wine you want to make. With smaller canopies, there is increased fruit exposure and bunches ripen faster. This faster ripening increases the development of polyphenolic compounds. The high phenolic content is involved in setting up metabolic pathways, so the juices have reduced fruity diol characters. Essentially, reducing water applied to vines reduces the amount of fruity, green characters, and contributes to the texture and body, aging process and dry matter other than sugar (i.e. polysaccharides, protein etc), simply

because there are more cells with less juice. Similarly, malic acid and acidity are decreased due to fruit exposure, but only really noticed as hang time increases. In red wines, the effects are the same however YAN deficits are more prevalent, leading to issues with fermentation and the production of H2S characters. Negotiates in Rhône used to look for tanks with reductive characters, as it was a sign of quality that vines were under water stress. Exposed fruit leads to the formation of highly stable phenolic compounds due to the effect of UV light on skins. Generally, anthocyanins and tannins do not mix, but the degradation of skin and flesh cells under UV light allows this to happen, increasing the extractability of phenols and colour. Also, vines with water deficit aim to produce seeds rather than fruit. As a result, the seed coat becomes lignified. This isolates the green, unripe flavours from the seeds from the rest of the berry, resulting in less harsh characters coming out from the berry during the winemaking process. Why is deficit irrigation in New Zealand, and specifically in Marlborough, so hard then? This is an aspect of viticulture where a conservative route needs to be taken.

Damian Martin (left) and Marc Greven at the workshop.

When looking at the differences between dry-farmed vineyards and the average Marlborough vineyard, the contrast lies within the canopy. Dryfarmed vines which are gnarled, close to the ground and bush are a contrast to the big, green and leafy canopies which dominate Marlborough. The nature of soils in Marlborough means that they are unable to support deficit irrigation. Silty, free-draining soils are dominant, while 20-25% clay soils are very low compared to the 4555% clays found in prestigious regions. Similarly, nutritional requirements have big differences in dry farmed vines and drip-irrigated vines. Drip irrigation tends to produce big, green canopies that tend to demand more nutrients. In dry farming the vines tend to develop in balance with the system so grow to

what is available. By having bigger root systems, the plant develops a greater ability to take up more water and nutrients from the soil. Root system size can also be altered by irrigating more, less frequently, and avoiding irrigating to needs, thus encouraging the roots to expand and allowing growers to apply moderate deficits. The take home message from this workshop is that water management in the vineyard relates to the style of wine you intend to make. As you increase the deficit, the wine style changes from fruity, light and lively to more austere and structured. Developing an understanding of your soils is imperative to developing a tailor-made water strategy that makes best use of the available resources.

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Wine In Tubes TESSA NICHOLSON

What began as a means of sending smaller samples of wine around the world, has morphed into a major marketing tool, which for the first time ever includes Marlborough wines. Wine in Tubes was the brainchild of a Bordeaux winemaker and a French sommelier nine years ago. In an effort to cut down on the cost of sending bottles for sampling, the winemakers invented a system where wine could be transferred into 60ml tubes, under inert gas, and then sent out to wine writers, critics, and trade for individual tastings. The cost analysis of the project showed that the tube samples were eight to 10 times cheaper to send, when compared with a bottle. Within a very short time, it became apparent to the two men, that consumers were keen on purchasing single serve wines. What’s more, research showed that eight out of 10 consumers are demanding more interesting wines and are willing to spend more on a great glass of wine, rather than purchasing a bottle of lesser quality. It was

WINEPRESS June 2015

time for Wine in Tubes to expand, and so began a meteoric rise in sales. The tube was expanded to contain 100ml, or a small single glass. And French wine companies were quick to see the marketing advantages. Some of the biggest names in Bordeaux got on board, including Château Kirwan, Château Beychevelle, Château LatourMartillac. These days 80 French wineries from seven regions have their wine sold in tubes. And they are not just marketing their latest vintages, some of the Wines in Tubes date back to the 90s. When Marlborough based Georges Michel received a pre packaged gift box of Bordeaux wines he instantly saw the marketing advantages. “These are some of the top wines, from some of the best vintages. Can you imagine 10 years ago, that any of these guys would put their wines together in a box, for consumers to try? Never! Now they have accepted that having their wines

together in a sample tube works and they have got behind the idea.” Georges was so impressed that he has imported the equipment required to turn wine in bottles, into wine in tubes. He is the only person in the Southern Hemisphere able to do so. “What you do is transfer the wine from the bottle – not the tank.You hook the bottle onto the machine and transfer the wine by pressure under inert gas, without any contact with oxygen, straight into the tube. There is a screwcap that closes the tube off so the wine never has any contact with oxygen, meaning it is as pure in the tube as it is in the bottle.” Georges is also importing a range of Wine in Tubes for sale here in New Zealand and Australia. The list of wines is impressive, Bordeaux (Margaux, Saint Émilion, Médoc Sauterne), Burgundy, Côtes du Rhône and a range of top flight whiskeys. Okay they are not wine, but they are still an example of how the packaging can be used to highlight a variety or region, or even a spirit. Georges now has a range of three of his own wines in tubes – a Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. “I would love to have a box of Marlborough Pinot Noir and Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, with four or five different wineries represented in there. It would be stunning in a

French Wine in Tubes: Some of the biggest names in Bordeaux have seen the benefits of having their wines available in single serve tubes.

duty free shop,” he said. Which brings us to another important point about wine in tubes – you can carry these onto a plane, whereas many countries will no longer allow you to carry a bottle of wine on. Because they are only 100mls, they meet the safety criteria many ports have in place regarding liquids carried by hand. Currently the specially created wine boxes can hold three, four or five wines. All the tubes are imported from France, with screen printing provided and have to be ordered in sets of 1000. While Georges admits the initial cost of the Wines in Tubes looks expensive, he says the ability to buy a set of different wines by the glassful is highly appealing to consumers. And if that is not enough reason to get behind the idea, think of how much money you could save by sending tube samples of the latest vintage, rather than sending entire bottles.

Georges Michel wines in tube include Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Georges would love to see a box of Marlborough Sauvignons and Pinots available for sale.

Jancis Robinson had this to say about Wine in Tubes: “It does look like something of potential interest to any wine producer who sends out a high volume of samples and/or is interested in selling their product in small, stylish doses.”

The whole process is not just limited to spirits and wine. Cocktails in Tubes are a big seller overseas, and Georges has already had enquiries about selling different honeys in tubes, and olive oils. The sky is the limit it appears, when it comes to single servings.

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Generation Y-ine – Laura-Kate Morgan, Drylands TESSA NICHOLSON Laura-Kate Morgan has never been one to sit around inside, doing nothing. All through her school years, she was either on a sports field, or out in the garden. She had one of two goals, either become a physio or a landscape architect. She has done neither, instead heading into the wine industry, which surprises everyone who knows her, Laura-Kate most of all. Not that she has no experience of the wine industry. Her parents have had vineyards for the past 10 years, she helped plant them out – “we kids were cheap labour I reckon.” “It was definitely hard work,” she says. “Actually thinking back now on how hard it was, I don’t know why I got into the industry.” Many who knew her, would have expected her to do something with sport, given how talented she was in a range of disciplines. “But as sport began to dominate my life, I decided I liked it more as a passion, rather than wanting to make it my livelihood.” Instead she decided landscape architecture was where she wanted to head. A trip to Lincoln University’s open day, stymied that choice. “I ended up being dragged through the wine labs and I think having had a look at the architecture building and realising I would be sitting at a desk inside, I knew it wasn’t for me. Whereas the wine lab, I could see there was a viticultural side to the course, I would get outside and I had a bit of a background in that area – so I went for it.” Laura-Kate admits she is a person who needs to be hands on, in whatever activity she undertakes. Whether that be sport or gaining a degree. The Vit and Oenology course was perfect for her.

WINEPRESS June 2015

“Anything that had a hands on element appealed. Someone could explain something to me, but if I could get out there and try it, it cemented the knowledge. I am far more practical than theoretical – so Lincoln fitted me perfectly.” There were no qualms or any confusion on just where she would end up – viticulture was always going to be the end goal. Well famous last words apparently, given Laura-Kate is now the vintage assistant winemaker at Drylands, here in Marlborough. So what happened to change her mind from being among the vines, to being among the barrels and tanks? “When I started my practical work, I did it here at Drylands and I just loved it. It was something about the team environment and working with a range of people – it was really great, good fun. And the physicality of the job was great as well.” She must have made an impression with the company, because what began as a three week practical job at the winery in 2011, ended up being a three month spell between her second and third year of the degree. “Then I came to the end of my exams in 2013 and thought I needed to get out of student life and find myself a real job. A permanent cellar hand position came up at Drylands and I got it.” She has gradually moved up the ranks, from being in charge of the press area during vintage in 2013, to the night shift supervisor a year later. This past vintage she was promoted to the position of assistant vintage winemaker. That coming through the ranks has been really important to her. “It really helps when you are talking to people who are doing the job you were doing last year, in fact it’s key. I have been really lucky, learning from people

who have a wealth of knowledge and being in the positions I have been in, it has allowed me to stand back and get a really good look at how it all works.” Her hands-on practicality goes a little further than just the winemaking. Apparently, (although Laura-Kate is reticent to admit to it), she is a pretty dab hand at fixing anything plumbing related. Which is not surprising, given her father, Kevin Morgan, is a plumber. “I remember when I was a bit older, every weekend was like a family trip away, where we were going to do plumbing jobs,” she laughs. “I think our incentive was that Dad would take us for lunch at the Kekerungu Store, or take us on a drive down the Sounds.” So did she pick up her handy-woman techniques then? “I suppose I was passing the tools and so I ended up being his wee apprentice on some jobs. I guess I got a bit of an understanding of a few things.” I think she may be being slightly modest about that. In 2014, Laura-Kate headed to California for a vintage. Jordan Vineyard and Winery is a small family owned company, based in Sonoma. They produce only two wines a year, a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Chardonnay. The total crush is just 2000 tonnes.Very different from what she was used to here in Marlborough. But Laura-Kate was in her element. “It was really nice to be able to get intimate with varieties that I hadn’t had much experience with. It was all barrels, not stainless and we got to spend a lot of time with the fruit. There is something about being able to do manual punch downs, and get up close and personal with the wines. It was a very intimate experience and it really ignited a whole new passion for the wine industry that I hadn’t felt before.”

There was only one aspect of the vintage that proved difficult – the language barrier between herself, the only foreign intern, and the other cellar hands who were mainly Mexican. “Getting to know a whole new culture and experience, plus to speak a new language was a highlight. But saying that, it was also very difficult,” she says. “I found that as far as my language went, was as far as I was extended workwise. It was a huge barrier. If I couldn’t speak the language, I could only do jobs they knew I could do, so I found I really had to push myself. Here at Constellation they have always pushed me, told me I could do something and given me confidence. But over there I had to push myself, which I wasn’t too good at to begin with. There was a point to be honest, that I started thinking, what am I doing here, when I could be doing more back in New Zealand. But once I got over that barrier, where I had to trust myself and

trust my instincts, it was great. I knew I could do the stuff, I just had to prove to them that I could. I learned a lot about myself during that period.” The American experience has given her a taste of what is out there for young winemakers and she admits she would love to do more work overseas. But having already experienced a language barrier, she is not thinking too much of Europe, more of Australia and America. “I would love to go to the European wine regions, but I think I would rather travel them than work them. Unless I could overcome the language barrier and be pushed to my potential, as I would be in an English speaking country.” When quizzed Laura-Kate admits that viticulture is still a possibility in the future, but right now she is loving the teamwork of being in the winery. “At the moment I am pretty

hungry to keep learning. I haven’t quite cemented where I want to be in the industry, so I want to keep experiencing and learning.” The diversity of the winemaking role is what really appeals. The fact that no two seasons are ever the same, that two people can make the same variety of wine, but those wines can be totally different, and how much of the job is completely out of your hands. “We rely so much on Mother Nature and sometimes we have no say in things, we just have to deal with it. That’s great, thinking on your feet, that’s what keeps me ticking. Especially in vintage – it’s unpredictable not knowing what’s around the corner. I love it.”

WINEPRESS June 2015

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Celebrating Organics TESSA NICHOLSON

Below, Above and Beyond, is the theme of an international Organic and Biodynamic Winegrowing conference to be held here in Marlborough from July 8 – July 10. It’s a first ever for the wine industry says Organic Winegrowers New Zealand (OWNZ) coordinator Rebecca Reider. “For the last few years Organic Winegrowers New Zealand has been focused on helping growers learn the basic tools to go organic and while we will continue to do that, we also wanted to celebrate how OWNZ has grown in this country.” Adding to that she said will be the international aspect of the conference, including guest speakers and an international organic wine tasting. “It’s not just aimed at growers, the conference will cover science, research, a lot of practical seminars as well as the business side of organic winegrowing. It is a conference for everyone in the wine industry to enjoy, be inspired by and learn from.” She says the theme line is highly relevant, especially starting with Below. “So much of what is happening with the vines above ground has to do with what is happening below,” she said. “So before you get above and beyond with your vines, you have to dig deep down below and think about what is happening there.” The Above and Beyond bywords are indicative of how OWNZ is not resting on its laurels of growth in the past five years. “We want to continue to grow, and that is why we are bringing in so many speakers. There will be something for everyone. For those who have had very little exposure to organic growing and for those who have been growing organically for a long time and now want to take themselves above and beyond their current status.”

The long list of subjects to be covered during the two and a half day conference is vast. And as Rebecca has said, there is something for everyone, not just those that are already proponents of organics or biodynamics. For growers who have watched the devastation caused by grass grubs, a session on research coming out of Chile is bound to be of interest. The results of organic and biodynamic trials which have been conducted in McLaren Vale will be released, as will the findings of the three year Focus Vineyard trials undertaken here in New Zealand. Dealing with nitrogen in the vineyard and finding answers to some of the more recent issues to arise in New Zealand, such as powdery mildew and biological control of botrytis will feature. The conference is not based just around the vineyard however, with a number of sessions dedicated to winery issues, such as managing wild ferments, how

sulphur affects naturally occurring fementative and non fermentative yeasts, and the impact of nutrient additions on ferments. Rounding out the conference will be a marketing sector, focusing on labelling, getting the message of organic wines out to the public, branding your product in a unique way, and cost benefit analysis. In amongst all the seminars will be a range of tastings, firstly of New Zealand organic wines, and later an international tasting. An organic feast, prepared by chef Bevan Smith will be held at Brancott Estate on the Thursday night. The conference which has been a year in the planning has attracted a range of international speakers, including Monty Waldin, Phillippe Armenier and Max Allen, who will present alongside a large number of winemakers, viticulturists and scientists from New Zealand. To register for the conference, visit www.organicwineconference.co.nz

A horrifying sight - grass grubs taking over a vine. Research out of Chile on dealing with grubs and beetles will be part of the Organic and Biodynamic conference. WINEPRESS June 2015 | 29

Kiwi Cuisine in The Big Apple TESSA NICHOLSON

A New Zealand chef has made a name for himself in the hardest market in the world – New York. Recently he was celebrating the beauty of Marlborough’s wine and food. Matt Lambert is the owner and chef of The Musket Room – a Michelin Star restaurant in the heart of the big apple. What is special about this restaurant, is that it is a New Zealand based one, specializing in produce and wines from this part of the world. So who better to bring in for a fundraising luncheon, here in

A signature dish of Matts, Premium Game venison with 30 | WINEPRESS June 2015 Gin Botanicals.

Marlborough? Matt was in New Zealand for Conversations Christchurch, but being an international ambassador for Ora King, he was invited to come to Marlborough to assist in a fundraising event. Ora King along with Mud House wines are major sponsors of Kaipupu Point, a

Sounds Wildlife Sanctuary on the edge of Picton. Proceeds from ticket sales and an auction helped raise more than $24,000 for the sanctuary, which will be used to enhance the Visitor Centre located in Picton township and to assist with translocation of the South Island Robin to the Sanctuary this winter. There is no mistaking Matt’s love of his homeland, even if he has been away from this country for over a decade. It is a case of you can take the man out of New Zealand, but you can’t take New Zealand out of the man. Which is why he decided to establish a New Zealand based restaurant in one of the world’s hardest markets – New York. Was it patriotism that led to that decision back in 2013? “Yes there was a bit of that. But also I had to think what my point of difference was going to be in a city like New York. My obvious point of difference is that I am a New Zealander. So when I started thinking about opening a restaurant – I thought, will it be a generic restaurant, or something different? I decided on something

different – a New Zealand restaurant.” The menu of the Michelin Star restaurant is solely based on this country’s produce, whether that be Ora King salmon, scallops, venison, beef or cheese board. And more than three quarters of the wines available are also from New Zealand. This is a slice of Kiwi, in the Big Apple. New Zealand’s only Master Sommelier, Cameron Douglas, worked on the wine list, which Matt says helps promote what this country is all about. “I could import whatever I wanted from anywhere in the world, but that’s a bit silly. These (New Zealand) wines are already being imported into America and it really is a good way of showcasing what we as a country are all about.” Which Matt says, also means ensuring diners go home with a better understanding of geography than they arrived with. “Some people in all honesty can be a bit ignorant about what goes on down here. I get people asking we where abouts in Europe New Zealand is. The best one I ever got was from a guy who asked how long it took to drive there. Are you joking?” A proponent of items that grow together, go together, he said food is as much about terroir as wine is. And while New Zealand has a very young culture in terms of wine and food, it needs to forge its own identity moving forward. “What we are doing now is really making history. No one is talking about vintages from New Zealand yet, but in 50 or 60 years they will be. And at the same time we are developing what our food is becoming.” Matt will be back in Marlborough early next year, for the Seresin Waterfall Bay dinners. Another chance for him to promote our region, our food and of course our wine.

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Our Wine On Film TESSA NICHOLSON

One of the stills taken by the film crew while in Marlborough – at Seresin Estate.

An American-based film crew has been in Marlborough recently, gaining an insight into sustainability in the wine industry and preparing the groundwork for a feature film. WINERAM Productions (which means Wine Region A Minute) is the brainchild of Colin West, an American born winemaker who studied in Italy, then completed his Masters in Wine Business at University of Adelaide. Ending up in Queenstown, where he was working as a sommelier he began seeing the potential for wine based videos that could be aired on YouTube or sold to networks. WINERAM Productions was born. But unfortunately, Colin couldn’t retain the business here in New Zealand. As he puts it; “I didn’t have six figures in cash to buy assets here and get citizenship.” So it was back to the US to find a base for the fledgling company. That was back in 2011, and since then he has created links that sees his work being aired on 46 ABC international channels, as well as being viewed on-line through various channels. In New Zealand in May, Colin who is partnering with Lumaria Productions, owned and operated by Robert Homes and Andrea Johnson, was travelling throughout the country partially funded by New Zealand Winegrowers. “We are here for two reasons, ” he said. “We have been hired by New Zealand Winegrowers to do a campaign for the

WINEPRESS June 2015

US market on sustainability. But we are also doing some scouting and research and building some content for a teaser for a feature film, that we plan to come back and film next year.” In terms of the sustainability video, he says they are not focusing on what the word means, or trying to define why it is so important to the world. “We are trying to reach viewers on a more personal level, which we think will drive engagement. People will watch it and understand why it is that these (wine growers in New Zealand) do what they do.” WINERAM’s audience is diversified Colin believes, and has changed since the company was formed four years ago. “I predominantly target the wine and food interested market. When I started the company it was mainly millennials and gen y’s, but now after two and a half to three years of creating content, it definitely appeals to a generation above that. So the audience is probably late 20s to mid or late 40s.” So far three series of wine documentaries have been aired, one on New Zealand, the other on Australia and a third on the US. Now Colin is planning a feature film that will be based on wine regions throughout the world – although he

says New Zealand will play a large part in it. It is a project he has big plans for. Likely to be between 60 and 90 minutes long, depending on the story being told, it will be offered to the ABC’s 46 international channels, but will reach an even wider audience. “We want to take it to international film festivals and to international theatrical release. We want to take the time to make sure that we teach a very large audience on an international level. It will be way past just the ABC audience.” His goal is to produce something that will gain the exposure of the movie Somm, a movie released in 2013 and covering four men’s efforts to gain the qualification of Master Sommelier. Somm was produced by Jason Wise, an industry acquaintance of Colin’s. “He did a really great job and it is an example of the success a feature film can have in the international film industry. We want to match that level, or hopefully exceed that.” Given Somm kick started the Master Sommelier qualification in terms of publicity, imagine what a feature film that covers the New Zealand wine industry could do for international sales.

NZW Export News – March 2015 Key Points • MAT March 2015 export value is $1.380 billion, up 5% on the previous year. • MAT March 2015 exports are 200.2 m. litres, up 8% on the previous year; packaged exports are +2% for the period and other exports are up 23%. • Average value MAT March 2015 is $6.84 per litre down 4% on the previous year; packaged export value is $8.21 per litre down 1% on the previous year. NB: WECS, which is the source for volume data in this Report, moved to a different software system in October 2014. This has affected the data in this Report. Going forward the new software will deliver better alignment with the Statistics NZ value data as WECS data will now record the date of shipment from NZ, not the date of certification. Short term and unavoidably this means, in comparison to previous data,YTD and MAT March exports are understated by 3.6 m. litres, all of which is packaged product. In the Report reference to ‘adjusted WECS data’ means the data includes this 3.6m. litres Total Export Volume & Value • MAT March 2015 total value of exports is $1.380 billion, up 5% on the previous year. • YTD March 2015 total value of exports is $1.089 billion, up 5% on the previous year. • Total value of March 2015 exports was $136.6 m. up 7% on March 2014. • MAT March 2015 exports are 200.2 m. litres, up 8% (14.7 m. litres) on the previous year. Based on adjusted WECS data, exports are 203.8 m litres up 10% (18.3 m. litres). • YTD March 2015 exports are 161.0 m. litres, up 8% (12.5 m. litres) on the previous year. Based on adjusted WECS data, exports are 164.6 m litres up 11% (16.1 m. litres). • March 2015 exports were 19.8 m. litres up 16% (2.8 m. litres) on March 2014. Export Value per Litre All wines • March 2015 average value was $6.58 per litre, down $0.37 per litre on March

2014. • YTD March 2015 average value is $6.61 per litre. • MAT March 2015 average price is $6.80 per litre, down 4% or $0.29 per litre on MAT March 2014. Packaged wines • Excluding unpackaged wine from the data, the March 2015 average value was $8.06 per litre, down $0.14 per litre on March 2014. • YTD March 2015 the average price is $8.17 per litre. • MAT March 2015 the average price is $8.21 per litre, down $0.12 per litre (1%) on MAT March 2014. • MAT March 2015 prices are up 4% to the UK, but are down 2% to USA, 3% to Australia, and 5% to Canada. Export Volume by Country of Destination • In March, for the major markets, exports were up 64% to Australia and 21% to the UK, but were down 15% to the USA. Canada was down 9% for the month, while performance of other markets was mixed, with the best performer being Germany. • YTD March 2015 growth is led by the UK and Australia +10% with the USA +8%. Shipments to Canada are +7% on last year. Netherlands & Denmark are the other best performers. • MAT March 2015 growth is led by the UK +11%, Australia +8% and the USA +7%. Canada shipments are +5% for the year. Performance of other tracked markets is mixed with Denmark the strongest performer +37%. Export Volume by Packaging Type • Exports of packaged wines MAT March 2015 are 131.9 m. litres up 1.5% (1.9 m. litres) on the previous year and are 65.9% of total export volume. Based on adjusted WECS data, exports are 135.5 m. litres up 4% (5.5 m. litres). • MAT March 2015 packaged exports are led by the USA +13%. • Exports of packaged wines YTD March 2015 are 100.0 m. litres, down 1% on the previous year. Based on adjusted WECS data, exports are 104.6 m litres up 3%. • March 2015 packaged exports were 12.8 m. litres, up 16% on March 2014.

• Other (non-packaged) wine shipments MAT March 2015 are 68.3 m. litres up 23% (34.1% of export volume). Nonpackaged shipments growth is led by Australia (+60%). • Non-packaged exports YTD March 2015 are 61.0 m. litres up 29% (12.5 m. litres) on the previous year. • March 2015 non-packaged shipments were 7.0m. litres, up 17% on March 2014. Exports by Variety/Style In March 2015 Sauvignon Blanc exports were 17.0 m. litres, up 18% from the previous year, accounting for 85.4% of export volume. Of the Sauvignon Blanc exported in March, 16.6 m litres was from Vintage 2014. • Performance of other styles was mixed in March. • YTD March 2015 Sauvignon Blanc exports are 140.8 m. litres up 10% on the previous year. Performance of other styles is mixed with Pinot Gris the strongest performer. • MAT March 2015, Sauvignon Blanc shipments are 173.2 m. litres up 9% from the previous year. Performance of other styles is mixed with Pinot Gris +18% the strongest performer. • Production of Sauvignon Blanc in 2014 is estimated to have been 231.1 m. litres, 36% up on the previous year. Shipments of vintage 2014 Sauvignon Blanc since release are 137.5 m. litres or 59.5% of estimated production – this is a lower share than at the same time after vintages 2010 - 2014. Exports by Winery Category March 2015 export growth was led by the small wineries +71% with the large wineries +12% and the medium wineries +4%. YTD March 2015 growth is led by the small wineries +44%; the medium wineries are +5% and the large wineries are +3%. MAT March 2015 growth is led by the small wineries +30% with the medium wineries +7%; large wineries are +4% for the period. estimated production – this is a lower share than at the same time after vintages 2010 - 2014.

WINEPRESS June 2015

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WINEPRESS June 2015

Wine Happenings A monthly list of events within the New Zealand wine industry. To have your event included in next month’s calendar please email details to tessa.nicholson@me.com

AUGUST

JUNE 19 23

Spiegelau International Wine Competition entries close How To Network and Grow Your Business, 9–12, Renwick Sports Centre. RSVP to www.anz. co.nz/bizhub How To Grow Sustainable Wine Sales In China, with Simon Zhou. 10.30 – 12, MRC Theatre. RSVP to Emily@wine-marlborough.co.nz New World Wine Awards entries close

JULY 3:

Marlborough Young Winemaker of the Year Competition – details wine-marlborough.co.nz 8-10: Organic/Biodynamic Wine and Viticulture Conference – Blenheim Convention Centre. Register at www.organicwineconference.com 12: Celebrate Bastille Day – Clos Henri Vineyard – Marlborough 14-16 Spiegelau International Wine Competition Judging – Marlborough 14-16: Winetech Australia 2015 – Adelaide 16 Auction of leftover Spiegelau Wine Competition wine – 6pm, Marlborough Convention Centre 24 Marlborough Young Viticulturist of the Year – Marlborough Research Centre – For more information contact Samantha Young – samantha@wine-marlborough.co.nz 30-Aug 2 The Food Show – ASB Showgrounds – Auckland

26-28:

Spiegelau International Wine Competition Awards Dinner – Auckland Romeo Bragato Conference 2015 – Hastings

SEPTEMBER 1: 4-6 8:

Entries open for Marlborough Wine Show The Food Show Wellington – Westpac Stadium Entries close for Marlborough Wine Show

OCTOBER 6-7 7 22

Judging Marlborough Wine Show Auction of leftover wine from Marlborough Wine Show – 6pm, Marlborough Convention Centre The Marlborough Wine Show Awards Dinner Blenheim

NOVEMBER 28

Air New Zealand Wine Awards Dinner - Saxton Stadium, Nelson

FOR THE LOVE OF WINE, COME TOGETHER AT HERZOG’S! Host your guests in our cosy Bistro over the Winter months by the fire. Call to enquire about opportunities to showcase your very own Marlborough wines. For all the wine aficionados; come and indulge in one of New Zealand’s largest International wine lists!

HERZOG’S WINTER HOURS

WINEPRESS June 2015

News From Home and Away Spy Valley’s Envoy Scores Hat Trick Marlborough’s Spy Valley Wines has been awarded a trifecta of trophies at the 2015 UK International Wine Challenge, for their 2012 Envoy Sauvignon Blanc. It won the Marlborough Trophy, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc Trophy and the International Sauvignon Blanc Trophy. Trophies were announced on 18th May at the London Wine Fair. “To win the trophy for the best International Sauvignon Blanc in the UK market is huge. It shows the vineyard and winery teams are right on the mark. It also gives us another reason to celebrate and provides confidence to our global market partners,” says Blair Gibbs, Spy Valley’s General Manager. Other IWC Trophy Winners Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc Trophy - Matua Single Vineyard Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2014 Marlborough Pinot Noir Trophy – Yealands Estate Winemaker’s Reserve Awatere Valley Pinot Noir 2013 Marlborough Riesling Trophy – Framingham Classic Riesling 2012

New Zealand Botrytis Trophy – Tupari Late Harvest Riesling 2014 How To Grow Sustainable Wine Sales In China Don’t miss this presentation by Simon Zhou, NZTE Beachhead Advisor, Shanghai and Founder of Ruby Red Fine Wine New Zealand Limited.Voted as one of the 50 most influential people in the Chinese Wine industry, Simon’s main roles within the company include Wine Educator, Trainer, Purchaser and Consultant of Sales and Marketing. This presentation is of interest to anyone keen on expanding into the Chinese market. It is being held at the MRC Theatre on June 26, between 10.30 and noon. RSVP to Emily Hope, Emily@wine-marlborough.co.nz Sprayers To Be Assembled In Marlborough Croplands have recently made the decision to assemble their Quantum Mist grape sprayers here in Marlborough, rather than in Adelaide. The sprayers will be assembled by Croplands’ local service agent in the region – Marlborough Tractor Services (MTS). The company already services close to 80 Quantum Mists in Marlborough and the New Zealand Business Manager for Croplands, Don Thorp says it “is a natural fit for both businesses.” The new venture will begin this winter.

New Entry Criteria for Awards Entries are now open for the New World Wine Awards 2015, with a change to entry requirements giving smaller wineries and more limited releases the opportunity to take part. The minimum number of bottles required has reduced from 6,000 to 5,000 bottles, with further reductions to the minimum stockholding for lesserknown varietals such as some aromatics and dessert wines. Johanneshof Teams Up With Whale Centre Johanneshof Wines have become the exclusive wine sponsor of Picton’s National Whale Centre. The Centre on Picton’s foreshore displays the history of whaling and its importance to Marlborough in years gone by, while also using education and interactive technology to focus on conserving these mammals from the deep. Johanneshof will provide wine for Centre functions and support further fundraising efforts to expand the current National Whale Centre.

Disclaimer: The views and articles that are expressed and appear in Winepress are those entirely those of contributors and in no way reflect the policy of the Marlborough Winegrowers. Any advice given, implied or suggested should be considered on its merits, and no responsibility can be taken for problems arising from the use of such information.

WINEPRESS June 2015

The all new Farmlands Blenheim store now open! …15 Westwood Avenue, Springlands. Farmlands is all about providing the best rural solutions to our shareholders. That’s what we were set up to do and we’ve been doing it ever since. When you become a Farmlands shareholder you get to share in all the specials and offers we bring you PLUS sign up to be a shareholder from now until 30th June 2015 and receive a $100.00 Farmlands voucher. Call in and visit us for all your Horticultural requirements including: • Viticulture and Horticulture Development • Viticulture and Horticulture inputs • Winery production and cleaning supplies PLUS the Farmlands team is available to cater for all your business requirements including:

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• Finance • Grain & Seed • Real Estate

For more information contact the Blenheim store on (03) 579 3150. *The voucher will be sent to the proposed shareholder after acceptance as a shareholder by the Farmlands’ Board of Directors. Terms and Conditions apply.

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