FAMILY WAIPARA
BLACK ESTATE JO BURZYNSKA
O
n discovering the Black Estate in Waipara, the Naish family was sure that it was “a very special place”. But it took them a full 12 months to persuade the founders and owners, Waipara wine veteran, Russell Black and his wife Kumiko to sell the property. The Naishes won them over though, with their “long term vision” of a family run affir. Black Estate’s business side is managed by Rod Naish, who has a background in horticulture, his daughter Penelope is marketing manager, her husband Nicholas Brown, (previously winemaker at Daniel Schuster Wines) is the winemaker and their brother-inlaw, Alistair Blair looks after the vineyards. Part of the strategy has been to raise the profile of the label, along with that of the region more generally. It’s something that’s been assisted by their recent wins, which saw their 2007 Pinot Noir beat international competition to
scoop the International Wine & Spirit Competition’s Pinot Noir Trophy last year, followed by a gold for the 2009 vintage at 2011’s
Decanter World Wine Awards. “A lot more people in Britain know more about Waipara Pinot Noir than they did before this,”
acknowledges Nicholas. “Waipara has some exciting producers who are working hard to make quality wines from a diverse range of sites
Black Estate - a family affair, from left; Alistair Brown, Rod Naish and Nicholas Brown
Leaders in sustainable agriculture & horticulture. P: 07 867-6737, F: 07 867-6068, E: info@ef.net.nz www.environmental-fertilisers.co.nz
NZ WINEGROWER AUG/SEP 2011 // 81