Winepress - March 2021

Winepress THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF WINE MARLBOROUGH

ISSUE NO. 315/ MARCH 2021

ECONOMIC IMPACT

VINTAGE UPDATE

WINTER PRUNING

WINERY WASTE

Photo: Jim Tannock

wine-marlborough.co.nz

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ALTOGETHER BETTER

BAYLEYS bayleys.co.nz

12 20

this issue...

REGULARS

FEATURES

3 4 6

9

16 24 26 28

Editorial - Sophie Preece

From the Board - Ben Ensor Tasman Crop Met Report Rob Agnew Good Stuff - Isabel Estate Biosecurity Watch Sophie Badland

18

10 Vintage 2021

Industry News Wine Happenings

Cover: Isabel Estate’s Nick Best and Jeremy McKenzie, in a grassy oak grove irrigated with winery waste water. Photo

by Jim Tannock. Page 16

Economic Yields A new report reveals that 18% of all Marlborough’s economic activity in 2020, a total of $571 million, can be attributed to the wine industry, with one in every four jobs directly and indirectly related to wine.

The upcoming vintage is likely to be compressed, with low yields and warm weather leading to rapid ripening. After a year of unexpectedly stellar Sauvignon sales around the world, wine companies have little remaining in the tank to make up for the seasonal shortfall.

14 Labour Logistics

21

Marlborough is facing something of a perfect storm around labour shortages this winter pruning season, with an additional 1,630 hectares of vineyard planted in the past two years, but only a fraction of the typical labour force, and far fewer skills than in the past.

Winepress March 2021 / 1

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General Manager: Marcus Pickens 03 577 9299 or 021 831 820 marcus@winemarlborough.nz Editor: Sophie Preece 027 308 4455 sophie@sophiepreece.co.nz Advertising and Subscriptions: Sarah Linklater 021 704 733 sarah@winemarlborough.nz Wine Marlborough Board: Anna Laugesen Anna.laugesen@xtra.co.nz Ben Ensor ben@mcdonaldtextiles.co.nz Beth Forrest Beth@forrest.co.nz Callum Linklater callum@csviticulture.co.nz Gus Altschwager gus@akwines.net Jamie Marfell Jamie.Marfell@pernod-ricard.com Kirsty Harkness kirsty@mountbase.co.nz Nick Entwistle nick@wairauriverwines.com Tom Trolove (Chair) tom.trolove@framingham.co.nz Tracy Johnston Tracy@dayvinleigh.co.nz Designed by: Blenheim Print Ltd 03 578 1322 Disclaimer: The views and articles that are

From the Editor SEASONAL VAGARIES are something the wine industry rolls with year after year, from late frosts to poor flowering, and from droughts to downpours. But this year’s low crops come hard on the heels of a stellar year of export sales, through which cellar stocks have been depleted and buffers bled, so that there’s little inventory to mitigate what’s looking like a 20% drop in yields. “It’s probably the first time in a significant period that we are looking at facing a structural shortage of Sauvignon,” says New Zealand Winegrowers chair Clive Jones on page 10 of this edition.

It’s not likely a problem anyone was considering at the end of February last year, when the threat of Covid-19 was looming dark on the horizon, ProWein had just been cancelled, and New Zealand Winegrowers had formed a Covid-19 Wine Industry Response Team. By mid-March the Framingham Harvest concert had been cancelled, and days later New Zealand’s borders closed, before lockdown began rolling out.

The wine industry was allowed to harvest as an essential industry, and did so with great care and caution, while recognising the risk to export sales, and setting new budgets based on predictions of a dismal year. The reality for many has been quite the opposite, with retail sales of New Zealand wine – especially Sauvignon Blanc – going like gangbusters, so that New Zealand hit $2 billion dollars in wine exports before the end of last year.

Against that backdrop, companies have been gearing up for the 2021 vintage and pruning season, grappling with labour shortages as closed borders shut out most of the international workers they’ve learned to rely on. It’s changed the shape and scope of recruitment, leading to more Kiwis being trained, experienced cellar hands being promoted, and continued schemes to attract a sufficient pruning workforce this winter.

Now, the industry faces a whole new challenge of meeting market demand as best they can, as the appetite for New Zealand wine continues to thrive, while yields promise a slip in production. “There’ll likely be some battening down the hatches, and some hard choices on where this wine gets allocated across their distribution partners and customers,” says Ben Glover.

But given the industry’s relentless innovation and success in the face of uncertainty and adversity, it’s surely just the latest complication to conquer.

SOPHIE PREECE

expressed and appear in Winepress are 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.

This document is printed on an environmentally responsible paper, produced using elemental chlorine free (EFC), third party pulp from responsible sources, manufactured under the strict ISO 14001 Environmental Management System and is 100% Recyclable.

Winepress March 2021 / 3

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From the Board BEN ENSOR

MARCH MARKS the anniversary of the country going into Alert Level 4 lockdown right in the middle of the region’s harvest. We all held our breath as we awaited the decision on whether we would be allowed to continue. We were, and the industry - wineries especially - did an amazing job of putting in place sturdy operating procedures to protect the health of us all.

Immediately after harvest, attention turned to the question of how the market for our product would fare.

Would demand still be there? Would grape prices plummet?

Uncertainty prevailed, and we anticipated and thought through worse case scenarios. However, as we now know, wine sales in general have been performing well. This is due in part to the hard work of sales teams and the new opportunities created by the worldwide lockdown.

Post-harvest, vineyards were immediately faced with how to deal with pruning with a reduced labour pool.

Untrained pruners and wrappers made an honest effort to learn this important role, but ultimately it takes more than one season to learn the job and perform it efficiently.

This has seen the cost of labour increase dramatically. As growers, we have seen labour costs increase by 20% over the past year. Additional costs were incurred due to the increased time of pruning and other high labour input jobs.

Unfortunately, the increase in labour costs will continue to rise over the months ahead, with restrictions on the numbers of Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme workers allowed into the country. I have heard that it is anticipated that the Marlborough region could be short some 1,400 workers for this pruning season. This is a very scary reality, and I can only encourage you all to ensure you are talking with your labour suppliers to confirm they are able to complete your work or start to think about sourcing your own local labour.

Wine Marlborough continues to work with New Zealand Winegrowers to ensure Government hears our concerns. There are good news stories of companies who have successfully employed many New Zealanders coming from other industries. We should be ensuring we share these

4 / Winepress March 2021

“Additional costs were incurred due to the increased time of pruning and other high labour input jobs.” stories with Government, but ultimately the gap between supply and demand for local workers is too great and is not going to be bridged within even the next 12 months if the status quo remains.

The industry has been criticised for being too reliant on overseas labour, and we realise now how lucky we were to have a great supply of people willing and available to us all through contractors and tourists travelling the country.

The problem with the idealism that we need to employ more local staff is that seasonal and sporadic work does not suit everyone. However, we do need to start focusing on training people keen to enter the industry. I know that many wineries and growers would be very happy to hear from anyone who is interested in getting involved in the industry.

As I write this, we are just going through another alert level change. It brings back memories of a year ago, but if the shorter lockdowns can be proven successful, at least this should be seen as a positive step forward from Government.

With better procedures for contract tracing now in place, this allows businesses to get back to operating as quickly and as safely as possible.

I hope the year ahead starts to see further freeing up of RSE labour supply on top of new interest from local New Zealanders getting involved in this great industry. New entrants will bring original ideas and help us to continue to thrive and grow and provide the much-needed business success this country needs right now.

All the best for harvest.

Winepress March 2021 / 5

PROTECT

MET REPORT Table 1: Blenheim Weather Data – February 2020

Feb Feb 2021 February Period

2021 compared to LTA of LTA LTA GDD’s for: Month - Max/Min¹ 209.8 92% 227.9 (1996-2020) Month – Mean² 202.5 92% 220.2 (1996-2020) Growing Degree Days Total Jul 20–Feb 21 – Max/Min¹ 1094.3 106% 1035.2 (1996-2020) Jul 20–Feb 21 – Mean² 1120.3 105% 1067.9 (1996-2020) Mean Maximum (°C) 23.3 = 23.3 (1986-2020) Mean Minimum (°C) 11.6 -0.9°C 12.5 (1986-2020) Mean Temp (°C) 17.5 -0.4°C 17.9 (1986-2020) Grass Frosts (<= -1.0°C) 0 Equal 0.00 (1986-2020) Air Frosts (0.0°C) 0 Equal 0.00 (1986-2020) Sunshine hours 263.9 114% 230.5 (1986-2020) Sunshine hours – lowest 133.6 2012 Sunshine hours – highest 298 1968 Sunshine hours total – 2021 572.9 116% 493.5 (1986-2020) Rainfall (mm) 22.8 49% 46.6 (1986-2020) Rainfall (mm) – lowest 1 1973 & 1983 Rainfall (mm) – highest 181.4 2018 Rainfall total (mm) – 2021 30.6 34% 89.8 (1986-2020) Evapotranspiration – mm 123.3 107% 115.2 (1996-2020) Avg. Daily Windrun (km) 216.3 86% 250.5 (1996-2020) Mean soil temp – 10cm 17.8 -0.5°C 18.3 (1986-2020) Mean soil temp – 30cm 19.6 -1.1°C 20.7 (1986-2020)

Feb 2020

267.4 258.9 1086.7 1132.0 24.9 13.5 19.2 0 0 270.9

515.9 8.6

8.8 140.3 245.7 19.4 21.3

¹GDD’s Max/Min are calculated from absolute daily maximum and minimum temperatures ²GDD’s Mean are calculated from average hourly temperatures Temperature The mean temperature for February 2021 of 17.5°C was 0.4°C below the longterm average (LTA). This was also 1.7°C cooler than February 2020. In each of the previous five years, 2016 to 2020, February recorded above average mean

temperatures. The weekly summaries in Table 2 indicate that the mean temperatures in the first and third weeks of February were 2.2 and 2.1°C below average respectively. The temperatures in these two weeks were much more typical of what Blenheim normally experiences in March. However, the second week was warmer than average and the fourth week was much warmer than average.

So it was an off again / on again month temperature wise.

The hottest maximum temperature recorded in Blenheim was 29.9°C on 22 February; i.e. there were no days with a maximum of 30.0°C or higher.

In contrast February 2020 recorded 4 days over 30.0°C and February 2019 recorded 5 days over 30.0°C. However, the LTA number of days of 30.0°C or higher for February over the 74 years 1947 to 2020 is only one; i.e. February 2019 and 2020 were the exception rather than the rule. The coolest minimum temperature was 6.4°C on 18 February.

Summer temperatures The summer temperatures for 202021 will be remembered as a bit of a let-down after so much was promised.

At the beginning of December 2020 NIWA predicted for Marlborough that there was a 70% chance of above average temperature, 20% chance of average temperature and only a 10%

Table 2: Weekly temperatures, rainfall, sunshine and wind-run during February 2021

Mean Max Mean Min Mean Rainfall Sunshine Wind-Run

(°C) (°C) (°C) (°C) (hours) (km) 1st - 7th 21.7 (-1.6) 9.6 (-2.9) 15.7 (-2.2) 0.0 81.7 209.3 8th - 14th 24.9 (+1.6) 12.9 (+0.4) 18.9 (+1.0) 9.6 67.3 253.3 15th - 21st 22.1 (-1.2) 9.5 (-3.0) 15.8 (-2.1) 6.0 68.1 194.7 22nd - 28th 24.7 (+1.4) 14.6 (+2.1) 19.6 (+1.7) 7.2 46.8 207.9

1st – 28th 23.3 11.6 17.5 22.8 263.9 216.3 February (= ) (-0.9°C) (-0.4°C) 49% 114% 86% LTA 1986-2020 23.3 12.5 17.9 46.6 230.5 250.5 6 / Winepress March 2021

chance of below average temperature over the 3 months from December 2020 to February 2021; i.e. they thought we would experience a hot summer. However, as it turned out the average temperature for the three summer months was 0.2°C below the LTA. December recorded a mean temperature slightly below average (-0.1°C), January slightly above average (+0.2°C), and February below average (-0.4°C).

Table 3: Mean temperatures over the five summers from 2016-17 to 2020-21

While the summer of 2020-21 wasn’t particularly warm, it was sunny.

December 2020 sunshine hours were slightly above average, and sunshine hours in January and February 2021 were well above average. With a total of 828.3 hours sunshine, the summer of 2020-21 has the seventh highest total on record, for the 91 years 1930-31 to 2020-21.

February 2021 recorded 263.9 hours sunshine; 114% of the LTA (1986-2020).

Rainfall February 2021 recorded 22.8 mm rain; 49% of the LTA (1986-2020). February 2021 is the third year in a row in which February rainfall has been very low. Remarkably February has only recorded above average rainfall in four of the 21 years from 2001 to 2021, whereas rainfall was above average in 8 of the 15 years from 1986 to 2000.

Long-term 2016-17 2017-18 2081-19 2019-20 2020-21

Average Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean

°C °C °C °C °C °C December 16.8 16.7 18.7 17.4 16.7 16.7 January 18.2 18.4 20.7 20.7 17.5 18.4 February 17.9 18.0 18.8 18.9 19.2 17.5

Mean 17.7 17.7 19.4 19.0 17.8 17.5 +/-LTA +0.2 +1.8 +1.4 +0.17 -0.2 Sunshine Table 4: Sunshine hours over the five summers from 2016-17 to 2020-21

Long-term 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21

Average Hours Hours Hours Hours Hours December 250.7 253.0 319.1 213.2 272.6 255.4 January 263.0 282.0 243.6 317.9 245.0 309.0 February 230.5 246.3 226.4 289.4 270.9 263.9

Total 744.2 781.3 789.1 820.5 788.5 828.31

106% 107% 111% 106% 90% Table 5: Rainfall over the five summers from 2016-17 to 2020-21

Long-term 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21

Average mm mm mm mm mm December 47.3 20.2 21.6 53.6 91.2 22.8 January 43.2 27.2 80.4 3.8 0.2 7.8 February 46.6 61.

181.4 8.0 8.6 22.8

Total 137.1mm 109.2mm 283.4mm 65.4mm 100.0mm 53.4mm

80% 207% 48% 73% 39%

Figure 1: Trend in summer rainfall for Blenheim over the 36 years 1986 to 2021

Total summer rainfall in 2020-21 (Table 5) of 53.4 mm was only 39% of the LTA total. This is the sixth lowest summer rainfall on record for Blenheim for the 91 years 1930-31 to 2020-21. The data in Table 5 also indicate that

total summer rainfall in 2020-21 was lower than in the two previous years. However, the summers of 2018-19 and 2019-20 will probably be remembered as being drier, largely because most of the summer rainfall in those previous Winepress March 2021 / 7

two years fell in December 2018 and December 2019, and there was very low rainfall in January and February 2019 and 2020. In contrast the low rainfall over the 2020-21 summer was much more evenly spread across the three summer months. With 2020-21 being the third season with low summer rainfall I thought it was worth looking at the trend in summer rainfall for Blenheim. Figure 1 clearly indicates that there has been a downwards trend in summer rainfall over the last 36 years (1986-2021, the period that the Blenheim weather station has been located at the MRC Grovetown Park campus), notwithstanding the occasional very high total, as in 2017-18.

Potential Evapotranspiration Potential evapotranspiration for February 2021 was 123.3 mm, 107% of February’s LTA of 115.2 mm.

Potential Water Deficit Potential water deficit (Table 7) is the difference between monthly rainfall received (Table 5) and potential monthly evapotranspiration lost (Table 6). Potential water deficit for February 2021 was –100.5 mm (129% of the LTA).

Potential water deficit for the three summer months December 2020 – February 2021 was -385.4 mm (141% of the LTA).

Rob Agnew Plant & Food Research / Marlborough Research Centre

Wind Run Average daily wind run for February 2021 was 216.3 km, 86% of the LTA (1996-2020) of 250.5 km. This is the third lowest February wind-run on record for Blenheim for the 26 years 1996 to 2021.

Shallow Soil Moisture Average shallow soil moisture (5–35 cm depth) at the Grovetown Park weather station for February was 15.5%.

Soil moisture was low throughout the month, and three rain events on the 9th, 15th and 25th February had very little effect on raising the moisture in the topsoil.

Table 6: Potential evapotranspiration over the five summers from 2016-17 to 2020-21

Long-term 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21

Average mm mm mm mm mm December 140.4 153.7 177.8 114.9 140.1 143.2 January 143.5 181.5 135.6 186.9 133.9 172.3 February 115.2 121.9 122.4 151.0 140.3 123.3

Total 399.1 mm 457.1 mm 435.8mm 452.8mm 414.3mm 438.8mm

115% 109% 113% 104% 110%

Table 7: Potential Water Deficit over the five summers from 2016-17 to 2020-21

Long-term 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21

Average mm mm mm mm mm December -93.5 -133.5 -156.2 -61.3 -48.9 -120.4 January -102.7 -154.1 -55.2 -183.1 -133.7 -164.5 February -77.7 -60.1 +59.0 -143.0 -131.7 -100.5

Total -273.9mm -347.7mm -152.4mm -387.4mm -314.3mm -385.4mm

127% 56% 141% 115% 141%

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GROW

Economic Yields Photo by Richard Briggs

THE IMPORTANCE of wine to Marlborough’s economy dwarfs that of dairy in Southland, pipfruit in Hawke’s Bay and kiwifruit in the Bay of Plenty, according to a new report.

The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) has revealed that 18% of all Marlborough’s economic activity in 2020, a total of $571 million, can be attributed to the wine industry, with one in every four jobs directly and indirectly related to wine.

“Back in 2000, wine contributed $119m to the regional economy, with its contribution burgeoning by 380% in the two decades since.”

In comparison, dairy is responsible for 16% of the Southland economy, while apples and pipfruit make up 8% of Hawke’s Bay’s economy, and kiwifruit just 7% of Bay of Plenty's. “This report demonstrates the many ways the wine industry drives the Marlborough economy and is a fantastic information set for us to share with our community and stakeholders,” says Wine Marlborough general manager Marcus Pickens.”

Contribution of Wine to the Marlborough Economy 2020 Back in 2000, wine contributed $119m to the regional economy, with its contribution burgeoning by 380% in the two decades since, says Marcus. “I think most of us know that wine is the lifeblood of this region, and has transformed Marlborough. But it’s still heartening to see the numbers, and to quantify just how vital it really is.”

NZIER says the wine industry accounts for 2,750 jobs in the region and another 3,338 jobs are indirectly supported by the industry, far greater than any other sector investigated. In terms of wages, $171m from both grape growing and wine production ends up in Marlborough households’ pockets, resulting in more than 14% of total household income in the region last year.

Marcus says the report results are a reminder of how important it is that the wine industry successfully responds to challenges like Covid-19, the labour shortages faced by industry heading into vintage 2021, and the risk of a shortfall in labour for winter grape pruning.

Marlborough Mayor John Leggett says he is impressed at how much the wine industry provides to the Marlborough economy, when compared with other major industries in other regions. He says having independent research providing the figures gives credence to “what we have been saying, what the industry has been saying about development and how things have been going in recent years. It gives it real credibility. It’s a job well done.”

Winepress March 2021 / 9

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Grape Squeeze Production pressure from light crop SOPHIE PREECE

VINTAGE 2021 will be an “industry changing event”, says winemaker Matt Thomson, facing low yields amid strong global demand. The Blank Canvas Wines founder says a combination of spring frost and poor flowering has taken its toll. “The crops are variable for sure but they are from extraordinarily light through to fairly light, from what I’ve seen.”

New Zealand Winegrowers chair Clive Jones says Sauvignon Blanc crops in Marlborough look to be down around 20%, with other varieties down by 30%. Meanwhile “unexpected” sales growth during Covid-19 lockdowns means more tanks are empty than in the past. “It’s probably the first time in a significant period that we are looking at facing a structural shortage of Sauvignon,” he says, noting that previous small vintages, such as 2015 and 2012, came with inventory to buffer against the shortfall. Without that buffer this year, companies will need to prioritise their markets. “Each company will have to decide what markets they want to protect and which ones they want to maintain – there won’t be many opportunities to grow.”

The Nautilus winemaker expects a compressed season with low crops and rapid ripening, but says grape quality looks “fantastic”, with very clean fruit thanks to the kind season that followed a late spring frost and cool flowering period. Clive says some vineyards that seemed unaffected by frost are likely to have had crop levels curtailed by the chill. “And even blocks that weren’t frosted were then

Thai vineyard worker Kwanruen Phakdeirot (Toi) picking at Cloudy Bay last harvest. Toi is part of the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme, employed by Alapa Viticultural Services, and stayed on in New Zealand after last vintage, due to Covid border closures. Photo Richard Briggs

impacted by the cool spell that came through at flowering.”

Berry size and berry count are both down – “there are less berries and they are smaller”, he says.

Nautilus began picking for sparkling in late February, and expected still varieties to follow hard on the heels of bubbles. “It’s not the earliest sparkling pick, but it could well be the earliest for other varieties,” says Clive. He welcomed the cool nights that fell as the company began to pick, and looked forward to autumnal weather slowing vine progress.

Ben Glover, who is winemaker and owner at Zephyr and The Coterie, says the low crops will impact on every business, “and particularly small business in maintaining a positive cashflow, simply through the relationship of a supply constrained environment”. Companies are facing rising grape prices and vineyard operating costs, but passing that on in the current Covid climate is a difficult ask, he adds. “There’ll likely be some battening down the hatches, and some hard choices on where this wine gets allocated across their distribution partners and customers… This is our next big challenge moving from demand-led to supply-

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Cloudy Bay operations manager John Flanagan says the lighter crop loads meant there was far less work done on fruit thinning this year, with yields “in our sweet spot”.

Speaking on February 24, when Cloudy Bay was amid the Chardonnay harvest for Pelorus sparkling wine, having finished the Pinot Noir sparkling harvest the week before, John was contemplating “having a crack at table Pinot” the following week.

Dog Point Vineyards started harvesting Pinot Noir for table wine on February 24, which is earlier than ever

“There’ll likely be some battening down the hatches, and some hard choices on where this wine gets allocated.”

Ben Glover Crops were ripening quickly and he anticipated the team “running back and forth” between the Chardonnay for bubbles and Pinot for table. Meanwhile, Sauvignon Blanc was also ripening quickly, with variability within blocks, thanks to a “range of factors”, including secondary bunches in even minimally frosted plants, and unfavourable flowering conditions. “Some of our blocks were flowering over 17 to 18 days, whereas in the past they can rock through in a week.”

With some Sauvignon at 18 to 19 brix while nearby vines are at 12 to 14, the team needs to have patience, he says. “We can afford to let things hang out a little bit.”

By knowing where the less ripe areas are and frequently sampling they will find a “happy medium”, he adds.

Matt says the Blank Canvas Pinot Noir pick would begin in early March, and he expected harvest to wind up around April 10, “both of which are early”. He was aware of at least one company beginning its still wine Pinot harvest

by February 24.

Speaking in late February, Matt says he’s seen no botrytis, with very loose bunches, teamed with windy and dry weather. “We’ve had plenty of sun and quite a few cool nights, so things are moving fast but have good acidity…

All going well from here we will have great intensity and balance from a very light crop.”

Crop Drop Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc bunch numbers were predicted to be slightly above average this year, but are instead below average. Plant & Food Research (PFR) weather expert Rob Agnew say the Sauvignon Blanc yield prediction model developed by Dr Junqi Zhu at PFR Marlborough predicts potential bunch numbers from temperatures during bunch initiation in the previous season, so in this case from mid-November to early December 2019. However, cooler temperatures in late December 2019 could have impacted the potential bunch numbers. Lower yields are also due to cooler flowering conditions in 2020, with temperatures mostly below average from mid-November to the first week of December, he says. “By all accounts berry numbers are well down this year and berry size is well down…especially with Pinot Noir.” As well as predicting Sauvignon Blanc bunch numbers more than a year before harvest, the prediction model evaluates likely crop loads in the lead-up to harvest, and this year predicts that berry numbers will be down about 20% and berry weight will be down between 5% and 15%, depending on the vineyard area. “Consequently, predicted yield is looking like it could be anywhere from 17% to 27% down,” says Rob. A late and heavy frost on September 30, which coincided with an early budburst in Sauvignon Blanc, is also a factor, he says.

“It could have tickled up some early Sauvignon because 50% budburst of Sauvignon in central Rapaura was September 26.”

Winepress March 2021 / 11

EDUCATE

Unleashing Potential Closed borders transform winery teams SOPHIE PREECE

COVID-19 has created extraordinary opportunities in Marlborough wineries, as the shortage of skilled labour changes the face of cellars.

Wither Hills winemaker Patricia Miranda-Taylor says border closures drastically reduced access to the international cellar hands the industry has long relied on.

But the company has worked “strategically” to forge a team that makes up for a lack of experience with an abundance of work ethic, transferable work skills and positive attitude.

“We feel very confident,” she says in mid-February, with a crew of 45 vintage interns, more than half of whom have no harvest experience. “To me the most important thing is the attitude towards harvest… I believe it will be a good vintage.”

Staff with experience and aptitude have been promoted to supervisory roles they may not otherwise have found themselves in, and the winemaking team will be surveying new staff constantly, ready to “unleash potential”, she says.

“We have to be strategic to see who can be good in certain positions and will learn fast.”

Meanwhile she and the other winemakers will be spending far less time at their computers and more at the coalface, with each of them allocated an area where their expertise will be used to make wine and educate cellar hands. That means Patricia, who has done 23 vintages, will be working at Wither Hills’ “Middle Earth”, helping with operations in the cellar, such as flotation, filtration, clarification, and propagations. “It is quite exciting,” she says. “It’s the dream of a winemaker to advance to a senior position, but you always miss the fun and excitement of doing vintage in the cellar.”

The company runs a six-day harvest week, with a maximum of 72 hours, so they have built a “matrix” to ensure there’s always an experienced winemaker on hand,

“I am learning new things every single day” Louise Brown 12 / Winepress March 2021

From left, Louise Brown, Patricia Miranda-Taylor and Petra Trousilova

as well as a second in charge and supervisors, in order to “support each other and support the team”, while answering questions on the floor.

That education process will be more important – and accessible – than ever, says Patricia, relieved that Wither Hills had already put in place detailed training protocols and cellar guides for cellar hands, including video clips, simple descriptions of roles, wines, and facilities, and “cheat sheets” with photos, descriptions, and arrows for what to do and how. That will be priceless in a vintage where many are finding their feet, she adds.

The season has seen the company look more broadly for human resources, and while cellar hands are generally a young crew, this year Wither Hills has four interns aged over 50. At the other end of the scale, they will have a Marlborough Boys’ College student, part of the New Zealand Wine School, working a partial week. Intern inductions have been staggered over two months, with a tranche of more experienced cellar hands coming in closer to vintage.

EDUCATE

For Louise Brown, Covid-19 has been an opportunity to test the wine industry, having finished Marlborough Girls’ College (MGC) last year. “After everything that happened with lockdowns, I thought it was best to take a year and see what interests me,” she says. Louise applied for a cellar hand role and was approached about working in the lab instead, starting from mid-January. “I am really enjoying it”, she says.

“Everyone is so nice and I am learning new things every single day.”

Louise says several of her friends have made the same choice, due to the impacts of Covid, so there are a “gang” of former MGC students working at different wineries, taking the opportunity created by closed borders. “I think this year made it easier because not many people could come from overseas.” She knows life is about to get a whole lot busier as vintage gears up, and is excited to see if it’s a pathway she wants to continue, via university studies. “I am excited. It’s a whole new environment and we’re like a family here.”

Petra Trousilova has been part of that family for the past four years, and is clearly devoted to Wither Hills, which kept her on as a cellar hand last year, after her six month visa expired. The Czech cellar supervisor and her Chilean partner, also a regular vintage cellar hand at Wither Hills, would normally head to the northern hemisphere for the New Zealand winter, but stayed in Marlborough due to Covid-19. That’s good news for her, but also for Wither Hills, says Patricia, happy to have Petra’s expertise and enthusiasm on board for the extraordinary vintage.

Petra’s introduction to the wine industry happened “by accident” when she was in New Zealand on a working holiday and got a vintage job with Kim Crawford Wines. She returned the following vintage to work with Wither Hills, “and here I started to really love to job”, she says. “I got to learn so many things. I could work with all the varieties they have here. And I like the team here. It’s amazing.”

Experience gold in vintage 2021 New Zealand Wineries general manager Alistair McIntosh has recruited 70 vintage staff for the upcoming harvest, with 17 of them New Zealanders. That’s around double the normal Kiwi intake, but he says travellers stranded in New Zealand by Covid-19 have been a lifeline for the company.

Before Christmas, when that pool of workers wasn’t looking readily available, recruitment was “pretty tough”, says Alistair. “The Government seemed to think there were lots of Kiwis out there looking for jobs, but they certainly weren’t in Marlborough.” When work visas were extended for six months, he was “suddenly inundated” with people keen to work through vintage. “Since then it hasn’t been that hard to find people.” Around half his incoming workforce is well trained, including permanent employees and 20 returning cellar hands, “which gives us the numbers to train those who haven’t worked here before”, he says. “Certainly, we don’t have the level of experience we would normally have.”

Experience is gold this season, and his seasoned crew, including eight South American cellar hands who worked with New Zealand Wineries last year, and a few “highly experienced” Kiwis, are being given positions of greater responsibility, along with higher pay rates. “Our labour budget has gone through the roof”, says Alistair in reference to those boosted rates, along with an increase in the minimum wage and the easier road to a successful visa application if offering the median wage or higher.

The main intake of staff didn’t hit the cellar floor until March 1, but he employed his returning international cellar hands from late January, to help them out. “I think quite a few wineries have done the same thing,” he says.

Meanwhile, Alistair is trying not to think about the

possibility of vintage 2022 with borders closed, because he anticipates most stranded internationals will go home after this harvest. “These people are unlikely to stay for another winter. Then if the borders don’t open we’ll have no-one,” he says. “It could be really interesting next year.”

Argentinian cellar hand Pablo Cordero has returned to New Zealand Wineries this vintage, having been stranded in New Zealand by Covid-19 border closures. Photo Jim Tannock

Winepress March 2021 / 13

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Labour Logistics Perfect storm for pruning pressure SOPHIE PREECE

MARLBOROUGH GRAPE growers are facing a major leap in pruning costs this winter, thanks to increased seasonal labour rates and the cost of quarantining an intake of Pacific Island workers. New Zealand Master Contractors Inc (NZMCI) chair Tanya Pouwhare says growers can expect to pay at least 17% more this pruning season, as contractors grapple with labour shortages, increased pay rates and their share of managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) costs for incoming Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme workers.

But more concerning than the cost increase is the “massive” labour shortage that’s looming this winter, with a peak deficit of 1,400 vineyard workers from all sources, including RSE, says Tanya, citing data collected by the organisation. “The demand for labour has gone up because of new developments (1,630 hectares in the past two years) and the supply has gone down… There may be a handful of RSE employers who have a full contingent, but definitely not the big ones.”

In November last year the New Zealand Government

“There may be a handful of RSE employers who have a full contingent, but definitely not the big ones.”

Tanya Pouwhare

Photo by Richard Briggs

14 / Winepress March 2021

approved a border exception for 2,000 RSE workers to come in and assist with peak horticulture and viticulture periods, with 13 flights from three Pacific Island nations between January 15 and March 6. The conditions of the exception include that the workers must be paid at least $22.10 an hour, 17% more than the minimum wage of $18.90, and that RSE employers pay the average cost for MIQ (estimated to be $4,722 per person), as well as paying workers the equivalent of 30 hours work a week while in isolation.

Tanya says getting the planes full and logistics ironed out over the Christmas and summer period has been a huge amount of work from a team of Government and industry representatives, with the efforts frustrated by the number of workers already employed through a similar Australian project (SWP), which geared up sooner. “So a bunch of our highly skilled guys have left and are now working in Australia.”

She expects at least 550 of the quarantined RSE workers to be available for winter pruning in Marlborough, well under the typical RSE cap. Vineyard contracting companies also hope to employ approximately 1,600 of the 5,500 RSE workers described as “in country”, meaning they stayed on to work when Covid-19 closed New Zealand’s borders (see sidebox), providing a valued labour force over the past year.

Tanya says the $22.10 rate would be of no concern in a normal year, as trained pruners earn well over that rate.

However, Marlborough’s 18 contract labour firms paid out $3.3 million in “top ups” from May to September last year.

“That was basically training non-skilled workers – (summer) RSEs, backpackers and Kiwis – to try and get the region done.”

She expects more of the same this year, with the new intake of RSE workers more likely to be experienced in apple and kiwifruit than grapes. And the new rate will result in higher wages across the board, she adds. “There is a moral if not legal obligation to pay someone who is working right next to someone else the same.”

However, Tanya says growers have been largely accepting of the increased cost of pruning for 2021. “It will

PROTECT

have to be a joint effort. We can’t pass all of it on. But we cannot absorb all of it either, because we will just fall over.”

New Zealand Winegrowers, Wine Marlborough and NZMCI are in continued fortnightly discussions with Government to ensure Marlborough’s vineyards can be pruned this winter, and there’s enough labour for the next growing season. Wine Marlborough advocacy manager Nicci Armour says the industry body has been working with all engaged stakeholders and groups to tackle Marlborough’s labour constraints from multiple angles. “Low labour numbers pose a daunting challenge for winter pruning this season, but as an industry we have demonstrated repeatedly that we can rise to the challenge when we band together.

This is an excellent catalyst for our industry to rethink our accepted norms and work on innovative solutions—a collaborative approach will see us through.”

Marlborough currently has 700 “work-ready” people available through the Ministry for Social Development (MSD), up around 300 from the pre-Covid unemployment levels, says Tanya. More work is being done to attract and train Kiwi vineyard workers to Marlborough for winter, with Wine Marlborough and the NZMCI working with MSD, the Primary ITO, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology and the Ministry for Primary Industries, to get pruning taster courses and training underway.

A long stay away from families Thousands of migrant workers have spent the past 12 to 18 months away from their homes and families, as they continue to work in New Zealand orchards and vineyards. New Zealand Master Contractors Inc (NZMCI) chair Tanya Pouwhare says Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme workers typically come for six months before returning home, but not all have been able or keen to join repatriation flights to their home nation since Covid-19 border closures.

In many cases, the “in country” RSE are providing vital support for families and communities at home, with tourism jobs no longer providing income in the islands, Tanya says. “The word back from families is you can’t come home because we need the money… The pressure to stay in New Zealand and work has increased.”

The teams have been a lifeline for New Zealand growers, with closed borders ruling out a “refresh” of RSE workers. But Tanya says there’s a big difference between a six month stint in the vines and a year or longer, so RSE employers have had to be vigilant around the physical and mental wellbeing of their people. There has been an increase in pastoral care from employers, and steps to ensure staff are taking “meaningful time off”, receiving holiday pay and sick leave, and being offered reduced hours where required, she says.

She’s also aware that the labour shortage this year will potentially result in a heavier workload this winter “so there has to be a real intentional overview of your workforce to make sure that they are cared for”.

Tanya says most NZMCI employers regularly survey their RSE workers, to check energy levels and general wellbeing. She says RSE Employers are all talking about what they are doing and how they can do it better, from the simplest things like easy access to wifi, to bigger issues like five-day working weeks to top up energy reserves where requested. It’s a case of swiftly adapting, she adds. “We’re building the plane while we are flying it.”

A RSE competitor at the Wine Marlborough Silver Secateurs pruning competition

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Winepress March 2021 / 15

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Water Ways Good ideas flowing at Isabel Estate SOPHIE PREECE

WHEN JEREMY McKenzie took over at Isabel Estate in 2014, the Renwick winery was under the pump when it came to winery waste water.

Turning that around, while growing the operation from 450 to 1,800 tonnes, has been about a trickle of changes not a flood, with a continuous improvement programme on a modest budget, says the company’s chief winemaker. “We have done it quite strategically.”

Winery and operations manager Nick Best, who joined Isabel a year after Jeremy, told attendees at the Wine Marlborough winery waste water workshop last month about a series of changes made at the company, from creating a new area for waste water irrigation, to ensuring better capture of storm water. Nick reiterated that it was about working smarter, without a big capital outlay, and being prepared to catch the “curve balls” that inevitably fly through when it comes to winery waste. That included visiting wineries around the country to see what others were doing. “Obviously, it’s not the biggest or best system, but it works for us and the number of staff we have,” Nick says.

The company began by increasing its storage capacity and changing its waste water irrigation to K-Line, while also aligning its technology to capture quantity and nutrient information.

They also looked to relieve pressure on a site previously used for all the 16 / Winepress March 2021

“We should be looking at this as a resource instead of a problem.”

Matt Oliver winery’s waste water, so cleared gorse, old man’s beard and blackberry from beneath an existing grove of oak trees on a river terrace on the 50-hectare vineyard.

Having cleared the weeds, the team ripped the soil to soak in grasses, before putting in place solid set irrigation and sprinklers for waste water disposal. They tied the new section in with Isabel’s existing monitoring technology, ensuring Nick has all the discharge data, including information required in reports to the Marlborough District Council (MDC).

Meanwhile, the original waste water site was assessed, treated with gypsum and given time to come back into nutrient balance, so that the two sites can be rotated. “We now have 3.6ha of irrigation paddocks,” says Nick. The development also included off-takes from the terrace, so that in the case of a flood the company can irrigate up onto the headlands instead.

Isabel has improved its storm water systems, and any new concrete areas, buildings or warehouses will align with that pipeline, ensuring clean water is not going through the waste

Nick Best and Jeremy McKenzie in an area irrigated by winery waste water.

Photo by Jim Tannock

water process. And working with the winery team to ensure the right use of chemicals, including using less caustic soda, was key to reducing the output, says Nick. “The first year we started to do that we really saw a change.”

Isabel received a new resource consent before the 2020 vintage, following discussions with council staff on the best way to progress under the proposed Marlborough Environment Plan. Jeremy describes the company as something of a “guinea pig” in that process. “We have increased the consent to future proof ourselves - not significantly to the large or medium winery level, but enough to gain some efficiencies and give ourselves a bit more scope in operation “ And the continuous improvement of the vineyard continues, with a successful application to MDC’s Working for Nature/Mahi mō te Taiao fund, and plans for native plantings, including along the vineyard’s waterways. That’s the next stage of the process, says Jeremy. “It’s about the health of the site.”

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Wineries work on winery waste THE WINE industry should be aiming well above compliance when it comes to its waste water, says Marlborough District Council environmental scientist Matt Oliver. “It would be really easy for industry to go for best practice and not just the bottom line,” he told industry members at a crowded Wine Marlborough winery waste workshop last month.

Council monitoring programme coordinator Rachel Neal revealed results of monitoring in 2020, in which nearly half the Marlborough wineries were fully compliant with their waste discharge conditions, with 47% given a green light rating. Another 21% of wineries (eight of the 38 monitored) were rated technically non-compliant, which meant the breach, such as a failure to keep records, did not impact on the environment. Nine of the wineries rated non-compliant failed on just one condition or rule, and lifting standards to and above compliance would be “easy to fix”, says Matt.

The workshop included simple advice on improving waste water compliance, starting with operators taking time to talk to the duty planner, monitoring team or environmental scientists at council, regarding better operations or resource consent applications. Matt’s “dummy’s guide” to the Marlborough Environment Plan discussed considerations wineries should take when looking at the nutrient loading of their water, including whether increased production and increased water efficiency could be changing the waste water output.

Both Rachel and Matt emphasised the need to provide accurate and timely records to council, as consents could be breached as a result of an administrative slip. Matt also gave advice on waste water lots utilised by wineries, warning that grazing a paddock with a high potassium loading could result in losses of nitrogen, as the salty pasture resulted in stock urinating more, exacerbating nutrient issues. Instead, when the potassium reaches high levels, operators should cut the hay to be sent off-site. If the sodium levels get high, advice should be sought on the use of gypsum to mitigate the load, says Matt Grasses and mixed swards are an ideal way to soak up the nutrients from waste water, but it is important that the lot be irrigated before harvest, if necessary, so plants are thriving and able to do their job. It’s also important that the waste water irrigation be measured, so the water doesn’t drain below the root area. While some wineries have wood lots for winery waste, they are less successful than grasses because the nutrients cannot be exported through hay, and the soil invariably ends up with too much potassium, he says. Tree lots also become too shaded, resulting in less evaporation. However, there are opportunities to use some winery waste water to irrigate amenity plantings, as long as compliant with consents. “We should be looking at this as a resource instead of a problem,” Matt says, noting

that one of the region’s major issues going forward is a shortfall in the water available. “We are discharging an awful lot of water.”

Wine Marlborough general manager Marcus Pickens says there is strong industry interest in ensuring better compliance results in the region. “We just need to lift our game.” Wine Marlborough will establish a winery waste water industry working group to develop best practice guidelines, and will bring the industry together again in spring, to share learnings and opportunities.

The February 2021 Winepress has a guide for waste water, grape marc and leachate disposal. For more information, contact the council’s monitoring team on 03 520 7400 or monitoring@marlborough.govt.nz Rapaura Springs treated waste water

Top Tips • Set up a soil testing control site on your waste water lot to monitor changes over time • Ask the lab processing your samples to email results to council directly, reducing time lags • When applying for consents consider growth plans, so your future waste water needs are met • Ensure winery staff are using the correct rates of cleaning chemicals at source • When considering a consent application, check out consent conditions of similarly-sized wineries, available through smartmaps at marlborough.govt.nz • Consider discussing your situation with council prior to applying for consent, to get a better understanding of the relevant rules and requirements

Winepress March 2021 / 17

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Head + Heart Nicci Armour and the good work of science SOPHIE PREECE

NICCI ARMOUR has spent her career problem solving for people and communities, one puzzle piece at a time. “I think that’s why I became a scientist,” says Wine Marlborough’s new advocacy manager. “I think I can figure something out or add a useful perspective that can help.”

A natural empathy and scientific curiosity saw the Southland farm girl study biological sciences, then undertake a PhD in family cancer genetics at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Brisbane and University of Queensland. “I just like the puzzles of genetics,” Nicci says. “I had lost my nana to breast cancer a few years beforehand, so that was kind of the driver when I was looking for research projects.”

Her studies saw her identify and describe a new cancer syndrome and then map the genetic region involved. When she finished her PhD, Nicci continued to pull the thread of her findings, working with a local surgeon and collaborating with clinical geneticists, pathologists, gastroenterologists and national and international research groups to develop the work in oesophageal cancer, gastric cancer, and melanoma, and understand its implications for patients.

“And that to me was interesting,” she says. “Most scientists are naturally curious. It went from ‘I wonder why?’ to ‘what does this actually mean?’” It wasn’t about curing cancer, she notes, but about better understanding the role genetics plays in treating patients, and their outcomes. And it came with

18 / Winepress March 2021

“I need to understand what matters to our members…

What keeps them up at night?”

a realisation that she wanted her work to be focussed on “making a difference”.

After five years, with a toddler at home and the recent arrival of a new baby, Nicci stepped back from the research programme to focus on family. She and her husband David Armour, a “plant geek” with a PhD in plant breeding, moved to Tauranga for a new stage of their lives. “It was wonderful.

Five years focussed on the kids, and exploring who we are as a family, and seven years primarily at home,” she says.

As their children grew up, Nicci “transitioned” back into the workplace, knowing she wanted to try something new, but still be positively impacting on her community.

That included a year working on housing projects, “having realised how important housing is to the fabric of our society”. She was well aware of her family’s fortunate situation, and of the tough times faced by so many others, largely because of housing insecurity in New Zealand. Her work with a Tauranga start-up focussed on creating cohousing communities and exploring the possibility of that as a model for housing development.

Having laid down the strategy, vision and “long-term pathways forward”, Nicci passed on the role, so she and David could begin their own horticulture consultancy, Growlab, in a new problem solving journey. The company

Nicci Armour

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was largely focussed on kiwifruit and avocado, “and understanding how privileged we were as scientists to understand how things could be done better, and could access information to quickly work out how to do things better”, she says. One aspect of Growlab was co-developing innovation projects with individual businesses, including as a conduit to collaboration with external research bodies.

They also worked closely with growers to identify what they needed, in terms of technology and transformation. Nicci says they had seen a disconnect between the research being undertaken and the opportunities that could be leveraged for growers. “We were working directly with grower groups to find what they needed and, as a start-up, what we could develop with them that would put tools in their hands to help them do their jobs better.”

The innovative model, launched in 2019, was already ahead of its time, “leading from the edge”, then suffered a hit from Covid-19 last year. That timing, as well as a series of personal blows to the family, meant the couple were ready to press pause on Growlab and look for a new opportunity.

Tauranga’s loss was Marlborough’s gain, when David accepted the role of research programme manager at the Bragato Research Institute and the couple decided to move to Blenheim with their three children. Having the Wine Marlborough advocacy manager role come up soon after was just the serendipity they needed, and Nicci sees both roles as another opportunity to ensure science, technology

“If there’s a community call-out to help with labour, I’m there.” and information create positive outcomes on the ground, and are informed by industry needs.

She’s keen to get out and experience wine industry roles first-hand, so any advocacy is carried out with a deeper understanding of the industry. “If there’s a community call-out to help with labour, I’m there.” Without a genuine connection to the people impacted by labour shortages, for example, she wouldn’t be able to share authentic stories on their behalf, she adds. “From an economic perspective, yes we can make the case… And from a data perspective we can make the case, but it’s not just about that. I think that human element is critical, going in both directions.”

Connecting with Wine Marlborough’s members is “very much where my heart is at” when it comes to understanding the role, says Nicci. “Of course, there are a lot of Government people to meet and a lot of stakeholder groups to understand and figure out. But first and foremost, I need to understand what matters to our members… What keeps them up at night?”

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Winepress March 2021 / 19

CELEBRATE

Jules Taylor New Zealand Winemaker of the Year SOPHIE PREECE

“I am super chuffed and super proud. I love Marlborough and everything that goes on here.”

“WE’VE COME a very long way from standing around the builders’ block at the Spring Creek Playcentre,” says Jules Taylor, Gourmet Traveller Wine’s 2021 New Zealand Winemaker of the Year. The “we” is the founder of Jules Taylor Wines and her one-time carpentry companion Ben Glover, winner of the Gourmet Traveller Wine Leadership Award, some 45 years after they hung out at Playcentre.

Come a long way indeed. “Jules is one of New Zealand’s modern pioneers,” said the judges in the awards. “She produces outstanding wine, is fiercely proud of her region, and mentors the up-and-coming breed of Kiwi winemakers.”

That’s a “really nice recognition of all the bloody hard work that’s gone into this”, says Jules. “I am super chuffed and super proud, I love Marlborough and everything that goes on here, so that’s kind of cool too.”

Back in those Playcentre days in the 1970s, grapes were beginning to flourish in Marlborough. And by 1990, when Jules left for a Bachelor of Science at Canterbury University, studying zoology and plant microbial science, vines were transforming the region. With her science degree and unabated curiosity in hand, she went on to Lincoln University, to study viticulture and winemaking.

Jules initially planned to become a viticulturist, but was soon hooked by the metamorphosis of grapes to wine, along with the “craziness” of her first vintage in 1994. When she’d finished her studies, she worked hard to get a footing in Marlborough’s industry, becoming one of New Zealand’s few women winemakers, then setting off for vintages in Italy, spending nine years alternating vintages in Marlborough and Italy, including five harvests in Sicily.

Jules and her husband George Elworthy launched their own label in 2001, with 400 cases of Jules Taylor Wines, and have spent the past 20 years growing the brand. It’s taken a lot of gumption, she admits. “It’s about believing in yourself and taking a punt. No one got anywhere without risking something.” That comes with plenty of sleepless nights. “We started with nothing – or less than nothing - so it’s been a long road. But I don’t think I would change anything.”

20 / Winepress March 2021

Jules Taylor The award is a delight, but she’s embarrassed to have beaten the other nominees, who are “so great and so innovative and cool, and doing really interesting things in this space”. And she repeatedly points out that the success of Jules Taylor Wines doesn’t come down to Jules Taylor alone. “It’s a big old team effort. There have been a lot of people along the way, helping out with all sorts of stuff.”

Without good growers and the viticulture team and “the winemaking guys that babysit those bunches when they come in” she wouldn’t have great wines, she says.

Jules has long been a proud champion of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and is making the same style as she was 10 years ago, “cause it’s not broke”, she says. “I mean sure, we are exploring other styles of the variety to make it more accessible for a wider audience – those people who hate the classic in-your-face style. They might enjoy that more textural and slightly more complex barrel ferment.”

But plenty has changed over the past decade, with the couple buying their own vineyard and leasing another, while building partnerships with distributors and customers around the world. Relationships, says Jules, are key in whatever you’re doing, in any industry. And her commitment to the people, industry and region she works with have earned her a reputation for more than great wine, said the Gourmet Traveller Wine judges. “The respect and mana that Jules has in the New Zealand community is as much a reflection of the wines she makes as it is the contributions she is making to the country’s industry.”

The award comes at the end of a “complicated” Covid year, and on the cusp of a “really low harvest,” Jules says.

“It’s going to be really interesting what happens. We just have to work together with people. We will know at the end

CELEBRATE

of harvest how much we have got, then it’s about allocating that out in a fair and equitable way, looking after the people who looked after us. That’s important.”

Meanwhile, the fruit is clean in loose bunches, and ripening rapidly, due to small crops. “It’s going to come in fast and be over with a hiss and a roar.” They’re the kind of seasonal vagaries that may bring sleepless nights, but also provide the “beauty” of the industry, Jules says. “It’s not the same every single year or month or whatever…it makes it interesting.”

Crafting Community WHEN BEN Glover established The Coterie with Rhyan Wardman in 2018, he envisaged “kitchen table collaborations” amid an ethos of collegiality. Building community is a harder task than ever, given Marlborough’s ever-expanding wine industry, but the crew at The Coterie – a contract winemaking facility devoted to smallbatch organic wines – work hard to protect and nurture connections, he says.

It’s the kind of outward looking perspective that has seen Ben awarded the Leadership Award at the Gourmet Wine Traveller New Zealand Winemaker Awards 2021.

“Winemaker, wine judge and businessman: there’s nothing Ben doesn’t know about the New Zealand wine industry,” says the awards blurb. “His sense of humour, storytelling and passion for making fine wine are surpassed only by the love he has for his family.”

Ben, who is the winemaker behind Glover Family Vineyards and Zephyr Wines, started out as assistant to Brent Marris at Wither Hills in 1998. In the 22 years since, he has forged a reputation as a winemaker, wine judge and industry stalwart, who’ll typically put up his hand to help events and people within and outside of the wine industry.

Ben says wine judging – including as chief judge for this year’s Marlborough Wine Show, as Cuisine Magazine’s lead judge and as co-chair of the New Zealand Wine of The Year Awards – has been an important part of giving back to the industry, growing collegial activity and nurturing the talents of “passionate enthusiastic young wine people”.

He was also chair of Pinot Noir 2017, but says establishing The Coterie was probably his most “concrete step” into helping the wine community. Looking away from his own wines and work to support others was much easier when he was employed by a major company that could “afford you the time”, rather than running his own business (or three), he adds. “I am working a hell of a lot harder and smarter than I was five or six years ago, but it’s great seeing such talent and enthusiasm involved in the Marlborough region and New Zealand wine as a whole”.

Marlborough’s wine industry has provided a “great bunch of people” to work with, he adds. “They are solutions orientated – always say ‘yes’ first and then think about how they can achieve their goal.”

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PROTECT

Spray Stations

Steve Crockett

BRENDA WEBB

SPRAY DRIFT monitoring stations could be set up throughout Marlborough, in line with air sampling programmes around the world. Specific monitoring sites suggested in an Envirolink review, carried out by Lincoln Agritech, include Fairhall School, given its close proximity to vineyards. Principal Steve Crockett says he is aware of potential spray drift issues from vineyard activity, but praises neighbours for not spraying during school hours and letting the school know their spray programme. “Our neighbours are very good at communicating with us.”

While there have been no concerning results from testing done by the school, or any reports of concerns of adverse effects, they were constantly looking at ways to ensure the environment was a safe one, he says. Steve has already met with the Marlborough District Council (MDC), which initiated the review, and openly supports installation of monitoring devices, but says further decisions would come from the Ministry of Education.

Fairhall School has a solid 4-metre macrocarpa hedge as a buffer to the nearest vineyard on the eastern side of the playing field, while the vines at the back of the school have a headland and drain between them and the school fence.

The Envirolink review considers technologies and suggestions for future research that could develop a viable solution to the possible issue of spray drift. It has previously recommended a long-term monitoring system used in California be established in New Zealand. That system pulls air through filter paper and foam or resin, so concentrations can be calculated.

California provides a good model for Marlborough, with a similar urban-agriculture edge issue, says the report.

California has had a thorough pesticide use report system in place for more than 25 years, requiring applicators to supply information including active ingredients, amount application, application method and location.

The main focus of any monitoring would be to look at how far pesticides travelled through the air under Marlborough conditions, says the report. Buffer zones are one way of eliminating spray drift – in France, 10m no-spray buffers between vineyards and schools are recommended.

Regional councils in New Zealand have leeway to adapt to local concerns, but the report recommends the buffer be no less than 3m, and for vineyards close to vulnerable places such as schools additional protection measures should be 22 / Winepress March 2021

used such as hedges, using low drift spray equipment and avoiding school times.

Changes to no spray buffer zones in France and California showed that improved equipment could reduce spray drift by up to 70%, while hedge rows reduced drift around 90%.

The most widely used application in New Zealand vineyards was elemental sulphur, which protects against fungal disease. Studies showed it was effective and of low toxicity, but while sulphur was naturally present in food and soil, breathing sulphur dust could irritate airways. The cost of the monitoring system was an issue, with the review noting the initial cost of a high-volume air sampler was at least $6,000 plus the ongoing cost of pesticide extraction and chemical analysis.

Wine Marlborough general manager Marcus Pickens says there have been huge improvements in operator behaviour over the years. “Of course, there need to be checks and balances and it is so important to get it right.” he says. There are regular discussions within the industry about chemical use, with New Zealand Winegrowers’ Spray Days, the Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand schedule and scorecard, and a lot of effort put into ensuring best practice, he says. “Operators are getting up early in the morning to spray before the wind gets up. And research and technology are ensuring far more precision in hitting the target - to protect the vines and people,” he says. “So it’s really important that any processes and technology at work in monitoring are appropriate for Marlborough. Systems need to be rigorous and results reliable.” Marcus also notes that it would be concerning if the cost of future monitoring fell back to industry, which already faces high costs of compliance.

With limited funding available to the MDC to conduct an air monitoring programme for pesticides, the report notes that options for future funding sources are the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and the Health Research Council.

EDUCATE

Turning Tables Building on skills for the cellar door CATHIE BELL

THE PRIDE Marlborough cellar door hosts have in their product is tangible, says hospitality and leadership trainer Marg Main.

Marg, who provides training around the country through her company Turning Tables, recently ran two courses in Blenheim for cellar door hosts through Wine Marlborough. Wine Marlborough’s Sarah Linklater says when Covid-19 forced the industry body to cancel its annual Cellar Door of the Year competition, it decided to offer some training for cellar door hosts instead. “Last year was quite exceptional, and we didn’t feel able to send out secret shoppers when some cellar doors had only just re-opened.”

The two sessions were attended by a good range of businesses, including about half the cellar doors currently open in Marlborough. Marg says participants enjoyed discussing what was different and what was the same at the cellar doors, regardless of size. “What I found and really enjoyed is that there was a lot of really genuine passion and a lot of pride. People are really proud of their brands and their products. It feels like there is a lot of heart and soul here at the moment.”

The closing of New Zealand’s borders to international visitors has really changed the situation for cellar doors, Marg said. “There’s definitely a feeling of ‘gosh how do we keep encouraging people to try more things when we have a limited pool of visitors?’” There has been a huge change in the type of people visiting cellar doors, she says. “There are a lot more local people coming in with some knowledge about wine and wanting to develop more.“ Hosts have more time to spend with individual customers, which wasn’t possible with big groups coming off cruise ships, she says. “Customers are people enhancing their existing knowledge about Marlborough wine, rather than starting from ground zero… It’s quite different now.”

Marg says people are enjoying showcasing wine to New Zealanders. “Parts of it are easier to talk about - the language is shared, people are more familiar with Marlborough and New Zealand wine.”

She was surprised by a view expressed at one session that cellar door hosts didn’t necessarily need much knowledge about how wine is made. “It’s a bit like the Air New Zealand

safety video - it is better to know it and not need it, than to need it and not know it. You have to have it in reserve.”

Marg started Turning Tables 13 years ago, after a career in hospitality as well as wine sales in Auckland, and a couple of vintages making wine and running a cellar door in Hawke‘s Bay and Martinborough. The need for her current business became apparent while selling wine, and hearing clients talk about training, she says. “People didn’t know where to get help for their staff.” Now she works on leadership, innovation, communications, and managing teams within the wider hospitality sector. How people work with their customers is important, particularly around communications and building rapport, she says. “People buy from people they like.”

Winepress March 2021 / 23

PROTECT

Biosecurity Watch BEN RICHARDS, grower liaison officer with Indevin New Zealand, recently developed and began the implementation of a company-wide biosecurity plan for Indevin’s vineyards. New Zealand Winegrowers biosecurity and emergency response manager SOPHIE BADLAND caught up with him to see how he’s found the process so far.

Ben has worked for Indevin in the grower liaison officer role for two and a half years now, after six months as a viticulture technician. Studying a Bachelor of Viticulture and Wine Science at the Eastern Institute of Technology in Hawke’s Bay helped confirm that viticulture was where he wanted to be in the future, offering a career pathway with the opportunity to combine his farming background and his interest in both science and business, as well as the appeal of travel.

Ben’s current role spans a variety of tasks and offers plenty of opportunities to upskill. On any given day he could be out in the vineyard walking the rows, planning or managing harvests, consulting with contract growers and helping troubleshoot issues within their vineyards, providing advice on vineyard management and developing process efficiencies, checking fruit quality and incidence of pest and disease and, more recently, working with growers through labour shortage issues as a result of Covid-19. He learns a lot from the growers he works alongside too, saying they know their vineyards best. “They know what works for them and what doesn’t.”

His foray into biosecurity preparedness began with the 2019 Young Viticulturist of the Year competition. He won the Marlborough regional competition and went on to become runner-up in the national final. The finalists were tasked with developing a business case for implementing an on-site biosecurity plan at their home vineyard, and then presenting their case to the judging panel in the final competition. While Indevin already had protocols in place that encompassed managing many biosecurity risks to their vineyards, nothing was formalised into a plan. “The Young Vit competition made me think and consider the risks to the business – what would we do in a biosecurity emergency?

The project opened our eyes further to the possibilities of

what could go wrong and where we could improve.”

After the competition, Ben attended a local biosecurity planning workshop, updated his plan and sought feedback from the New Zealand Winegrowers (NZW) biosecurity team, checking alignment with NZW’s biosecurity best practice guidelines. He was lucky to find plenty of support from his colleagues and managers at Indevin. “I was consulting the team throughout the project. A biosecurity plan had been on our radar, but we hadn’t got there yet, so this assignment was perfect timing. It was good to work through it, get it formalised and then start implementing it.”

So how difficult has the plan been to implement? “My aim has been to make biosecurity its own programme, like health and safety, pest and disease management or sustainability. I’ve been working on the small wins, such as getting people on board making use of the NZW resources, and developing our programme structure so we could secure a dedicated budget. I’ve adjusted our Ben Richards

IF YOU SEE ANYTHING UNUSUAL

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PROTECT

“It’s not that hard to do.

For me, it was all about talking to people.”

Ben Richards contractor agreement and developed a biosecurity checklist for our vineyard managers covering questions about vehicles, machinery and sheep, covering where they’ve been used previously, providing Animal Status Declarations (ASD), etc. If any red flags arise from the questions, we then investigate. We’ve also made biosecurity protocols part of our induction for new staff and contractors. Currently we’re talking with contractors for harvest and we’ll be making sure no red flags arise.”

Biosecurity will now be included in the budget in the years to come. “We want to develop some site-specific signage, put some biosecurity kits together for our vineyard managers/grower liaison team. There are a lot of other nice-to-haves, many things we could do in time if we had the budget, for example, better, potentially automatic, washdowns in high-travel areas where a lot of vehicles are going onsite.” He acknowledges it comes back to a cost/ benefit analysis. “A lot of the things we could do may have

no immediate benefit, so it’s about balancing the business’s priorities and taking a long-term view to improvement.”

Taking an educational approach and working with contract growers to encourage better biosecurity is also in the longterm plan, especially at sites where biosecurity hazards, such as Chilean needle grass, are already present.

For those who are thinking about undertaking biosecurity planning for their vineyard, Ben’s messages are simple. “It’s not that hard to do. For me, it was all about talking to people. Talk to the NZW biosecurity team, talk to your neighbours, talk to your team and your managers, talk to your contractors. There are some easy wins which could potentially save the vineyard and even the industry a lot of trouble. It’s your investment, if you want your contractors to follow certain protocols, talk to them about it. It’s all about communication, asking questions, working together, and educating yourself on the risks and how to mitigate them.

We can start front-footing some of this stuff, it’s not that hard.”

Thanks to Ben for making the time to share his insights with us. NZW has produced some resources to assist members with biosecurity planning. These can be downloaded from nzwine.com/en/sustainability/biosecurity or hard copies can be requested free of charge by emailing biosecurity@ nzwine.com. The team is happy to help anyone who would like assistance using the resources or developing a vineyard biosecurity plan.

Winepress March 2021 / 25

Industry News Southern Pinot Noir Workshop If you could bottle New Zealand’s wine industry collaboration and collegiality, it might look a little like the Southern Pinot Noir Workshop. Viticulturists and winemakers from around the country gathered in Hanmer for four days in late January, to taste, assess and comment on unfinished barrel samples from the 2020 vintage.

Winemaker and educator Lynnette Hudson, who organises and MCs the event, says the entire purpose of the workshop, founded by Larry McKenna in 1991, is to share information and learning in order to improve viticulture and winemaking techniques. As well as a formal blind tasting and critical analysis of the 2020 samples, the group also assessed bottled Pinot Noirs from 2019, in a more informal process.

Winemakers are also encouraged to bring faulted wines along to the workshop, engendering open discussions on dealing with such issues. Lynnette says the impact of the gathering over the past three decades has been “exponential”, with the workshop unrivalled in terms of its contribution to the overall improvement of Pinot Noir in New Zealand, thanks to both viticulture and winemaking techniques.

New Board Chair for NMIT Te Pūkenga council has appointed Tracy Johnston to the chair role on the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT) Board.

Tracy was invited to step up to the role, having served as deputy chair since April 2020, when NMIT became a subsidiary of the newly formed Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology.

“Tracy’s background in offshore tourism, viticulture, governance and business leadership provides the NMIT Board with excellent, well-rounded leadership,” says Murray Strong, Te Pūkenga Council chair. “It is important that we maintain the current momentum to transform the sector for learners, and having Tracy step up to the chair role will help keep NMIT on track.” Tracy spent eight years as general manager of Destination Marlborough and runs Dayvinleigh Vineyard in the Wairau Valley with her husband Kevin. As well as consulting and serving on the board of NMIT and the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT), Tracy is deputy chair of Wine Marlborough and deputy chair of the Fire and Emergency New Zealand Marlborough Local Advisory Committee. Tracy, who is also a member of the Institute 26 / Winepress March 2021

She says collegiality drives the workshop, with everyone focussed on improving New Zealand’s Pinot Noir production, across the board. And the tastings were a treat, with the 2020 vintage “looking awesome” and 2019 revealed as an “amazing vintage”, says Lynette.

Nautilus winemaker Clive Jones agrees that the standard of the 2020 barrel samples and the 2019 finished wines “was amazing”. Clive went to his first Pinot Noir workshop in 1999 and has attended every two or three years ever since. “It’s a rare occassion that you are with a group of people for four days and focussed on one variety,” he says. “It’s a time out and a very open honest environment where you always learn something.” of Directors and Economic Development New Zealand, says she welcomes the opportunity to lead NMIT through the next two years as the transformation of a national vocational education system is rolled out. “My priority will be to ensure that NMIT is resourced and positioned to effectively partner with iwi and collaborate with employers across the Top of the South to deliver quality education outcomes that support the economic prosperity of the Nelson, Tasman and Marlborough regions.”

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Sophie Parker-Thomson MW Marlborough’s Sophie Parker-Thomson is one of 10 new Masters of Wine. She is the only New Zealander in the new group, bringing the country’s MW count to 15, out of the 418 across the globe. Sophie is co-owner of Blank Canvas Wines in Marlborough, which she runs with her winemaker husband, Matt Thomson. They also recently launched a consultancy business - Lock, Stock & Barrel – which works from vine to wine. Sophie was a New Zealand consultant to the World Atlas of Wine (8th ed.) and a guest judge at the 2020 Marlborough Wine Show.

Blood Sweat and Beer MATTHEW MITCHELL After a postponed first attempt last November, wine industry-based mountain bikers finally got a chance to race the seventh instalment of Blood, Sweat and Beers.

But the January 29 race wasn’t without its dramas.

Originally racing was set for Jentree mountain bike park, where hosts Justin and Tori Leov had committed a good deal of work to preparing a course and associated transition area for race day. Earlier in the week the fire risk for the Marlborough district was deemed extreme and this, in combination with the limited access into and out of the Jentree property, meant we needed to go looking for an alternative location.

Thankfully, the Marlborough District Council - after a bit of arm twisting and the submission of a comprehensive fire plan - agreed to let us use the Conders Bend mountain bike park, and racing could proceed. Much thanks must go to Tom Trolove and the Wine Marlborough board for extending their fire insurance cover to include our event,

plus the generous contribution Bryant Earthworks made to wetting down the site. Without these two key elements of our fire plan, it is unlikely we would have been able to race.

Racing got underway around 5.30pm in an attempt to shoehorn our event into the ever busier lives of local wine industry participants. The change in timing seemed to pay dividends, with a full field of approximately 88 riders spread evenly across 28 teams. Representation from junior teams (those under the age of 16 years) was down on previous years, but it was pleasing to see three allwomen teams registered on the night and some worthy competition among them.

At the end of the day, with the usual Pernod Ricard vs Indevin tussle out front, it was the father and son duo of Jeremy and Finn McKenzie, from Isabel Estate, that took line honours by a healthy 10 minute margin.

Also new to the podium was Tanked Up! - one of the teams from Crown Sheetmetal, which has been a foundation sponsor since the event began in 2014. For the second year on the trot, the ever colourful team from Framingham took out the all-women team category and Marisco Vineyard’s Blood, Sweat and Bears, the best dressed.

A huge shout out must go to the rest of our wonderful and loyal sponsors - Chandler Glass and Packaging, Crown Sheetmetal, WineWorks Marlborough, Bikefit Marlborough, Boomtown Brewing Company and Tasman Future Foods. We hope to see just as many of you back, clean shaven and lycra–wrapped for BSBVIII. Matthew Mitchell is Marisco Vineyards’ general manager, winery

GrapeRide gears up After two false starts, registrations are now open for the Whitehaven Graperide 2021. Whitehaven marketing manager Andrea Craig says in a classic case of silver linings, having the event postponed twice due to Covid-19 lockdowns means more of Marlborough’s wine industry can be involved than ever before. “Having the ride on April 24 means that people who would normally be in the midst of harvest, now have the opportunity to be involved.” The event will start and finish at The Vines Village on Rapaura Road, with a kids’ ride, so those up to the age of 12 years can have a taste of the event, with a 5km ride through the vines.

In another change, a newly developed mountain bike section offers two distances, and with e-bikes allowed in all categories, there’s opportunity for everyone to give the GrapeRide a go, says Andrea. graperide.co.nz Winepress March 2021 / 27

Wine Happenings A monthly list of events within the New Zealand wine industry.

To have your event included in the March Wine Happenings, please email details to sophie@sophiepreece.co.nz by March 20. Due to uncertainty around Covid-19, there may be changes to some of these events. For more information, please use the contact supplied or email sarah@winemarlborough.nz

MARCH 1 Summer Feast – through to April 25 – marlboroughnz.com/events 4 Summer Cruise & Dine Series – with Punga Cove and Spy Valley, every Thursday until March 25 7 Forrest Wines Sunday Sessions. Every Sunday, from 1pm to 4pm, until April 25 - marlboroughnz.com/ events/ 12 Moa Friday night Cinema Series - Step Brother 7pm to 10pm - marlboroughnz.com/events 26 An Evening with Méthode Marlborough methodemarlborough.org/ APRIL 2-4 Yealands Classic Fighters Airshow 2021 23 Cawthron Marlborough Environment Awards – cmea.org.nz 24 Whitehaven GrapeRide (graperide.co.nz) MAY 2 7 8

Marlborough Biodiversity Forum. 9am to 3pm, Renwick Sports Centre (see pg 27) #SauvBlanc Day Saint Clair Vineyard Half (vineyardhalf.com)

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Méthode Marlborough - March 26

#SauvBlanc Day - May 7

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