New kids on the wine blocks

The most popular joke about New Zealand wine today is the one about bored surgeons, dentists and orthodontists who turn to winemaking when they tire of their chosen profession and have enough money to lose half of it by pouring it into a new winery.

In the biggest increase so far, 49 new wineries opened their doors in New Zealand last year, bringing the total of wineries to 516. That number has risen further this year with predictions it will jump to 550 by December.

And to think I was baffled by the new wine labels at Regional Wines when I started buying wine in earnest in 1991. At that time, New Zealand had only 150 wineries and the wine trade was still more like a cottage industry than the large export earner it is today, says Wine Institute CEO Philip Gregan.

"If I had been chief executive officer in 1983 when I started as information officer with the institute I would have known every single winemaker. Today, I know a lot but nowhere near all," he says.

Not everybody is enthusiastic about the increasing number of winemakers.

"We have entered an era where a winery has become a brand rather than a place where an individual tries to get the best from the grapes they grow," says winemaker Michelle Richardson, who consults for new and existing wineries.

"A lot of people say they are winemakers but all they have is the money to buy and promote wines, made with grapes they don't grow and by winemakers they don't even know," says Richardson.

But in some cases, enthusiastic people are doing it themselves, such as Judy Fowler from Puriri Hills Winery in Clevedon, Auckland.

The 61-year-old ex-pat North American arrived in New Zealand 10 years ago with her husband and has longed to make wine.

"It is harder than I thought to get established and the more I find out about wine the more I realise I don't know," says Fowler, whose degree in chemistry has come in handy.

Fowler knows that making one wine is easier than pumping out an entire range. Of her 40ha only two are planted in grapes. Like most New Zealand winemakers, Fowler hopes her main drawcard will be her wine's rarity.

"I figured at my stage in life making one wine well was enough and I'm using the wines of Pomerol and Saint Emilion as my inspiration to make a top-quality New Zealand red from merlot and cabernet franc."

Will Hoare, of William Thomas Wines in Marlborough, works at Fromm Winery and creates wines in his spare time.

"I always wanted to make wine when I was at school. My parents grew grapes for Cloudy Bay and I first started working in that winery when I was 9," he says.

He learned the practical side of making wine in traditional winemaking countries around the world, travelling to France, Switzerland, North America and South Africa, before returning to Marlborough about a decade ago to work at the Swiss-owned Fromm winery.

Two years ago he launched his first batch of William Thomas Wines, which sell for between $19 and $32 a bottle. His syrah costs $50. Hoare says he is part of a new wave of New Zealand winemakers who are creating high-quality wines at affordable prices.

Of the 49 newcomers, most impressive has been Waitaki Braids, owned by Michelle Richardson, investment banker Steve Cozens and restaurateurs Peter Gordon and Michael McGrath.

Like most of the other new wineries, Waitaki Braids does not have a winery building, winemaking facilities or cellar door. Richardson produces pinot noir, pinot gris and riesling at winemaking facilities in Marlborough.

Heather and Meric Davies moved to Marlborough in 1995, swapping their forestry jobs in Northland to grow grapes in the South Island.

"We were on a farm that wasn't economically viable so we decided that viticulture was a primary industry that was going forward."

They bought 24ha west of Renwick, grew grapes and made their first wine in 2004.

"It was hard moving from grape growers to winemakers but we were determined to make high-quality wine."

The 2005 Summer House Sauvignon Blanc featured in Viva's top 10 sauvignon blanc story last month.

Says Richardson: "If you're making wine purely for money then it won't work. If you're doing it to feel good then it will be short-lived because you will keep needing another fix. But if you want to produce good wine it will move the wine industry forward."

Top five new New Zealand wineries

Waitaki Braids in Waitaki, North Otago - because the region is being pioneered.

Summer House in Marlborough - because quality is the goal ahead of profit.

Wild Earth in Central Otago - because the quality is high.

William Thomas in Marlborough - because the quality is good and most of the prices are realistic.

Puriri Hills - because the goal is realistic and the quality is good, particularly the reserve wine.