Babying wine

Fuyao (Yoyo is her Kiwi name), one of two young Chinese cellar hands at Wright’s Vineyard and Winery at Manutuke this season, is a third-year oenology and viticulture student at Lincoln University. She worked with owner and winegrower Geoff Wright while on a six-week practicum, helping with the 2015 vintage.

“I underwent every process of winemaking including harvesting, crushing, pressing, racking, plunging and inoculating,” said Yoyo who comes from north China.

“I learned a lot and although I made some mistakes, from these mistakes, I realised the wines we are making are just like little babies which need to be looked after well. We must always keep our eyes on them. This also helped me recognise a problem with the wine and try to solve it as early as possible. 

Yoyo said she was happy and grateful to have worked with Geoff. 

“When Geoff was 25 years old, his dream was to have his own vineyard and winery and now it has come true. I am still looking for my dream but hopefully I can have an exact goal before I am 25 and make it come true.

“I have finished my practical work now and I am looking forward to tasting the final wines, especially the reserve Chardonnay and Semillon dessert wine. 

Lawrence Jiang from Shanghai wanted to work with Geoff after learning about how he started off in the wine industry.

“Knowing he started by making wine in a shipping container and seeing what Wrights have now achieved, it’s kind of legendary and inspiring,” said Lawrence. 

“The hard work and craftsmanship from the vineyard to the cellar is remarkable. Hand-picking and sorting during harvesting and gentle hand-plunging of the red which is sometimes even done at midnight - these are sure to be valuable memories of my stay at Wrights.”

Lawrence said the wine industry in China today was similar to how it was in New Zealand decades ago. 

“It’s still a baby but growing fast,” he said. “I’ve noticed some changes in drinking habits these days. Chinese people are not only drinking baijiu (a kind of traditional spirit made by the brewing and distillation of grains) but trying to drink more diversely. The capital strength and tremendous domestic market in China keep the industry booming. Wine clubs and exhibitions have sprung up in the biggest cities and investments are being pumped into existing wine regions. 

“But the weakness of the industry is the lack of support structure – there are no industry associations, and complementary industries like nurseries and equipment suppliers are underdeveloped. There’s also a lack of an experienced workforce.”
Looking ahead, Lawrence plans to stick with winemaking while seeking chances to introduce New Zealand wines to China. 

“I’m not talking about the big players but small boutique wineries like Wrights. Furthermore, within the next 15 years I’m looking forward to having my own vineyard and helping Ningxia, the most promising wine region in China, to develop star products like Gisborne Chardonnay and Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc,” he said.

Geoff said it was exciting to employ two qualified cellar hands from China this season.

 “It’s not easy for these guys to get long-term employment so we see it as our duty in some way to help the new generation of winemakers,” said Geoff.

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