Mastering Wine: Why Play, Not Perfection, Drives Innovation in Wine and Life
OPINION: Wow, the world is a pretty terrible place right now.
When the going is good that harvest buzz, so short in the scheme of the winegrowing cycle, must be incredibly satisfying – not to mention the chance to open a bottle of wine and know you’ve had a hand in it.
But for the past few years there have been growers throughout New Zealand with no home for their grapes come harvest, and a year’s worth of work left hanging, or dropped to the vineyard floor.
Some growers are mothballing vineyards as they wait for things to improve, or have taken the opportunity to redevelop, while others are pulling vines out to look at another option for their land.
Even growers with contracts might struggle to come out even after a year’s work, given caps and pricing.
One grower told me that with any farm debt and no off-vineyard job, the result would be untenable.
There’s talk of green shoots in the industry, especially for wine companies working hard in the market, but for growers – including mum and dad operations – it might be far too long before those shoots yield fruit.
It’s farming of course, with all its boom times and gloom times, and many will be tightening belts, talking to banks, and making plans to get through. But as winter arrives, and the next costly season swings into gear, those doing it tough need to keep an eye on their wellbeing, and the wellbeing of those around them.
New Zealand Winegrowers has resources on its site, including numbers of people to talk to at Rural Support Trust and Farmstrong.
Go to nzwine.com/en/initiativesevents/health-and-wellbeing to learn more.
In this month’s Musings Emma Jenkins MW urges the industry to remember the importance of community.
“People are resilient, but only to a point,” she says. “When pressure is sustained – as it is now – having a genuine community to draw upon is vital. People who share knowledge freely, who support rather than undercut, who hold the collective story together even while under strain, these are the things that make a material difference to how an industry weathers difficulty, and whether it emerges out the other side stronger.”
