{"id":4665,"date":"2021-11-22T08:58:12","date_gmt":"2021-11-21T19:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665"},"modified":"2021-11-22T19:54:44","modified_gmt":"2021-11-22T06:54:44","slug":"winemaker-series-dom-maxwell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665","title":{"rendered":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Having met and briefly talked to Dom Maxwell<\/strong> at a visit to Greystone<\/strong> – where he is the Head Winemaker – earlier in the year, I’m also keen to catch up with him about his personal project Forager<\/strong>, plus the vineyard ferment projects generally… and anything else that’s going on over in North Canterbury.<\/p>

With the situation of Aucklanders being captive inside the city boundaries to protect the rest of the country, I turned to the option of a virtual interview earlier this month. Something that doesn’t always work quite as planned..! (and true to form, we had “technical difficulties” on our first attempt)<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: There \u2013 that\u2019s working. Better than yesterday! What did you open last night? Enjoy anything nice?<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Errm, how can I put this? No, I was just working through some stuff that I had to do. Hahaha. It\u2019s not always what I would choose to drink. And not everything you get sent hits the mark and makes it onto the website. The weekend is usually a bit better. I\u2019ve dug through the crates and found a 2000 Gewurztraminer, so I\u2019ll see what that is like.<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: Oh yeah \u2013 from whereabouts?<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: It\u2019s an old Montana<\/strong> one \u2013 from the letter series. This one is a \u201cP\u201d from Gisborne I think. If I recall, I bought it at an auction for under $5.<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: I hope you get your money\u2019s worth!<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Otherwise I\u2019ve got a couple of others to take a look at. The Chardonnay that won the Cuisine tasting \u2013 from Tohu<\/strong>, and the \u2018Om Santi\u2019 Chardonnay<\/strong> from Palliser<\/strong>, so I\u2019m looking forward to that. And, I went off and found the notes from the time that I had a taste of the Forager Pinot \u2013 it was at First Glass<\/strong> on 25th<\/sup> May this year. It was wine number ten out of a lineup of eleven. You were sandwiched between a Thornbury Pinot Noir<\/strong> and a Prophet\u2019s Rock \u2018Home vineyard\u2019 Pinot Noir<\/strong>. I\u2019m not sure how many people knew what \u2018Forager\u2019 was. I had an inkling, of course. I wrote.. \u201dDry, herbal, antiseptic, orange peel, blood orange, iron-earth, Dom Maxwell\u201d<\/em> \u2013 that\u2019s my copious notes from two sips of Forager!<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: Well, there you go. It is an interesting array of characters you get from that vineyard and I\u2019ve only been working with it now for four years. But it has been around for a fair bit longer than that, but there\u2019s still work to do in order to achieve ideal vine balance, you know. The fruit is naturally sugar-ripe probably slightly earlier than I would like. So I think there\u2019s a bit of work to do around vigour and things like that on the site. Even though it\u2019s on the side of a hill, facing north west, it is remarkably vigorous. Partly that is rootstock but also the ability of limestone to draw up water.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Isolated\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

WF<\/strong>: Is it the only vineyard up there? I don\u2019t recall hearing about vines up that way before?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: I believe there\u2019s a couple of crazy accountants from Christchurch that have got a hobby block up there on a farm. I think it\u2019s ten rows of Riesling. More to satisfy their thirst for knowledge than producing wine. The vineyard is the only true producing-vineyard for more than 30km. Probably the closest ones to it are the ones coming back down to Waikari. It\u2019s called Isolated Hill<\/strong>, and it is almost straight north from where Waikari is. To get there you go through Waikari and Culverden, then take a turn as if you were going skiing at Mt Lyford, and it is just before the town of Waiau. The hillside is overlooking the Waiau River.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Given that this is your \u2018personal project\u2019 – is there something special that\u2019s drawn you to that place?<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

DM<\/strong>: Like a lot of things in wine, there\u2019s a long story that goes with it. I started making Forager in 2012 and I was really fortunate in that when I mentioned it to the owners, and the crew, here at Greystone<\/strong> \u2013 that I\u2019d love to have my own thing \u2013 that they were fully supportive. They actually allowed me to use fruit from the company vineyard for the first couple of years. That was a great way to get started, but I was looking for something that would be different. So even though I\u2019m making it in a slightly different way, if the fruit had a different character\u2026 and it\u2019s so hard to get fruit, and I was only after a small amount, you know. Generally if you\u2019re only after a couple of tonnes, people aren\u2019t interested, unless they\u2019ve got a very small vineyard.<\/p>

There wasn\u2019t much around but I was at a wine dinner and having a yarn to someone, and they said \u201cyou want to go and check out Andy Black\u2019s vineyard\u201d.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The owners \u2013 Andy and Jill Black<\/strong> – have been farming there for quite a while, and back in 2000, I think, Mike Weersing<\/strong> knocked on their door and asked if they would consider planting grapes up there. They went into a bit of a partnership and planted grapes on the hillside of his farm. That lasted for a while, but the Weersings then concentrated on their home block, and Andy started selling grapes to other wineries. The fruit was sort of getting lost to big wineries, and he wanted to get a bit of his own wine back, and it was never really working. In his ideal world he\u2019d be working with someone smaller. So I got his number and gave him a call.<\/p>

Jeez, he\u2019d be one of the most enthusiastic guys you\u2019d ever come across. An infectious enthusiasm you know? He\u2019s an old school farmer but he\u2019s got a real positive attitude. And he loves wine. When he comes to the winery, he really thrives on that. It\u2019s those sort of things that just add so much, and it\u2019s what we love in wine. Bringing people from different walks of life together, really.<\/p>

We had a chat on the side of the hill, and it was perfect for me because I didn\u2019t want to take all the fruit, and he wanted a bit of his own wine \u2013 so make him a couple of barrels. We started on that and it is just on a handshake. Depending on the season we just divvy it out and he lets me take the best bite of the cherry, and he\u2019s happy with the rest of the fruit. Like any block, there\u2019s some more vigorous vines or areas that aren\u2019t to the same quality.<\/p>

He\u2019s planted almost the same amount in Chardonnay just across on the same hillside. They\u2019re about two years old now, so there will be a crop in 2023 which is cool. He wanted to plant Riesling, and I kind of wanted to say \u201cdo it\u201d but although we love Riesling it\u2019s kind of hard to sell it at a certain price. And when you\u2019re growing in those conditions, the wine needs to be a certain price, because it costs a fair bit.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: We need more Chardonnay from North Canterbury! So there will be a Forager Chardonnay?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: I haven\u2019t committed to it but I am definitely interested. And he\u2019s relaxed about it. He must have a big group of friends because he seems to get through his allocation pretty quickly. I think they\u2019ve got grown up kids that are getting married, and any opportunity for a party! Out it comes and they\u2019ll put a few cases on the table.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

WF<\/strong>: Did Forager start off doing the vineyard ferment?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: When I started Forager, I wanted to make it differently and was keen on the vineyard ferment idea. When I chatted with Nick Gill<\/strong> \u2013 who is our General Manager now, but he\u2019s a viticulturist \u2013 he said \u201cWhy don\u2019t we do the same at Greystone?\u201d. So we did two \u2013 one for Forager and one for Greystone, and that\u2019s carried on. For Forager that\u2019s my one mode of fermenting.<\/p>

It was interesting the first year I did it at Isolated Hill, because it is about 45 minutes away, and there\u2019s a fair bit on over harvest. A friend of mine would go over and check it most days, plunge it and do some analysis and bring a sample back to the winery. On the weekends, Andy, the farmer, would just go and check it. Through that process we learnt that as long as the fruit is good, the ferment should be good, so there\u2019s not a lot that you need to do.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

So I became more and more hands-off with that, and in the following years I would get there once a week. Andy would go and look most days and give it a light plunge, just wetting the cap. He\u2019s been around wine long enough to know that if something is not smelling right then there\u2019s an issue. But if you\u2019ve got good fruit there shouldn\u2019t be an issue.<\/p>

It is truly fermenting all by itself on the side of this hillside. But it shows you \u2013 and we\u2019ve learnt a lot from these ferments \u2013 that we intervene because we can, and it is not always because we should. It stays up there for about a month, and then we drive over there with one of the winery guys and the trailer. Andy has this huge John Deere tractor and he\u2019ll just pick up this whole fermenter and plonk it on the back of the trailer. We drive back and press it off into barrels.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Has it gone well \u2013 does it have a good following?<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Forager\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

DM<\/strong>: Yes it has. I never wanted to be in a position where I had to push the wine. There\u2019s plenty of other stuff I\u2019d rather be doing. Being small volume I don\u2019t have to push it too much. But the right people were finding out about it, and I\u2019ll get contacted by people who\u2019ve heard about it or saw it somewhere and want to buy it. It varies between maybe 150 and 300 cases depending on the vintage.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: How are the older ones looking?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: 2017 is still young \u2013 that was the first vintage from that vineyard. \u201917 was a cool vintage so lots of vibrancy there \u2013 which you\u2019d get from limestone as well. The earlier vintages which are from more of the clay hillsides on Omihi here, are still looking great.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

They are wines that haven\u2019t been worked, just had a little bit of sulphur post-malo, and barrels that have been used in the past as well. Every second year I\u2019ve got about 10% new oak just so I can keep some freshness. From that limestone it would be great to leave the wines longer, but I\u2019m not in that position to be able to store it for five years and then release it. But I am trying to encourage people to hold on to some.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: With the vineyard ferment style of doing it \u2013 have there been any downsides, or negatives? Or people saying that it\u2019s just \u2018being different for the sake of it\u2019?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: I\u2019ve thought about that, but not spent a lot of time on it \u2013 that people might just think that you\u2019re trying to something a bit kooky. I\u2019ve had plenty of people who have asked lots of questions. With Forager it was always small, and actually with Greystone it was never the intention to bottle it! It was four years before we released anything that had \u2018Vineyard Ferment\u2019 on the label.<\/p>

It was just something interesting that we liked to do. There were just so many positive things that we were getting out of it \u2013 culturally, but also wine quality-wise. And we were learning heaps. Gradually it began to seep out that we were doing something like that here, and the interest just came flooding in. I think once people realised that we\u2019d been tinkering away for years, doing something that interested us – and the wines were good.<\/p>

The thinking behind it was the pied de cuves that a few people do. You pick a few bunches, put them in a bucket and squish them and leave them in the vineyard to get a wee natural ferment going. And then you bring it into the winery once your fruit starts to come in, and you add it to your fermenters as a way of inoculating. The conversations that we were having in the winery was that we\u2019ve got two vineyards here and blocks at different elevations, and some near streams, some near olives or native plantings. So surely the type of yeast must vary? It doesn\u2019t just stop at the farm gate and change at the next boundary. So how do we know what yeast is performing the fermentation? It was along those lines.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

WF<\/strong>: Is there a way to identify that and capture that information?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: We\u2019re actually two years into a three year study at the moment. We got some funding from Callaghan Innovation<\/strong>, and are collaborating at the moment with Lincoln University and a pHD student from Chile who has done a fair few vintages around New Zealand. She\u2019s worked the last two vintages with us, and her main focus has been running our vineyard ferments and running replicates in the winery as well with the same fruit. Just everything being identical, and then doing testing \u2013 doing DNA sequencing, running microbial analysis. She\u2019ll be starting to write her paper up from about March next year.<\/p>

We already know there\u2019s quite big differences, and one of the interesting things to come out of it that we hadn\u2019t really contemplated was that difference in ambient temperature. It seems basic but at the time it was just all about the yeast.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Now that we\u2019re measuring those at five minute intervals \u2013 the temperature inside the fermenter and the ambient temperature right outside. And winery versus vineyard. Just the variations are incredible. As you might expect, in the winery, the temperatures both follow nice bell curves. In the vineyard it is very different. Fermentation might kick off early, then drop down. And then hover away and take longer to finish. Or, we\u2019ve had years where it takes almost two weeks to start ferment because it has been really cold outside. And the extremes of the vineyard \u2013 both warmer and colder temperatures. We\u2019re getting different extraction and flavour profile in the winery versus the vineyard because of that. On top of the testing that she is doing, we\u2019ll have blind panel tastings running over everything as well, just to critically compare.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Is that even more of a factor over at Waiau?<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

DM<\/strong>: It is more exposed, but as per most things with Forager, I\u2019m not really testing that! It is higher in elevation, it is further inland\u2026 so you\u2019re getting colder weather, but on a warm day it is really hot there as well.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: Could you do a vineyard ferment of something like the Chardonnay up there?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: I don\u2019t know personally. I\u2019m not going to say a hard and fast Yes or No. It works really well with things on skins because the skins helps to stop any oxidation, whereas if you\u2019re just fermenting juice? I feel there needs to be a higher level of attention day to day. It is something I\u2019m mulling over \u2013 how does it fit with Forager? Can you make a vineyard-fermented Forager Pinot and then just make a winery-fermented Chardonnay to go beside it? The thing I like so far about Forager is there\u2019s a simplicity to it. Wineries can be pretty complicated places, with different tiers and varieties and styles on those, so it can be hard for consumers to know what you\u2019re up to. It\u2019s nice and easy just having one wine.<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: I guess what I was alluding to before was \u2013 the story behind the wine is really interesting, but at the end of the day what is in the glass is what will determine whether someone comes back and buys it again. Would someone just buy it once an then move on \u2013 like in a bar that serves craft beer, where customers are always after something new.. I always go in and ask \u201cwhat\u2019s new?\u201d. I might buy my favourite one for when I\u2019m at home, but the market is pretty full of different options, all the time.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Dom\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Dom at Greystone vineyard<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

DM<\/strong>: It does come down to what you said at the beginning \u2013 if it tastes good then people will come back if they feel they\u2019re getting value for money and they\u2019re enjoying the wine and everything that comes with it, and they will buy it again. One of the things we\u2019ve accepted with vineyard ferment is that the wine will show the season very strongly. Which we love – but you all have to be on board with that you know? And it won\u2019t be for every wine consumer, at all. But it will be for some – and they will love that journey.<\/p>

We\u2019ve been tentative with it \u2013 just a couple of barrels but we\u2019re doing a bit more of it now. Export markets have been really keen on it. And I think that, in these days, there is a lot of good wine out there, but the fact that it is a little bit different allows it a bit of oxygen. It has to stand out for a reason.<\/p>

I keep going back to the stuff that we\u2019ve learnt from it, and one of the things that we love is that we can really talk to it. It is quite a tangible thing and we can talk about what it does to the fermentation and therefore what it does to the wine. And what it does to us, the differences we see and why it matters to you as a wine producer. We\u2019re not just going to tell you what it tastes and smells like, but tell a story that has real depth to it. People can really grasp that. Sometimes you\u2019ve got to take a photo or two to get across the fact that it\u2019s actually out in the vineyard!<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: What\u2019s next – is there another project that you\u2019d like to do?<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: Well we\u2019ve tried plenty. We read about some underwater wine about ten years ago, and we played around with making ros\u00e9 underwater. It brought some pretty interesting qualities to the wine. But it also brought a lot of pressure to the barrels and we lost a couple due to explosions.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Another project that we\u2019ve been working away on is on a small block that we\u2019ve got planted by seed. About eight years ago we came across an organic vineyard that hadn\u2019t been harvested for two seasons. And I was driving past and noticed some small seedlings underneath the vines. It was organic so it hadn\u2019t been sprayed for a long time. It was at the end of the 2015 vintage which was really small and short for us, so we had a few people in the winery. So we got permission and went over with some spades and dug up around 3000. Potted them up, nurtured them and pruned them back. We planted some of them out about three years ago and not all survived. We\u2019re trying to train them up but they\u2019re really not very vigorous at all. We\u2019re trying to get them to a point where we start to see some fruit.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

It\u2019s from a Riesling block, but it could be parents of Riesling \u2013 could be Gouais Blanc. Grapevines are pretty unstable things and it hasn\u2019t been grafted to anything. It\u2019s just an interesting little experiment. There\u2019s a few things that we\u2019re doing that are pushing boundaries. With the group of people that we have here, whenever we talk about something we always end up saying \u201cwell let\u2019s try it then\u201d. If we don\u2019t know what the answer is, then we want to find out! We\u2019ve got an owner who gives us heaps of autonomy, and it keeps people really engaged. I\u2019m sure that\u2019s why so many of our staff have been here for a long time.<\/p>

We\u2019re still quite new to this, in New Zealand, and we don\u2019t yet know the best way. We know good ways, but don\u2019t know if this is how things will be done in 50-100 years time?<\/p>

WF<\/strong>: We\u2019re discovering the New Zealand way \u2013 and that might not be the way that wine has always been made.<\/p>

DM<\/strong>: Exactly. And because a lot was planted quite quickly, there\u2019s a lot of uniformity around New Zealand. I\u2019m sure things will change. Whether it is the clonal material, the trellising system, or the type of agriculture that\u2019s used. I think it is quite an exciting time, because there\u2019s a bit of experience now and people are starting to get the confidence to try some new things.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Having met and briefly talked to Dom Maxwell at a visit to Greystone – where he is the Head Winemaker – earlier in the year, I’m also keen to catch … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4666,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews-with-nz-winemakers"],"yoast_head":"\nWinemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Having met and briefly talked to Dom Maxwell at a visit to Greystone – where he is the Head Winemaker – earlier in the year, I’m also keen to catch …\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"WineFolio\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wine.folio.1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"915\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Walker Bell\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Walker Bell\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"17 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"David Walker Bell\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8b8706e15ba32f9782222c431fa75d9f\"},\"headline\":\"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665\"},\"wordCount\":3605,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/11\\\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Winemaker Series\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665\",\"name\":\"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/11\\\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/11\\\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/11\\\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg\",\"width\":1600,\"height\":915,\"caption\":\"Dom Maxwell\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?p=4665#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/\",\"name\":\"WineFolio\",\"description\":\"A collection of writing about New Zealand Wine\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"WineFolio\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/WF_final_black.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/WF_final_black.png\",\"width\":999,\"height\":389,\"caption\":\"WineFolio\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/wine.folio.1\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/winefolio\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/winefolio.co.nz\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8b8706e15ba32f9782222c431fa75d9f\",\"name\":\"David Walker Bell\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"David Walker Bell\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio","og_description":"Having met and briefly talked to Dom Maxwell at a visit to Greystone – where he is the Head Winemaker – earlier in the year, I’m also keen to catch …","og_url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665","og_site_name":"WineFolio","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wine.folio.1","article_published_time":"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":915,"url":"http:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"David Walker Bell","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Walker Bell","Est. reading time":"17 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665"},"author":{"name":"David Walker Bell","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#\/schema\/person\/8b8706e15ba32f9782222c431fa75d9f"},"headline":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell","datePublished":"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00","dateModified":"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665"},"wordCount":3605,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","articleSection":["Winemaker Series"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665","url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665","name":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell - WineFolio","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","datePublished":"2021-11-21T19:58:12+00:00","dateModified":"2021-11-22T06:54:44+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","width":1600,"height":915,"caption":"Dom Maxwell"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?p=4665#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Winemaker series: Dom Maxwell"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#website","url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/","name":"WineFolio","description":"A collection of writing about New Zealand Wine","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#organization","name":"WineFolio","url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/WF_final_black.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/WF_final_black.png","width":999,"height":389,"caption":"WineFolio"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wine.folio.1","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/winefolio\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/#\/schema\/person\/8b8706e15ba32f9782222c431fa75d9f","name":"David Walker Bell","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8597b80119ac3781cc55cc862f5a0514b7945f701d24da2c585751e8ee210ba7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"David Walker Bell"}}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Dom-at-IHVF-crop.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4665"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4665\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4676,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4665\/revisions\/4676"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/winefolio.co.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}