How do you your wife, Valerie and two sons propose to spend Christmas this year?

Our boys are now 4 and 5 years old so they are more aware of Christmas than before. The thing they love most is choosing a tree and decorating it so every year we all go to a local farm and choose the biggest one we can get on the trailer, then we make a garland from corks together to hang on it... it’s become our special ritual to start off the celebrations.

Christmas day itself, is a wonderful excuse to shut the gate on the world and have a relaxed day with the children, playing and enjoying whatever the weather throws at us. With Valerie's family all in Europe and mine further away in New Zealand, we like to stay here, try and see through the work and just enjoy the vineyard for what it truly is, a beautiful and spectacular place. Later we may visit friends or the coast but nothing is planned, the day just evolves at a very slow pace with no commitments or places we have to be.

Is there a Christmas tradition in Martinborough which you like to follow?

Martinborough is a small town of less than 2,000 people but with a strong community... we have a thriving tourist industry from overseas and local visitors as we are only an hour from Wellington and for some events, as many as 10,000 visitors can descend on this little rural place. Summer is busy for everyone living here but we all try and stop for the Christmas Parade, which signifies a time for family and celebration amidst the craziness of summer.

Does the local winemaking community come together to celebrate Christmas over some treasured bottles?

Throughout the year we are lucky to be invited to many spontaneous tastings and get-togethers. Sharing wine growing knowledge and experiences is very much the way we work here, and our neighbours are very generous with sharing that knowledge (as well as the precious offerings from their cellars!). It is not unusual to call upon a few close neighbours for an impromptu tasting of Pinot Noir in our tractor shed, usually to taste something from the barrel, and to compare with something that has been aging in the cellar.

You are clearly devoted to Pinot Noir – Will you be enjoying your own wine on the big day or tucking into something entirely different? Perhaps a Burgundy?

Every year Valerie's family in France sends us a surprise bottle. They have made an annual pilgrimage to Burgundy for well over a decade, often waiting years to be allowed to purchase from a particular vigneron. We are lucky enough to also benefit from that trip!

At the moment we have something packaged away in our cellar with no idea what it is until Christmas day. Last year we opened a 2005 Clos Vougeot and the year before a Bonnes Mares from the same vintage. It’s a real treat to experience such great wines, and somehow it brings all the family, that are so far away in miles, closer together in our minds. I can’t help myself, as usually our own Devotus wine is also open, as I love to taste and compare. At the end of the night we usually indulge in a small Christmas pudding.

Money no object – Which wine(s) would you love to serve on the day?

For us the most important thing about Christmas day is appreciating our time with the children and tasting great food together. As it is so hot, we usually avoid large traditional roast dinners and have a day where we are constantly tasting and trying new things with them...it’s like a 24 hour degustation! In our family we have avid divers and fishermen, so we always have a crayfish caught locally often with paua or oysters. So a Montrachet would be perfect with that.

Would you consider putting-in a Santa request to retire your classic 1944 Farmall McCormick red tractor for something a tad more modern?

I think Valerie would prefer that as I would look more respectable when clients visit, not covered in oil and dust. It would also be quieter for her and the neighbours at 6am when I (literally) crank the tractor into life. But no chance... with a modern tractor, sitting in an air conditioned cab and listening to music, I would be in a completely different environment, less connected to the vineyard!

Tell us a little about your plans for 2018 and how is the 2017 vintage looking?

2018 will be another busy year, so far it’s turning out to be a particularly hot and dry vintage, so picking may come forward from April to March in 2018 if this keeps going. Time will tell. The 2017’s are looking amazing in barrel, it’s always a waiting game until they completely reveal themselves. All the barrels are almost through the 2nd (malolactic) fermentation now as the summer temperatures have kicked in and helped to increase the temperature in the winery, and hence push malo through to completion.

“Also, I would like to put out a special invitation to any Vinorium clients that may be making a visit to New Zealand at some time in the future. We don’t have a fancy tasting room or “cellar door” facility here, we’re not set up for “hospitality events”, yet we do have a vineyard that receives a lot of love, and I really enjoy showing our wine growing approach to fellow Pinot Noir enthusiasts. Please come and see us if you get the chance. Merry Christmas and all the best for 2018”.

In short, I cannot as I have two favourites amongst our growing Champagne portfolio and I intend to enjoy them both.

My day will start with a decent cycle on the bike followed by a large plate of pigs in blankets and the stunningly good 2002 Cuvée Nicolas François from Billecart-Salmon.

The ’02 Cuvée Nicolas François is made from solely Grand Cru fruit (60% Pinot Noir & 40% Chardonnay) and is one of the most beautiful Champagnes that I have tasted for many years. Some are comparing the ’02 to the great and legendary 1964, which is an extraordinary tribute. A Champagne that can be easily described as hauntingly beautiful as the balance between power and endless complexity is something very rare.

Egly Ouriet’s Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru NV is certainly going to make an appearance too as this is simply the greatest Blanc de Noir (100% Pinot Noir) which money can buy. Produced from an ancient vineyard planted in 1946 and spends an incredible 65 months on its lees, which adds considerable complexity to what is already something quite extraordinary. This is truly a treat and stirs the depths of your soul.  

Try it with roasted duck from Cornish Duck Company – It’s a magical pairing...

How do you and your wife, Janice propose to spend Christmas this year?

Mostly at home with Janice’s mum, having a nice relaxed lunch, and opening presents…and drinking some good wine.

Is there a Christmas tradition in the Margaret River which you like to follow?

Not really. We do normally go for a bike ride in the tracks out the back of our place, and then settle in for lunch etc. Christmas morning is a great time to get out and do stuff, as no-one else is; especially in tourist crowded Margaret River.

Which wine(s) will you be serving on the big day?

Christmas lunch can be a long affair, so certainly more than one wine involved. Most certainly start with Champagne (probably 08 vintage something), then a lighter, but complex white, perhaps Sancerre (or Flowstone Sauvignon Blanc), certainly a Chardy, and I’m thinking about an 05 Corton Charlemagne, red with the main course will be…..96 Barolo, and I think a nice old Rutherglen Muscat will go perfectly with the Christmas pudding….and then a lie down.

Money no object – Which wine(s) would you love to serve on the day?

Pretty much as above, except maybe the fizz would be a 98 Dom Perignon P2.

Tell us a little about your plans for 2018 and how is the 2017 vintage looking?

So far 2018 looks very promising. Spring has been excellent, and the vines are in good condition, with reasonable crops. The rest of Oz is apparently going to have a wetter than normal vintage due to the weaker el Nino, but of course, that doesn’t affect us, and we are looking forward to another great Margaret river vintage. The 2017 vintage was a white knuckle ride, with a cooler ripening period, and rain at the end of March, but a beautifully warm and totally dry April allowed the reds to hang on the vines and get beautifully ripe in the cooler Autumnal weather. The result will be finer and purer whites (due to the cooler season), and wonderfully balanced and harmonious reds. They will all be something to look out for.