Meet Sarah Adams, Digital Communications Advisor, NZ Winegrowers

Sarah Rowley Adams recently relocated to the Blenheim office from Auckland. She has been at New Zealand Winegrowers (NZW) for two years and her role involves running the social media channels and maintaining the website.

Sarah and her husband Josh have moved so Josh can study at NMIT. He was a craft brewer for Urbanaut in Kingsland but wants switch to the wine world.

Sarah is looking forward to working closer with environment and research teams, as well as interacting with a wider range of people in the wine industry including those at MRC.

Outside of work, Sarah has set a goal to get outdoors every weekend during Marlborough summer, either biking or walking, so let her know your favourite tracks.

Welcome to Trish Grammer, Communications Manager, BRI

Trish Grammer is BRI’s new Communications Manager. She has a degree in English from the University of Otago and a post-grad qualification in Journalism from the University of Canterbury. Trish started her career in journalism before moving into public relations, including running her own successful PR firm in Auckland.

Trish says the purpose of her role is to “let the wine industry and other stakeholders in BRI know what we're doing, and how it's relevant to them”. About the MRC campus she says it is a place full of clever people doing clever things.

You may have met Trish in previous roles including Mud House (when it was owned by its founders), Delta, and more recently Glover Family Vineyards, which has given her a great understanding of the wine industry, grape-grower and winery needs. Trish is very excited to focus on communications again.

Find out more about Trish on the BRI website

Meet Matt Mayernick, Research Winery Cellar Manager, BRI

Matt Mayernick recently joined BRI as Research Winery Cellar Manager. Digging into the science, getting his hands dirty, making the wine and then seeing the end result is what excites Matt about his new role.

“The winery is so well thought out and purpose-built for research it is very easy to carry out some very interesting experiments”, he says.

Having studied and worked in Colorado, and later in Canterbury, Matt is relishing the Marlborough outdoors. “The Marlborough Sounds must be one of the most beautiful places in the world. “My wife and I just bought kayaks and are working our way through exploring all of the nooks and crannies”, he says.

We asked him what he likes about working at MRC’s Budge Street campus:

“The MRC campus has become the hub for ideas and the meeting place for the wine industry’s top people to collaborate and share their thoughts for the future of the industry. It’s the ideal situation to have so many organizations on one campus. If I have a question about something, there is likely to be an expert on campus”, Matt says.

Read Matt’s full background here.

Introducing BRI’s Research Programme Manager, David Armour

Originally from Queensland, Australia, David Armour joined BRI in January.

David’s focus will be working with BRI’s research partners to manage two of the industry’s key research programmes: one (Vineyard Ecosystems) examining how vineyard management practices can enhance biodiversity and improve grapevine performance and the other looking at Pinot Noir quality and productivity.

The richness, and diversity of the people and the common work we do on the MRC campus is creating a very special hub for David.

“Whether it's the deep science, teaching the next generation, or those upskilling, solving challenges at a regional or national scale or enabling the industry to grow, we're all tackling something multifaceted and having such diversity in the one location, central to the region is a fantastic hub to be part of”, David says.

New to Marlborough, we asked David what he likes about moving to the region:

“In short, wine, sunshine and the accessibility of such a diverse range of landscapes within a two hour drive of pretty much anywhere in the regions.
On the wine front, I love the romance, challenge and mystery that still surrounds winemaking. It's an appealing combination of art, science, business, deep experience and passion. Obviously with my role at the BRI, I'm really looking forward to connecting these elements (particularly the science) in a way that grows value for the industry and only enhances that appeal further!
Sunshine - well if 2020 is anything to go by I've taken a little step backwards in coming here from the Bay of Plenty. The appeal of four seasons in all their glory is something I look forward to, however given I grew up in North Queensland so checking in with me mid-winter may give you a different answer...
And the landscapes - to me no other place has the same appeal and proximity as this region. With snow a short drive away in one direction, and good spearfishing in the other direction amongst the lush green of the sounds, what more is there to say.”

Welcome David. It is a pleasure to have you on site. You can read more about David’s background here.

Yuichi and Sanket join the BRI extension team

Yuichi Ando became BRI’s Viticulture Research Technician. Yuichi joins the BRI after over a decade working and gaining experience in viticulture, most recently as Vineyard Manager of the Allan Scott Family vineyards. BRI is excited to have him on board. Yuichi’s mix of technical viticulture, practical vineyard operations management and tertiary qualifications make him an ideal candidate as BRI expands its extension programme and increases direct participation in applied viticulture and winemaking research.

Sanket Babre joins the BRI team as Viticulture Extension Assistant. Sanket is currently a Vineyard Manager with Constellation, managing approximately 300 hectares in Marlborough. By agreement with Constellation, Sanket will join BRI for two years on secondment. The secondment offers an excellent opportunity for BRI to further strengthen ties with industry and to help upskill industry personnel in the field of Viticulture Extension. Sanket brings over a decade of practical viticulture experience to the team, including operations, management and technical viticulture. He has a Bachelor degree in Horticulture Science and a Graduate diploma in Viticulture and Oenology.

Introducing Aaron Fountain at Hill Laboratories

Aaron started work at Hill Laboratories at the beginning of January after completing college in 2020. He is excited about working in the lab and is interested in pursuing a career in Biochemistry. Aaron’s role will provide opportunities for him to learn and expand his knowledge. So far Aaron has enjoyed his time on the Grovetown Park campus and enjoys meeting staff from the various organisations onsite in the communal staffroom.

Aaron has lived in Blenheim most of his life and enjoys playing the guitar and keyboard. He has a passion for learning and is currently doing a linguistic course covering Chinese, Japanese and Hindi languages. In the future Aaron would like to travel to Germany to visit a friend.