As part of New Zealand photographer Richard Brimer's 'Road Trip' tour of New Zealand vineyards, we were delighted to have him call in to stay at our vineyard in Waipara, North Canterbury, our team doing what they do best, extending the warm Tiki whānau welcome.
In this article, New Zealand Winegrowers talk to Debbie Sparks, vineyard assistant manager, and her daughter Jarnieze, both integral members of the Tiki team.
New Zealand Winegrowers article, June 2021
"Vineyard work wasn't my thing," says Debbie Sparks, looking back at her first impressions of pruning in North Canterbury.
“When I came out it was a dusty hole and I thought, ‘I don’t want to work out here’.”
Fast forward 13 years, and the Assistant Vineyard Manager of Tiki Wine’s Waiata vineyard has truly changed her tune, “it’s a beautiful place”, she says at the end of the 2021 harvest. “Because we have been here for so long we have a passion for the land. We don’t own it, but a lot of love goes into this place and it shows with the grapes.”
Photography credit: Richard Brimer, from the book 'Road Trip', in association with Land Rover New Zealand.
Article source: New Zealand Winegrower.