Douw Grobler from Trinity Hill in Hawke’s Bay has been named the 2022 Tonnellerie de Mercurey North Island Young Winemaker of the Year.
The competition was held on 8th September at EIT in Hawke’s Bay and the winners were announced at the awards dinner the same evening.
Tom Crosier from Craggy Range came in second and Jordan Robinson from Sacred Hill was third.
“It’s fantastic to see contestants’ tenacity and determination to take out the title,” says Nicky Grandorge, Leadership and Communities Manager at New Zealand Winegrowers.
“Douw very much deserves the win and his passion for furthering his career and contributing to our industry is very strong.”
This regional competition is open to emerging young winemakers under 30 years old from all around the North Island.
This year contestants were from Auckland and Hawke’s Bay with the other contestants including Jordyn Harper from Smith & Sheth in Hawke’s Bay, Gracie-Rose Kay from Coopers Creek and Ashish Thakur from Villa Maria, both from Auckland.
The aspiring Young Winemakers were tested on many aspects of wine production including a cellar challenge, laboratory tests, blending, fault finding, blind-tasting, marketing, wine knowledge and wine tasting.
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