I'm in the wine lab at Te Mata Estate in sunny Hawkes Bay. It's Easter Sunday and the middle of vintage.

Peter Cowley the winemaker and Larry Morgan the viticulturist are 'doing the sugars' of random 20 bunch samples that Peter collected earlier in the day from each of the blocks that are close to harvest.

There are 17 crushed samples on the bench - Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, including Syrah from Peter's own 'Bullnose' Vineyard.

Peter puts a few drops of the pinky coloured liquid from one of the samples onto the refractometer and takes the reading. Larry records the sugar level, or Brix, in the book. I taste one of the riper samples. It's deliciously sweet and almost jammy.

Peter works closely with Larry at this time of the year. He likes to get into the vineyards at least once a week and as each block becomes close to harvest they take turns to collect the daily samples. And it's not just the sugar that is important. The flavour has to be there too. This year it's been a hot early autumn. The sugar levels have shot up but Peter is letting the grapes of the riper samples hang to let the flavour profiles further develop.

John Buck arrives and the three plan the upcoming picking schedule keeping in mind the forecast for the southerly blast that is due to hit the country the following day.

They make their decision. The merlot on the 'U' block across the road from the winery will come off in the morning. The rest will wait until Wednesday or Thursday when the front has passed and the weather has settled again.

Peter says he never looks forward to vintage. He tries to explain that perhaps it is his 'custodian role'. He is responsible for so much and just can't relax. Others play their parts but he is the director.

He's obviously a perfectionist and little things worry him. He's aware of all the aspects and doesn't gloss over anything. I ask him if he is a Virgo. But no, he's a Cancer.

Vintage sees him out regularly amongst the vines until all the grapes are in and of course at the winery every day. Then about 2/3rds of the way through vintage he realises he's hardly seen his wife Gail and their two children James (11 on April 13) and Eden (7).

There's a University of Auckland Bachelor of Science degree hanging on the wall of Peter's wine lab that doubles as his office. His major was Chemistry. Consequently Peter does all his own lab work. "At least I know I can trust the result".

Phil Brodie, Peter's assistant winemaker comes in and rattles of a barrage of figures. Peter records them in his book. He's meticulous with his record keeping. It's all on paper, though. "Never used a computer and never will", he says. But realises the day will come sometime.

They're doing some trials on one of the white wines that's fermenting away in the winery. "I like to do a couple of trials every vintage". Writing them up takes extra time.

Peter's a Northcote College old boy. He got his first a motorbike when he was 15 - a red Honda 125cc twin cam. He loved to hoon around the North Shore, often ending up at Uncle's Burger Bar in Lake Road, Takapuna.

By the time he was 17 the bike was a 305cc and he had a Friday and Saturday night job as a waiter at the 'Hungry Horse' in Auckland's Elliott Street. This was where he was introduced to wine. Two of the big sellers were Corbans Montelle Sauterne and Cresta Doré but there were imports too, including a Chateauneuf du Pape, which Peter particularly liked.

He thought he'd like to be a doctor, so took science subjects for his intermediate year at Otago University. But although his grades were good, the competition was hot and he didn't get in. He returned to Auckland to complete his BSc.

This was when the lifestyle of mixing with the rich and famous started. The days before the Stock Market crash when Champagne was the favoured tipple of the day amongst the highfliers.

Peter's sister, Emerald Gilmour, owned the trendy 'Clichy's Restaurant' and Peter worked in the kitchen several nights a week. He became Auckland's most famous quiche chef. Then when Emerald opened the wine bar upstairs, he worked there too.

After the BSc was eventually completed in 1976, Peter worked at Clichy's full time and really got into wine, doing the buying and the training of staff and at his sister's new and fancy Club Mirage, too.

It was a good life but not one he wanted forever.

He decided it was time for the compulsory Kiwi OE and he was off to Europe where he travelled around the wine regions in his Kombi van.

Back in NZ he decided to go back to University. He thought either a career as a vet, or something to do with wine. The Dean of the Vet School suggested wine, so Peter went back to University to study Botany and Biochemistry. He loved it. Then halfway through the year he thought, "I'm off to Roseworthy".

He already had a degree with the right subjects so only had to do the one year 'Graduate Diploma in Wine'.

He got to know microbiologist Paul Monk at the Australian Wine Research Institute. Paul suggested that Peter apply for the new Haselgrove Scholarship, which he did. He won the scholarship and worked at the Institute for a year after Roseworthy, taking time off to work vintage at Rouge Homme in Coonawarra with John Vickery.

Back at home in July 1981, he wrote to every winery in NZ inquiring about employment. About half of them wrote back and Delegat's in Henderson offered him a job. He worked there in '82, '83 & '84 with Larry McKenna. "Very hands on gumboot stuff", says Peter. He liked it.

Then John Buck advertised for a winemaker at Te Mata Estate and Peter got the job.

"I couldn't believe the quality of the fruit", said Peter. He had been used to handling Auckland fruit, you see.

Right from the start of Peter's now 17-year long winemaking role at Te Mata, Peter and John decided they would follow basic Bordeaux winemaking techniques for the red wines. "It's pretty basic textbook stuff," says Peter. Maybe this is one of the reasons behind Te Mata's success.

Peter remembers well that first vintage at Te Mata back in 1985. The crew was small and Peter was working 16-hour days. John Buck and John Parsonson, the viticulturist of the day, offered to help. While Peter was busy in the lab, the two John's set about hand plunging the cap on the Coleraine (a single vineyard wine back then). A while later Peter heard all this shouting going on. He thought they must have dropped something in and was soon engrossed in his work again. Five minutes later, when he realised they were still shouting, he thought he better take a look. And there was his boss, taking a swim. Now, whenever he drinks the 1985 Coleraine, he can't help thinking about what John Buck might or might not have done in there. It's a highly rated wine, the '85 Coleraine. Perhaps that notion of 'Je ne sais quoi' is the reason why.

But now it's 2002 and its harvest. The winery is processing record tonnages this year but things are about to change. Next year the new Woodthorpe Terraces winery will process the Woodthorpe grapes and the Te Mata Estate winery will process the heritage sites. Peter will take the role of Chief winemaker and each winery's resident winemaker will report to him.

Peter's a very talented and conscientious winemaker and really likes his job. After all, he loves the finished product but he says to be involved in the winemaking side means he can apply the science. He doesn't see too much artistry in winemaking at all. "It's a great pleasure to fit it altogether and have the responsibility for it", he says.

He also loves the idea of wine judging and the incredible concentration it requires. He looks forward to coming to Auckland to judge at the Liquorland Top 100, which has international as well as local wines. "Some classes are better than others of course", he says. It's an opportunity to taste wines, to knock around with his peers and to check out what's happening in the Auckland restaurant and nightlife scene. Things have certainly changed since those Club Mirage days!

© Sue Courtney
April 2002