Andrew Ritchie
Mike Collins, viticulturist with Nautilus Wines, says he became engaged with wine when working as a sommelier during the 1980s.
He decided his calling was in the vineyards and served several vintages in the Hunter Valley region of Australia.
He followed this experience with a Bachelor of Applied Wine Science at Roseworthy Agricultural College.
On his return to New Zealand he worked vintage for Montana in Hawkes Bay and then set up some vineyards for Villa Maria in the Gimblett Gravels area.
His next role was viticulturist with CJ Pask where the focus was on Bordeaux varieties. A move to Marlborough in 2006 saw Mike join Nautilus Estate Wines, a 1600 tonne winery which focusses on the premium end of the market, specialising in Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and sparkling wine.
As viticulturist, Mike is responsible for the winery’s 80 ha of grapes. In addition, Nautilus has five growers supplying the winery. Mike is philosophical about the unusual amount of rain recently experienced in Marlborough, saying that in Hawkes Bay they often had a lot of rain during the season.
He is also philosophical about some of the challenges Covid has brought. Seasonal labour has been a bit tight which has meant less canopy management, designed to open up the canopy to lessen the pressure from pests and diseases.
More mechanical methods have been employed, (eg. more leaf plucking). The shortage of chemical supplies in the industry was overcome by ordering in sufficient product early.
However, servicing the company’s export market of forty countries has also been a challenge with the container shortage and reduced shipping to New Zealand since the advent of Covid.
Another side effect of the virus has been the reduced trade in restaurants where premium wine is normally consumed.
Mike believes that customers have continued to buy premium wines but have consumed them at home.
Long term, Nautilus do not plan to expand but are keen to have more control of their grape supplies.
Replanting of some of the older vineyards will be required, but due to the expansion of vineyards in the region there is currently a shortage of nursery space for any grafting.
Availability will not be resolved in the near future.
Nautilus is a small, family business owned by Robert Hill Smith, a fifth generation vigneron.
Nautilus takes its name from the mathematically-perfect spiral of the Nautilus shell, which has been admired since ancient Greek times.
The shape is found throughout nature and this represents the natural balance and proportion that the company seeks to express in their wines.
