Darling of Marlborough

In the second of a five-part series on international winemakers in Marlborough RACHEL YOUNG meets an Australian who is making New Zealand his home. 

You can take the man out of Australia but it appears you can't take Australia out of the man.

Since arriving in New Zealand, winemaker Chris Darling has altered the way he talks, even the pronunciation of his name, but there are a few things he won't compromise on.

It's still an esky not a chilly bin; a doona not a duvet and they are thongs, not jandals.

From Geelong, in Victoria, Chris was influenced as a youngster by his Dad's winemaking hobby and has gone on to become the senior winemaker at Rapaura Vintners and winemaker for a label he and a friend established, The Darling.

"Dad used to say I was the only 12 year old who knew what a chardonnay was," he says.

Chemistry was Chris' best subject at high school and he knew winemaking was his calling when he finished Year 10, but he also knew there was time to travel before getting serious.

He left Australia with $100 in his back pocket to work in England as a student teacher. One year, several countries, thousands of memories and $40 in his back pocket later, he returned to Australia.

He studied a bachelor of agricultural science (oenology) at the Roseworthy Campus of Adelaide University.

The first year was all science.

"We all sort of thought what is going on here? We're not tasting any wines but that weeded people out."

Sixty people started the course; 30 hung in there until the end of the fourth year.

It wasn't until the third year that Chris actually tried his hand at winemaking.

"Everyone is really itching to give it a go by that point. I mean, you have been studying for two years and everyone is going, `come on'."

At the beginning of his fourth year, he went to Hunter Valley and then Coonawarra for vintage.

"It was awesome. It was totally different to what I thought it was going to be, as in you realise you don't actually know anything straight out of uni and you definitely learn to be involved in getting your hands dirty."

During spare time the classmates could be often be found blind tasting different wines from bottles with labels covered by paper bags or socks.

After university, Chris headed to Houghton in the Swan Valley for a vintage before the travel itch returned.

With his life in a suitcase, he headed to France. Not knowing a word of French didn't deter him. He worked as a consultant winemaker for six different wineries in Cote du Rhone, Cote du Laberon and Chateauneuf du Pape.

The company he was employed by owned a winery in Greece and when the winemaker there had to leave earlier than expected, Chris was asked to take the reigns for four weeks.

"It was strange. I couldn't speak a word of Greek, I couldn't read Greek and the guy working there was Polish and couldn't speak a word of English."

But somehow they survived and Chris' drawing skills improved greatly.

He also discovered the difference between new and old-world winemaking, especially with how little things, such as adding sulphur, could make a huge difference.

Back in France there seemed to be a growing Aussie contingent who would gather to try different wines. They would go to the supermarket to buy $5 bottles of wine some turned out to be very bad but occasionally they hit a gem.

"We would buy 10 at a time and try to find the good ones which is quite good fun especially if you do it every night."

With the work over, he organised a job as a cellarhand at Houghton and worked his way up to winemaker over the next four years.

He says every day and year also provides a different challenge.

"It's not just a recipe as every vintage and every ferment is different."

But it was time to leave.

His family were on the other side of Australia and his partner was going to move away for her PhD studies.

"So we thought, `Bugger it let's go to New Zealand'."

In 2003 Chris made the move to New Zealand to take up the role of winemaker at Rapuara Vintners.

The difference between Australian and New Zealand winemaking was evident from day one.

Grapes reacted differently, acid was taken out, not added in, and vintage was more compressed.

As he didn't know how long he was going to be in Marlborough, Chris and his wife, Samantha, travelled around New Zealand as much as possible.

In 2005 Chris was made senior winemaker at Rapuara Vintners. In 2007 he tried his hand at a new venture setting up The Darling label with friend Bart Arnst but has continued working at Rapuara Vintners.

The Darling's first producing year was 2008. Chris looks after the winemaking side of things while Bart manages the vineyards.

In 2009 all the fruit will be organic and they will produce a sauvignon blanc, gewurtztraminer, pinot noir and pinot gris.

"I think every winemaker's ultimate dream is to have their own vineyard and make their own wine which hopefully people will drink."

The Darling is being kept small to start with about 1000 cases.

He aims to expand it to include a few staff.

With Rapaura Vintners and The Darling both keeping him busy the little spare time he does have is spent travelling, walking his dog Huxley or in the Marlborough Sounds.

For Chris he couldn't imagine living anywhere else in the world right now, particularly as he considers Marlborough the most booming wine industry in the world, even if a few challenges are presenting themselves.

"Chris, where's home?"

He pauses.

"Home is where your life is set up."

Tomorrow: Seresin's Clive Dougall on his journey from London to Marlborough.

- The Marlborough Express