Diary of a Shopkeeper, 28th August

David in greenstone hei matau, Christine in Alison Moore.

Lovers of New Zealand wine may recall an excellent range called Jealous Sisters that graced our shelves for years. It was also popular at more than one Lynnfield Lux. Customers appreciated both the Pinot Noir and the Pinot Gris, as well as the intriguing story behind the name, which was based on a Māori love-triangle folk tale.

Three years ago the wines disappeared from importers’ lists, and we learned that the winemaker had retired and the new owners had abandoned the label. Even now, every couple of months someone comes in asking for a bottle of Jealous Sisters. So it wasn’t too surprising when a sprightly, grey-haired woman with a Glasgow accent made exactly that request one day last week. What was surprising was her laughter when I told her about the winemaker having retired, and especially her reply: ‘I know. It was me!’

I flicked back through my rolodex of memories, and found myself in February 2017, halfway through my only visit to New Zealand. There I was in a vineyard at the Gladstone Estate, Wairarapa, at the bottom end of the North Island, hearing from the winemaker all about Jealous Sisters. And now she was standing in front of me again.

‘Christine Kernohan!’ I said. ‘Welcome to Kirkness & Gorie!’

 It turned out that Christine and her husband David, both now retired, are on an extended holiday in their native Scotland, visiting friends and relations, and travelling to parts of the country they’ve never seen before, including Orkney. It was a pleasure to spend time with them on a couple of occasions during their stay, talking about life in both Scotland and New Zealand, and of course about wine. Especially about wine.

Christine studied maths at university. When she and David, an architect, made a new start in New Zealand shortly after their marriage, she followed a career in IT that would last for many years. However, a growing realisation that she wanted a more fulfilling, balanced life led to a dramatic change in 1996, when she and David bought a tiny vineyard and she set out to become a winemaker. Or maybe not.

‘I wasn’t really a winemaker to start with,’ Christine told me. ‘When you only have three hectares, you just have to work with what you have. It was only when we bought another ten hectares that I had enough fruit to start making significant choices – about which parcels of grapes to use in which wine, for instance. That’s when you can call yourself a winemaker.’ 

Christine took some courses in viticulture and oenology, but mostly she learned on the job. She speaks warmly of individuals who worked with and advised her in the early days, such as Belgian born winemaker Jean-Charles Van Hove, who now has his own winery in Marlborough. Jealous Sisters was based in the lesser-known area of Wairarapa, situated an hour’s drive over the hills from the capital, Wellington. Despite being home to several of the country’s leading producers, including Ata Rangi, who we also have on our shelves, Wairarapa has never quite established the reputation it deserves.

Christine was tireless in her efforts to promote the area, with some success, but her efforts have had more tangible influence in the field of sustainability. She loved to ‘stretch the edges’ of what was acceptable or conventional. That could be by fermenting some of her wines in the middle of the vineyard rather than in the safety of the winery – to encourage the complexities that wild yeast brings – but it was also by pioneering organic production.

The Jealous Sisters may have gone, but memories of them linger on in Orkney, and Christine’s influence is still felt in Wairarapa and beyond. Not many Glaswegian mathematicians can claim that.

This diary appeared in The Orcadian on 31st August 2022. A new one appears weekly. I post them in this blog a few days after each newspaper appearance, with added illustrations., and occasional small corrections or additions.