When the first Marlborough vines were planted in 1973 few people predicted that the region would become New Zealand's largest and best known winegrowing area in little more than 20 years.

The distinctive pungency and zesty fruit flavors of the first wines captured the imagination of the country's winemakers and wine drinkers alike and sparked an unparalleled boom in vineyard development.

Montana and Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc wines attained a cult-like status around the wine-drinking world.

Worldwide interest in Marlborough wines, particularly Sauvignon Blanc, has continued to fuel that regional wine boom.

The free-draining, alluvial loams over gravelly subsoil in the Wairau and Awatere River valleys provide ideal growing conditions. Abundant sunshine with cool nights and a long growing season helps to build and maintain the vibrant fruit flavors for which Marlborough is now famous.

Sauvignon Blanc is the most planted grape variety with Chardonnay in second place, followed by Pinot Noir and Riesling. Sauvignon Blanc may be the star but Marlborough has also earned an enviable reputation for Méthode Traditionelle sparkling wines as well as a wide range of both white and red table wines.

The seep farmers and fruit growers have largely been displaced by continuing plantings of vines, and no longer is it attention.  

The area seems made for wine touring. It's full of outstanding scenery, with rows of vines marching across the plains and the peaks of the ranges surrounding the near horizons.

The township of Blenheim, the region's major centre, is surrounded by vineyards that extend well beyond the plains, covering some of the lower slopes and spilling into the Awatere Valley to the South.

The close-by Marlborough Sounds provide a summer vacation playground, with some relaxing resorts, and the waters are also home to a mussel and salmon farming industry.

The Kaikoura Coast, on the road south, is popular with visitors where whale-watching and swim with dolphins are some of the attractions.

Source: http://www.nzwine.com/regions/ and Cuisine Wine Country Magazine 2007.

I arrived in Blenheim on the 14th of May, full of joy and excitement.

I have had made some contacts to find work in vineyards and in the very same day I call the contractor that I though could be the more trustworthy to work for – contractors can cheat on naïve staff and I wanted to make sure that my hard work would be paid correctly.  

I accommodated myself in a backpacker’s hostel, where I met a crowd of people doing the same thing as me: traveling, working, learning, enjoying life, saving money – not all of those in the same order of priority.

I started working in the following day, in a vineyard which supplies grapes for Huia, a prestigious and relatively small winery, where, after a brief explanation of how to do the work, we started “wrapping”, which consists in train the vine’s canes on the wire in order to encourage the production of new fruiting canes at specific positions on the vine.  

We began with vines of Pinot Noir, which have had the its leaves fell down earlier than the other varieties, factor which made the whole work on them (pruning, stripping and wrapping) much easier.

All process was closely supervised to guarantee that the result was what the winery was looking for, and in that case, the best grapes which the site was able to produce.  

In the first two days we worked in hourly rate and the following ones at contract rate, what mean that in the first we could take our time to do the job and in the second to o it as fast as we could in order to have our wages paid by production (plant wrapped).

I was never fast and I could not do the job quickly, just because I cared very much about those beauties, always analyzing from the roots to the top cane how I could help that to produce the best wine ever.  

During my month of work at Marlborough I learnt a lot, and I would had learn even more if the people who work on the vineyard were more interest in the result of the process.

Many New Zealanders learnt to work with grapes but it doesn't mean that all of them had chosen it for the passion for wine. Mostly, they ended up in this field as a natural consequence of the moving from farming to viticulture that happened in the country in the past three decades.  

Although not sharing my enthusiasm, my supervisor was always kind to try to find an answer for the innumerous questions I had every single day.

Some locals realize how important the region is for wine growing, but others have no clue. For their lack of knowledge they excuse themselves saying: "we are kiwis and kiwis drink beer".  

Farming is still a big contribution to the country's economy; however wine is a very seductive thing, especially if you are in on of the most prestigious places in the "New World" to produce it.

One of the main differences I notice between New Zealand and the other "New World" countries I had visited so far was that its production is mainly focused in the external market, mainly because the internal is not big enough to support the industry. Furthermore, wine is not the national's "cup of tea". Wine here is still seen as an exclusive thing; as in other parts of the world; and one of the reasons is price. Apart from the fact that is very easy to find a reasonable wine in any corner of the country, a good wine can cost more than the majority is willing to pay for it.  

I worked from the first sun light until it had disappeared behind the mountains. In early mornings when the frost covered the vineyard with a fin layer of ice, I took longer to do the task because my hands were frozen from the wet gloves. In late afternoon when the day seemed that had last forever I still found motivation to contemplate the scenery and leave the field with a smile - Work outdoors can be very rewarding with you like being in touch with nature, even when it shows the coldest side of it.

I loved to observe the whole environment: The birds which made us company during all day long; The busy traffic of airplanes which indicated that the airport was near by and also that the small town of Blenheim has became an important spot in the map; The wind which could blow all around and make us to wrap carefully some fragile vines; The Whiter Hills spying on us with their rosy color; The wind machines which waited patiently to get in action in any dangerous frost; The grapes left in the vines which had an intense flavor of over ripen fruit and showed why this is a special spot; The canes that were healthy - wondering how they would look like in summer time; The canes those were unhealthy - guessing why that had happened; The soil that was sometimes white, occasionally grey, sometimes stony; at times like the soil of my family's garden in my childhood; The stones with different colors and shapes... Well, I didn't want to miss a second of my close experience with the vines which produce on of the reasons why I am writing these words. Perhaps those are the reasons why I wasn't fast.  

To be in Marlborough was like a dream coming true. Every time I looked over the vineyard I thought "It was just a wish a year ago". Life is so much worthy when you follow your dreams and make the most to help them to come true.

Although I did not have the chance to enroll in any course or wine event, the fields of Marlborough taught me a lot in its wise silence and the people which I met along my away, trough the vines or not, showed me a way to deal with the business that I really admire: simplicity.