Keynote speaker Dr Mango Parker, Australian Wine Research Institute, presents to an attentive audience.
From Grape to Glass: Knowledge sharing at Sold-Out event
There wasn’t a spare seat as 85 attendees from across Aotearoa gathered in Marlborough on Monday for the second New Zealand Wine Centre Scientific Research Conference — a one-day event that highlighted the depth and diversity of grape and wine research underway across the country.
Held at the Budge Street campus in Blenheim, the sold-out event brought together researchers, postgraduate students, and technical specialists to present their work, build connections, and spark ideas for future collaboration.
“Our goal was to bring the latest scientific viticulture and wine research to the Marlborough wine industry, who don’t often get access to this level of detail,” said Stewart Field from the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology, who served on the organising committee. “It was also about creating space for researchers from across New Zealand to collaborate and highlight the excellent student research underway.”
Three Themes, One Purpose: Sharing Knowledge
This year’s programme focused on three key themes - Disease Management, Viticulture, and Wine — highlighting research from Plant & Food Research, NMIT, Bragato Research Institute (BRI), Lincoln University, the University of Auckland, and more.
Attendees came from every major wine region, from Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay to Auckland and Canterbury, with an even split between researchers and industry professionals. That balance helped create meaningful conversation and fertile ground for future partnerships.
“For me, the standout theme was the sheer diversity of grape and wine research being carried out across New Zealand,” said Stewart. “There was huge value in hearing from so many different perspectives in one place.”
In an interactive session, Dr Mango Parker explains the factors of sensory perception.
International Insight: Mango Parker on Wine Chemistry
This year’s keynote speaker was Dr Mango Parker, Senior Research Scientist at the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) and a globally recognised leader in wine aroma and flavour chemistry.
Her talk focused on glycosides — naturally occurring compounds that influence both pleasant and unwanted lingering flavours in wine — and how they’re being re-evaluated as active flavour contributors rather than dormant precursors.
“Nasty or nice, glycosides can make or break a wine,” said Mango. “We used to think these compounds were locked-up flavour reservoirs that needed to be ‘unlocked’ in the winemaking process. But now we know they can also influence flavour directly on the palate.”
She also reflected on the potential for trans-Tasman collaboration. “The quality and diversity of research presented here was excellent. I’d love to see more collaboration between Australian and New Zealand researchers — there’s so much we can share.”
Mango also noted that while smoke taint hasn't been a major issue for New Zealand to date, her team’s research could prove useful in the event of extreme weather events —the AWRI Helpdesk is a valuable resource.
Student Excellence
Another highlight was the quality of student presentations, which received enthusiastic feedback throughout the day.
“A lot of people commented on the calibre of the student research — that was a real standout,” Stewart said.
Looking Ahead
“There is clearly an appetite for deeper scientific engagement within the wine industry. We hope to make it a biannual event,” said Stewart. “Bringing people together like this always generates momentum — and we’re looking forward to seeing where that leads.”
Julian Theobald from Plant and Food Research, also reflected on the value of the event: “For me, it was a great day with a real energy around bringing people together and hearing about the breadth of exciting R&D working hard in the background to support the wine industry — and with potential crossover to other allied horticultural sectors as well.”
He also acknowledged the event’s key supporter: “Our thanks to Marlborough Research Centre, whose support made the day possible — particularly the behind-the-scenes help from Susan Foster, whose administrative support was invaluable.”
John Patterson, Chief Executive of Marlborough Research Centre, says supporting the conference aligns with MRC’s wider purpose.
“As the principal sponsor, Marlborough Research Centre is proud to support this important event. Our role is to help enable the connections, knowledge exchange, and collaborative spirit that underpin innovation in our sector. The conference plays a vital part in fostering these outcomes for the benefit of Marlborough and the wider New Zealand wine industry.”
Recognising Excellence in Research
The conference also celebrated standout contributions through two sets of awards — one recognising emerging talent, and the other acknowledging published research making a significant impact in the field.
The University of Auckland Best Student Awards acknowledged the high calibre of student research presentations.
First prize went to Michelle Thompson (Lincoln University / Plant & Food Research)
Runner-up was Rebecca Strange (University of Auckland)
Meanwhile, the New Zealand Winegrowers Best Paper Awards, sponsored by the Bragato Research Institute (BRI), celebrated peer-reviewed publications that made a significant impact in wine and viticulture research:
Wine category
Yi Yang, Zhijing Ye, Leandro Araujo, Tanya Rutan, Rebecca Deed, & Paul Kilmartin (2024).
Inter-regional characterisation of New Zealand Pinot Noir wines: Correlation between wine colour, monomeric and polymeric phenolics, tannin composition, antioxidant capacity, and sensory attributes. Food Chemistry, 467, 142311
Viticulture category
Damola Adejoro, Eirian Jones, Hayley Ridgway, Dion Mundy, Bhanupratap Vanga, & Simon Bulman (2023). Grapevines escaping trunk diseases in New Zealand vineyards have a distinct microbiome structure. Frontiers in Microbiology, 14
The conference organising committee with keynote Mango Parker in the centre. From left to right Julian Theobald, Ngarita Warden, Stewart Field, Amber Parker and Sarah Knight.
Conference Organising Committee:
Stewart Field – Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology
Julian Theobald – Plant & Food Research
Amber Parker – Lincoln University
Sarah Knight – University of Auckland
Ngarita Warden – Bragato Research Institute
The event was funded by the Marlborough Research Centre Trust and supported by ticket sales.