Congratulations to Aaron Coxhead from Coxhead Wines for becoming the 2026 Tonnellerie de Mercurey North Island Young Winemaker of the Year following the competition held on 23 July at Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) in Hawke’s Bay.
Having come second in this competition in 2024, Aaron has since been gaining international winemaking experience and returned to New Zealand this May to launch his own wine label Coxhead Wines. He was also determined to come back and raise the North Island trophy, so has studied hard in the lead-up to the competition. He was thrilled to reach his goal and also become the first person from Waikato to do so.
Congratulations also go to Ngaun Siao, an EIT graduate, who came second, and to Katelyn Church from Mission Estate who came third.
This competition is open to all emerging young winemakers from around the North Island, and organisers were thrilled to see contestants coming from Auckland, Waikato, Hawke’s Bay and Wairarapa.
“This competition has the added bonus of meeting fellow young winemakers from other regions, and it’s wonderful to see new friendships emerge as the next generation of leaders bond throughout the day,” says Nicky Grandorge, the Leadership and Communities Manager at New Zealand Winegrowers. “The camaraderie within the New Zealand wine industry is something we can all be proud of.”
The other Hawke’s Bay contestants were Caitlyn Moeller from EIT and Darcy Brown from Links Winery. Ethan Dawes from Passage Rock represented Waiheke Island and Kittiya Nuandee from Te Kairanga represented Wairarapa.
They all threw themselves into the competition, giving everything one hundred per cent. They worked their way around the various challenges, which included fault-finding, cellar skills, wine tasting, laboratory skills, blending, presenting, and undertaking an interview.
At lunchtime they competed in the fun Vin-Olympics race, which was followed by a delicious Fruitfed Supplies barbecue. The race was won by Aaron Coxhead.
Aaron also won the Constellation Brands Laboratory section, and Kateyln Church won the Indevin Wine Tasting section.
Ethan Dawes won the People’s Choice for the best Chardonnay blend, as voted by the dinner guests. He also won the Fruitfed Supplies speech, captivating and entertaining the audience with his light-hearted take on debunking wine myths.
The Awards Dinner was held at Mission Estate with Caleb Dennis, wine industry consultant, as MC.
Aaron won a Fruitfed Supplies Field Trip and $1,000 cash. Ngaun won $750 cash and a New Zealand Society for Viticulture and Oenology (NZSVO) Educational Trip for coming second, and Katelyn won $500 cash for coming third.
Aaron will now represent the North Island in the National Final being held at Foley’s The Runholder in Martinborough on 25 August.
The finalists will compete not only for the prestigious title of the 2026 Tonnellerie de Mercurey Young Winemaker of the Year, but also an amazing prize package which includes a visit to the Tonnellerie de Mercurey (cooperage) in Burgundy, being an associate judge in the New World Wine Awards, attending the Sauvignon Blanc New Zealand 2027 conference plus the Organic Winegrowers Conference next year too.
The competition is made possible thanks to all the generous sponsors: Tonnellerie de Mercurey, Fruitfed Supplies, Constellation Brands, Indevin, Albatrans, FMG, Laffort, MCC Labels, Visy, Lallemand, Pacific Rim Oenology, NZSVO, New World, and DrinksBiz.
-Ends-
For further information contact:
Nicky Grandorge
Leadership & Communities Manager, New Zealand Winegrowers,
+64 21 780 948
Nicky.Grandorge@nzwine.com
View the Young Winemaker website here.
New Zealand Winegrowers' images can be found here.
EDITOR NOTES:
NEW ZEALAND WINEGROWERS
New Zealand Winegrowers is the national organisation for the country's grape and wine sector, with over 600 grower members, 700 winery members, and directly employing over 7,000 New Zealanders each year. nzwine.com
NEW ZEALAND WINE
New Zealand wine is exported to more than 100 countries
New Zealand produces just over 1% of the world’s wine
New Zealand wine is New Zealand’s eighth-largest export good
New Zealand wine exports for 2024 were $2.1 billion
View reports and statistics here