He has seen the competition grow from 444 wines to the 1500 this year. He has seen it held at a variety of different venues and he has seen an increase in quality, a change from corks to screwcaps and an emergence of many new varieties. The show never fails to impress him.
"One of the most awe inspiring things is seeing the wine show set up out the back where the stewards have all the bottles on tables. If you have something like 1500 entries, each with four bottles there is something like 6000 bottles of wine. That is very impressive."
Compton is not the only one to be impressed. He said a few years back at North Harbour Stadium, famous former All Black Buck Shelford stumbled across the judging.
"We had set up in a big open area, above which was a mezzanine walkway. Buck was on his way to a rugby meeting and looked down through the glass panels and saw all these bottles. You could see his jaw drop! He just couldn't imagine so much grog in one place."
Given the standard of international guest judges involved in the Air New Zealand Wine Show Compton says he has had the opportunity to work alongside some of the greatest wine names in the world. One stands out – Oz Clarke, who was first involved in that first year, 1987.
"I remember one year he was socially having a beer and he said remembering back to his previous visit (a number of years beforehand); "They've changed the brew." And with some enquiries we discovered yes the brewery had slightly changed the mix. He could not only taste the difference but he could also remember that it was different and I was very impressed with that."
After 25 years, there is just one embarrassing moment Compton can or is willing to share. It had nothing to do with the judging – more to do with an interview he ended up giving Jackie Brown for TV3's Campbell Live. Given the criteria for everyone involved in the judging process is to be odour free, Brown wanted to know how people managed to stay fresh without utilising aftershave or perfumed deodorants.
"She came in asking me this question, cameras were rolling and I said I used odourless deodorant, which I know sounds like a contradiction. So she promptly lifted up my arm and sniffed my armpit. My jaw almost hit the floor with embarrassment."
Dozens of winemakers, writers, members of trade who have been keen to become involved in the world of wine judging, have started out under the guidance of Compton, as firstly a steward and moved up through the ranks. It's something he is extremely proud of and rightly so. And who better to learn from than someone who has been at the helm for 25 years?
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