"Another drought year - no rain and early again - two weeks' early," she says, very happy with the fruit and wines. Labour shortages were one of the biggest challenges faced, with most contracted pickers allocated to larger companies. "So I teamed up with some other smaller producers and coordinated the picks with Dan [Brennan, of Decibel Wines] and Hayden [Penny, of Te Awaga Estate]. Or I just did it myself [...] it made for some pretty long days." But she found positives in the great sense of communitiy that this brought with it. "It's a great feeling having someone offer to truck your fruit for you while you're still picking. I would want to go that way again next year, even if the situation improves."
In wider market terms, Amoise production cannot keep up with demand. Amy says securing organic fruit is potentially becoming more of an issue than picking it. With most growers in large volume contracts with large wineries, it can be hard to make elbow room, she says. "It's tough to get smaller quantities, even when you're happy to pay more (per tonne)."
