The Profile: Sir George Fistonich
Capturing Sir George Fistonich in a few pages seems a fool’s errand.
After 18 years with the winery, and with several prestigious awards to his name including an Australasian award for Young Winemaker of the Year, Picone has been responsible for making hundreds of the winery's global trophy and medal winning wines for many years.
Villa Maria chief executive Sir George Fistonich said he could not have hoped for a more highly skilled person for the position.
"He's an extremely talented winemaker with an exceptional palate and has demonstrated a natural ability with wine right from the start of his career," he says.
"Throughout our 54 year history my focus has always been on creating the highest quality wines and we've achieved this through selection of the best vineyard sites, but also seeking out the very best people and Nick is without a doubt one of the New Zealand wine industry's shining stars".
Picone brings a wealth of experience to the position. Raised in Hawkes Bay, his first wine job was at boutique producer Esk Valley Estate, from there he moved to Marlborough and then later to Auckland to oversee Villa Maria's Auckland, Hawkes Bay and Gisborne winemaking.
In 2006, he spent time working for Villa Maria's international distributor Hatch Mansfield in the United Kingdom, followed by a vintage at GD Vajra in Barolo, Italy. He has also completed two vintages at DeLoach vineyards in California, USA.
"Fostering talent in our industry is something I'm passionate about and I'm proud to have seen Nick develop his skills over the years working in all of our winemaking regions," says Fistonich.
Nick Picone's winemaking awards and achievements:
2014 - Listed in an international selection of '30 winemakers under 40 to watch' by the Drinks Business UK.
2013 - Awarded 'Winemaker of the Year' New Zealand International Wine Show.
2012 - Awarded Wine Society Australasia 'Young Winemaker of the Year" – a first for a New Zealander.
2011 - Awarded joint winner 'New Zealand Winemaker of the Year' Royal Easter Wine Awards.
2004 - Awarded the New Zealand Yalumba scholarship to attend the Len Evans Tutorial.
