John Buck wins NZ wine industry honour

Published: 03 January, 2013

John Buck, chairman of Te Mata Estate Winery, has been awarded a Companion of New Zealand Order of Merit (CMNZ), for leadership in the New Zealand wine industry.

The award, which also recognises his contribution to the the arts through the establishment of the New Zealand Poet Laureate Award, and the restoration and ongoing success of the Hawke's Bay Opera House. It comes on the back of his New Zealand Wine Hall of Fame 2012 award and previous OBE for services to the wine industry, plus honorary doctorate from Lincoln University, and Fellowship of the Wine Institute of New Zealand.

Buck turned 70 this year and is best known as one of the pioneers of the modern New Zealand wine industry. He helped with the founding and development of Hawke's Bay Vintners (now Hawke's Bay Winegrowers), becoming its chairman in the 1980s. In 1991, he established the Hawke's Bay Charity Wine Auction, which has raised more than $2 million.

He also represented Hawke's Bay on the board of the New Zealand Wine Institute through the late 1980s, and from 1991 to 1996 he was the institute's chairman when the country's export strategy vision was developed.

Buck said: "I've always believed that New Zealand wine, and the arts, can foot it with the world's best. All I've ever done is put that belief into practice. It's been a pleasurable challenge."

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