Winemaker

What a winemaker actually does

A winemaker is responsible for the entire process, from when the grapes arrive at the winery to when the finished wine is bottled and labelled. They make the key decisions: when to pick, how to press, which yeast to use, what temperature to ferment at, which oak to use, when to rack, when to bottle, and how to blend the final cuvée. They are also responsible for the laboratory analysis, the quality control and the record-keeping that compliance requires.

In a small winery, the winemaker does much of the work themselves. In a large winery, the winemaker leads a team of assistant winemakers, cellar hands, lab technicians and operations staff. The winemaker is also the public face of the wine, leading tastings, hosting trade visits and representing the producer at industry events.

Winemaker training

In the UK, the main route to becoming a winemaker is through Plumpton College in East Sussex, which runs the country's only undergraduate degree in viticulture and oenology. The course combines classroom teaching, practical work in the college's research winery, and a placement year in a commercial winery. Graduates work across the UK industry and beyond.

Overseas training is also common, particularly from the major wine schools in France, Australia, the US and South Africa. Many UK winemakers have worked in Champagne, Burgundy, California, Australia or New Zealand before coming to the UK, and they bring that experience to the local style.

Notable UK winemakers

The UK industry is full of talented winemakers, and a few names are particularly well known. Brad Greatrix at Nyetimber, Simon Roberts at Ridgeview, Charlie Holland at Gusbourne, Owen Elias at Black Chalk, Melanie Hick at Bolney, Sam and Will Davenport at Davenport, and the winemaker team at Chapel Down are all respected. The smaller producers, including Litmus, Harrow & Hope, Offbeat and many others, are also producing some of the most exciting wines in the country.

The UK winemaker community is collaborative, with regular technical meetings, a strong WineGB technical committee, and informal sharing of knowledge. This open culture is one of the reasons the UK industry has progressed so quickly.

Winemaker and terroir

A good winemaker works with the terroir, not against it. They choose the picking date, the oak programme and the blending strategy to let the fruit and the site express themselves. The best UK wines are not the most manipulated, but the most considered. A great winemaker's job is to make decisions that bring out the best in the grapes, and to avoid decisions that get in the way.

This is a learned skill. The first few vintages from a new site or a new producer are usually a learning experience, and the wines can be variable. Over time, as the winemaker gets to know the site, the wines become more consistent and more expressive. The trajectory at most UK producers is clearly upward, which is a tribute to the winemakers' growing understanding of the local terroir.

The winemaker's signature

Every winemaker has a signature style, a way of making wine that is recognisably theirs. It might be the way they handle the lees, the oak regime they prefer, the dryness level of their sparkling wines, or the style of their still wines. A great winemaker's signature is not a heavy hand but a clear point of view, consistently applied across vintages.

For the consumer, the winemaker's signature is part of what makes a wine worth following. A producer whose wines improve steadily over the years, with a recognisable style and a clear sense of place, is one to watch.