Now working for Australia’s largest organic winery, Ashutosh left his homeland in India to learn winemaking from “the masters” at EIT Hawke’s Bay.
Ashu – as the 29-year-old prefers to be known – completed his Bachelor of Wine Science at the end of last year. Unfortunately, the demands of his new job as assistant winemaker and vintage winemaker for Salena Estate Wines in South Australia means he won’t be able to take part in EIT’s graduation ceremony being held in Napier on March 27.
Ashu grew up in the Punjabi capital of Chandigarh, a city famed for its leading-edge architecture. After leaving school he qualified as an engineer, but then decided to learn about winemaking rather than going into the family business treating industrial waste water.
“Winemaking was a field that could be easily mastered,” the self-motivated young man explains, “and it doesn’t require too much investment to start a winery of your own.”
World renowned for its quality wines, New Zealand was his first choice of country for study. Hawke’s Bay, with microclimates and soils suitable for growing many grape varieties, stood out as a region in which to study for a wine science degree.
“Hawke’s Bay has the best climate in New Zealand, and now, being exposed to the Australian climate, I think Hawke’s Bay is the ideal place to get an idea of hot and cold climate winemaking.”
Ashu found it a challenging experience moving here with just “alright English”, but mixing with people from different cultures and making “heaps of Kiwi friends” helped him handle the stress.
He admits that when he launched into his studies, he didn’t know much about wine – having no idea of what a vintage was, for example. But he soon learned in what he describes as a top educational facility where most of his lecturers have worked as winemakers and know what the industry requires of students.
In particular, he appreciated, EIT’s “outstanding lab facilities”, the practical learning experiences encompassed in the degree programme and the opportunities available for part-time work in wineries.
Living in EIT’s student villas, he diligently applied himself to his studies and to work. “I don’t remember taking a day off in three years – be it Christmas, New Year, raining, sick, nothing would stop me from working.”
References from his employers helped him into his present job where he aims to learn more about such matters as waste water management, sales to Asian markets and new technological developments.
While India’s growing wine industry offers potential for future employment, Ashu’s longer-term aim is to get into bio fuels. Rather than fermenting grapes, he sees himself fermenting grass to make ethanol for fuel.
“It’s just that I want to serve society on a big scale,” explains this high achiever.