A new owner and a change of season at Huia

After 26 years, Huia has a new owner.

Winemaker, Claire Allan will stay on to continue to craft and deliver the wines you’ve come to know and love as Tom Pegler looks forward to steering Huia into a bright future built on the legacy crafted by the Allan family.

Huia Vineyard’s new owner, Tom Pegler who has a background in investing, has spent the last five years working for some of New Zealand’s most recognised wineries and honing his passion for the craft of making wine. He has always had a love of food and wine which has been further cemented by the experience of working in the cellar. After gaining this insight into the New Zealand wine industry, he has been on the hunt for a winery to buy and call his own.

This hasn’t been an overnight decision. His search has covered miles and over four years to find a winery that met his strict criteria.  “I’ve always wanted to make a product that I’m proud of, something I can put my name to. The quality aspect had to be there.” says Tom of the credentials he was looking to find in the winery he was prepared to invest his time and efforts into. 

“The cool thing about Huia is, not only the quality but it also reflects the thing that people really value, our home. Huia is making wine while trying to have the minimum impact possible on our environment. Growing grapes organically is the most visible thing. It’s also about many choices we make. There are so many things like water resources and decisions around packaging and transport that we want to manage in a way that ensures the best outcomes for future generations.” Tom says. Determined to find a quality boutique winery that provided a place to work outside of a large corporate environment, Tom states that Huia ticked a lot of boxes.

“Huia is one of the pioneering, small Marlborough organic wine labels that has been making low intervention, vegan wine for a long time. Thinking about what people want now, these wines, with no nasties in them, are what society is expecting of wine producers. We need to take some of the tools that nature has given us and apply those intelligently to managing the vineyards, to ensure we’re minimizing our footprint.”

 With Huia Vineyard’s great reputation, it made sense for Tom to approach the next phase of the brand by retaining some of the expertise of those who got Huia this far.

Claire Allan, who founded the winery with Mike Allan in 1996, will continue to work with Tom as the Huia winemaker. Tom explained, “Claire has done a fantastic job. She is the person who has really shaped Huia. Claire has also influenced winemaking in Marlborough with her work for many other local producers prior to Huia. She’s been instrumental in the development of Mana Winegrowers and a supporter of Appellation Marlborough Wine. I’m really keen for her to continue to be part of Huia.” he continued, “Someone with her level of talent should be making wine, not stuck over a computer doing the commercial side of the business.”

“My love of the wine industry still burns bright.” says Claire, who adds, “This is a chance to increase my hands-on involvement in the winery and vineyard. Tom and I share the same ethos which I think will ensure a truly successful future for Huia.”

A boutique winery, even by New Zealand standards, Huia Vineyards has been extremely successful abroad enjoying representation in world-class establishments like the Michelin-starred Pétrus by Gordon Ramsay in Knightsbridge, London. Along with successes in the UK and Europe and parts of Asia, Huia wines have proven to be favourites of the hospitality community with the Huia sparkling wine, a style of wine Huia is becoming well-known for, being selected as the celebratory wine for NZ born, Michelin-star Chef Josh Emett when he and his wife, Helen married.

Where some other New Zealand wineries have struggled, Huia has seen some extremely positive results in America. Eager to expand and ensure Huia can offer quality wine in an inclusive way in every market it lands in, Tom points out, “Huia has done really well in the US. Now I really want to make Huia more available in the New Zealand market place. This is our home. We want to be a part of the community we’re from.”

This new chapter for the Huia brand looks set to provide a sturdy foundation for the future with a strong grasp on an enduring legacy.

Huia has forged deep connections to Marlborough for The Allan family. Claire and Mike have raised their daughters, Tui and Sophie, on the vineyard, surrounded by the winemaking community of the region. As Claire and Mike move forward separately with their own journeys ahead, Tom acknowledges the efforts that have literally been dug into the soils of this land and looks to honour those efforts.

“Both Claire and Mike have contributed greatly to this business. Mike brought learnings from wineries like Cloudy Bay and Vavasour and Veuve Cliquot while Claire gained experience at Taittinger, Corbans and was the first winemaker for Lawsons Dry Hills. Over thirty years of that sort of experience counts for a great deal.” Tom adds “Coming into the industry with a brand that has a legacy of being what I think the modern consumer is seeking is pretty exciting.”