George Geris has a great affinity for the culture, food and lifestyle of the Mediterranean countries of his ancestors, but also has strong ties to New Zealand, where he was born. He completed a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical & Process) at Canterbury University in 1989, allowing him to work as an engineer between 1990 and 1992. In 1993 and 1994 George worked in Greece and Cyprus and explored Western and Eastern Europe. He developed an interest in winemaking and started looking for ways to become involved in the industry.
He worked voluntarily in Puglia in Southern Italy with indigenous grape varieties and in the Tokaji region of Hungary (famous for its sweet wines). Inspired, George returned to New Zealand in 1995 and completed a Post-Graduate Diploma in Viticulture and Oenology at Lincoln University and worked vintages in Australia and New Zealand. He worked as a flying winemaker in South Africa and Italy for Kym Milne MW, making wines for the UK market.
George's international winemaking experience has given him invaluable exposure to a range of viticultural regions, varieties, climates and wine styles and has enabled him to be versatile and to recognize techniques that best suit New Zealand conditions. In 1997 George returned to New Zealand to the role of Assistant Winemaker at Villa Maria in Auckland. In 2001 he and his family relocated when he became Marlborough Winemaker, managing Villa Maria's state-of-the-art Marlborough winery.
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