i. Biography
Central Otago gives Matt Dicey his working material: Pinot Noir, harvested vineyard by vineyard, and a climate he treats as something to answer rather than assume. At Ceres Wines in Central Otago, New Zealand, his work is tied to fruit, season and the discipline of choosing what each harvest can carry into bottle.
The Estate
Winemaker at Ceres Wines, Matt Dicey works in Central Otago, New Zealand, with Pinot Noir as his specialty. The role sits within a life already bound to vines: he has a lifelong association with the wine industry and is a fourth-generation vigneron. Bannockburn is another fixed point in his work. He is caretaker at Dicey in Bannockburn, New Zealand, a role that places him in direct relation to a family name and a local landscape already present in his career. Before 2021, he was head winemaker at Mt Difficulty in Bannockburn, New Zealand. That chapter belongs to the same Central Otago orbit, with the region’s vineyards and seasons forming the practical frame around his winemaking.
In the Cellar
The central craft note is Pinot Noir, but Dicey’s language for the work begins with weather and response. “One constant about climate is it is never constant, it is always challenging here (in Central Otago) so we have to be able to adapt and react, utilising past experience to manage that.” That sentence gives a clear view of the method: observation first, then adjustment. Rather than treating a vintage as repeatable, he describes Central Otago as a place that asks for reaction, memory and practical experience. Recognition for that approach came in 2013, when Ceres Wines in Central Otago, New Zealand, received the IWSC Bouchard Finlayson Pinot Noir Trophy. The award belongs to a category that matches his specialty precisely: Pinot Noir judged on an international stage.
The Bottlings
The Ceres Composition is his most explicit statement of harvest and site. Made from the best fruit from Swansong, Inlet and Black Rabbit vineyards each harvest, it is described as an ode to the year, a bottling of time and place, from Bannockburn, Central Otago, New Zealand. The Ceres Artists Collection Inlet Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016 narrows attention to a single vineyard and a single year. Its name makes the point plainly: Inlet Vineyard, Pinot Noir, 2016. Riesling also appears in the body of work through the Ceres Black Rabbit Riesling 2018, from Bannockburn, New Zealand. The release places Black Rabbit not only within the Composition’s source vineyards, but also as a named site for a varietal bottling. At Dicey, a premium 2021 Pinot Noir was released in a bag-in-box format. The choice links a serious Pinot Noir release with a practical package, keeping the focus on wine while changing the vessel.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Matt
Where does Matt Dicey work?
Matt Dicey is winemaker at Ceres Wines in Central Otago, New Zealand, and caretaker at Dicey in Bannockburn, New Zealand.
What style or method defines Matt Dicey's work?
His work is defined by Pinot Noir and by adapting each vintage to Central Otago’s changing climate.
What are Matt Dicey's signature releases or dishes?
His named releases include the Ceres Composition, Ceres Artists Collection Inlet Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016, Ceres Black Rabbit Riesling 2018, and a premium 2021 Pinot Noir in bag-in-box format at Dicey.
