Stu Marfell

Coming Up

Training at Lincoln University, Canterbury gave Stu Marfell the technical base for a career that moved from study into cellar work without much distance between the two. He went on to serve as Assistant Winemaker at Vavasour in Awatere Valley from 2003–2007, a stretch that connected academic preparation to the day-to-day pressures of production. In 2007, he became Chief Winemaker of Vavasour and Dashwood, and that remit later widened further; he also serves as Group Chief Winemaker of Dashwood Wines. The shape of that progression is straightforward: vineyard work first, then technical training, then responsibility inside the winery. Stu Marfell’s career has been built by accumulation rather than shortcut, with each stage extending the last. The school-holiday labour in the Vavasour vineyards, the years at Lincoln University, Canterbury, and the Assistant Winemaker role in Awatere Valley all sit inside the same working logic: learn the site, learn the cellar, then take on the decisions.

Where They Are Now

Today, Stu Marfell is the Chief Winemaker at Dashwood Wine in Waihopai Valley, New Zealand. The role places him at the point where vineyard understanding, cellar judgement and house style meet. His tenure since 2007 has given the position continuity, and it also points to a working relationship with the estate that has developed through time rather than through a change in title alone.

Signature

Stu Marfell’s signature wines include Dashwood Sauvignon Blanc, a wine that sits close to the region and the career path that shaped him. It is one of the labels most associated with his name, and it reflects the experience gathered across vineyard work, formal study and senior winemaking responsibility.

In Their Words “My teenage school holidays were spent working in the Vavasour vineyards, gaining skills and experience.” That line is a compact account of Stu Marfell’s approach to the trade: practical, direct and rooted in place. Before the title of Chief Winemaker at Dashwood Wine in Waihopai Valley, New Zealand, there was vineyard labour and the steady building of craft knowledge. From Lincoln University, Canterbury, to Assistant Winemaker at Vavasour in Awatere Valley (2003–2007), and then on to Chief Winemaker of Vavasour and Dashwood in 2007, the career has held its line. He also serves as Group Chief Winemaker of Dashwood Wines, carrying that early vineyard education into a broader leadership role.