Our People
The committee believe in the vision and they believe in Hawke’s Bay wine, which of course is central to the success of this event. The individual skill-sets and contributions they bring to the table are integral in raising funds for Cranford Hospice to better assist those in our community in receiving the best possible end of life palliative care.
Peter Cowley
Chairperson – Hawke’s Bay Wine Auction / Retired, formerly Technical Director, Te Mata Estate
Peter is one of New Zealand ‘s leading winemakers and was a key figure in the development of Te Mata Estate’s culture of wine excellence.
Peter developed his interest in wine through restaurant work while a student. He attained a BSc in Chemistry at Auckland University and then a Graduate Diploma in Wine from Roseworthy College, near Adelaide. He was awarded the inaugural Hazelgrove Scholarship, which involved microbiology research projects at the Australian Wine Research Institute. After a vintage at the Rouge Homme Winery in Coonawarra under John Vickery, Peter returned to New Zealand.
Peter commenced work at Te Mata Estate in 1984 as the sole winemaker and over more than 30 years, oversaw the creation of Te Mata’s range of quality wines. His last role as technical director saw him mentoring the longstanding team responsible for all aspects of Te Mata’s wine production, from vine to bottle.
Peter lives with his wife Gail on a local vineyard. He has been active as a senior wine judge in Australasia since 1992 and describes himself as “a lover of old vineyards and the wines they produce, and fairly old Japanese motorcycles”.
Kate Radburnd
Winemaker & Director of Radburnd Cellars
Kate Radburnd is one of New Zealand’s most respected winemakers, with over 35 vintages, she has been producing premium wines across a range of varietals and wine styles achieving gold medals and trophies around the world.
Kate’s exciting new wine venture is Radburnd Cellars, a small winery in Hawke’s Bay focused on making small parcels of her absolute best, without compromise. This includes a single tier of 3 wines – Chardonnay, Syrah and Merlot Cabernet.
She is a graduate of Roseworthy Agricultural College, moved to NZ, in 1983 to make wine at Vidal with legendary New Zealand winemaker George Fistonich, where she worked for 7 years. In 1991 she joined Pask Winery. During her acclaimed 26-year tenure at Pask, Kate became joint owner in 1993 and Managing Director before leaving to launch Radburnd Cellars in 2017.
A highly regarded ambassador for New Zealand’s wine, Kate has served as a senior judge at national and international wine competitions. In 2010, she was appointed Chair of Judges for the Royal Easter Show Wine Awards, New Zealand’s oldest national wine competition.
Kate has been a Director of New Zealand Winegrowers, a wine consultant to Air New Zealand, and the Deputy Chair of the Council of The Eastern Institute of Technology in Napier, which has wine science and viticulture as flagship degrees. She pioneered the introduction of the winery programme for Sustainable Wine Growing New Zealand.
In recognition of her services to New Zealand wine, Kate was awarded the Sir George Fistonich medal at the New Zealand International Wine Competition in 2010. She was made a Fellow of New Zealand Winegrowers in 2015, the first female winemaker to receive the award. In 2019, Kate was inducted into the New Zealand Wine Hall of Fame. She is currently the Chair of Women in Wine New Zealand.
Tony Bish
Tony Bish Wines, Winemaker & Owner
It was back in the early 80s when Tony Bish began his life journey with wine. Cash-strapped but keen to fund a season skiing at Mt Hutt, Tony’s first vintage with Corbans in Gisborne was a pragmatic start to what has become a forty-year career of passion.
Six years on, Tony graduated with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Oenology.
By that stage Tony’s new-found knowledge and experience was already being put to good use, having co-founded Sacred Hill Wines in rural Hawke’s Bay with the Mason brothers in 1986.
Now a consultant winemaker with Sacred Hill, Tony is forging his own way forward with a future exclusively focused on Chardonnay. He and Karryn launched Tony Bish Wines in 2013, and they now sell four chardonnay styles direct to fellow chardonnay lovers around the country and around the world.
Tony’s creative spirit was unleashed in 2013, following a trip to South America where he experienced wine produced in egg-shaped tanks. With some kiwi ingenuity and local know-how from Hastings-based NZ Tanks, Tony built New Zealand’s first concrete egg fermenters.
Unsurprisingly eggs have become Tony’s preferred means of fermentation in his pursuit of the perfect chardonnay. To this end, Tony imported NZ’s first French Oak Egg fermenter. It’s a massive sculptural giant that occupies pride of place in Tony’s cellar, located in The Urban Winery in Ahuriri.
Contemporary in design but housed in an iconic and historic building, it’s a working winery, a cellar door and a space for gourmet experiences.
Andrea Jopling
Chair, Cranford Hospice Trust
Andrea has been a trustee at Cranford Hospice since 2017 and ensures there is a strong link between the HBWA and Cranford.
Andrea is an independent consultant in the health sector, with over 20 years experience in governance, project management, strategic planning and interim management. Andrea is a Director of the Heretaunga Building Society and owns a manufacturing business in Whakatu with her husband Marcus.
Originally from Birmingham in the UK and educated at the University of London, Andrea came to New Zealand in 2000 for a 12 month project but quickly adopted it as her new home and moved to Hawke’s Bay in 2008. She likes to say that she might not be from here, but she definitely chose here.
Andrea does not consider herself a wine expert, but spends a not inconsiderable amount of time enjoying the offerings of the Hawke’s Bay wine industry, which does so much to support Cranford Hospice.
Andreas Weiss
CEO, Elephant Hill
Andreas is the second generation of the Weiss family to be directly involved at Elephant Hill.
After studying economics and engineering at the Technical University of Berlin, a successful 20 year career in the banking industry followed with assignments in Germany, England and Brazil. In 2013 Andreas founded his own consulting firm, analysing and developing financial infrastructure setups for municipalities in his home country of Germany. A change in direction then took place in September 2015 when Andreas was offered the fantastic opportunity to manage Elephant Hill which he gladly accepted.
Since then Andreas lives in Hawke’s Bay with his youngest two of 5 kids and is still learning to become a Kiwi.
Peter Allen
Hawthorne House Co-owner; Co-founder/Director The Learning Wave
With a career in education, finance, adult learning and now hospitality, Peter brings a diversity of thought and his abundant creative energy to his role on this committee.
After postgraduate study and secondary school teaching, Peter had a 12-year career in the consumer and corporate finance industry. He then stepped off the finance treadmill in 1996 and worked as a corporate skills facilitator, mixing his passion for learning with his experience in business.
He co-founded The Learning Wave in 2005, developing learning solutions for a diverse and challenging client base in infrastructure, construction, manufacturing, agribusiness and beyond. Their learning journeys improve adult literacy and numeracy, digital literacy, safety and leadership capability to build positive work performance from frontline workers and supervisors, to sales teams and executive leaders. Now part-time, he provides governance and senior-level input to The Learning Wave.
With his husband Paul, he moved from Auckland to Hawke’s Bay in 2019 to pursue their passion for hospitality and they are now the proud owners of Hawthorne House, a boutique bed and breakfast business located on 13 acres just 10 minutes from Havelock North and Hastings.
Peter and Paul have quickly embedded themselves into the community and their love of food, wine and art has meant they have met and engaged with many local winemakers, artists, cafes and restaurants … all in the name of ‘market research’ so they can curate unique experiences for their guests.
Sally Fisher
Consultant – Brand Strategy
Sally Fisher is a highly experienced brand strategist and marketing communicator. In a career that has spanned brand strategy, advertising and public relations, Sally has worked in Australia and New Zealand to help organisations find distinctive positionings, powerful brand frameworks and bring them to life wherever content lives. She is both a strategist and writer.
Sally knows the wine industry well, having worked in Hawke’s Bay as a wine marketer and event manager before moving to Australia. In Australia she worked for Melbourne’s largest agency where she was Group Account Director for major wine brands Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Rosemount and others.
On returning to New Zealand in 2011 she became a consultant partnering with agencies and directly with clients, focusing on brand strategy and writing. Having recently returned to the Bay, She’s delighted to be a trustee and part of the wine auction committee, assisting with such a worthy and legendary event.
Matt Whyte
Founder of Mindful Spaces and Director at Resero
Matt Whyte is a passionate entrepreneur with a diverse career spanning international business, sustainability, and education-focused innovation. He has lived and worked in Shanghai, Beijing, Sydney, Auckland, and Queenstown, gaining global experience in business development and leadership. As the founder of Mindfull Spaces, Matt has pioneered solutions to create more inclusive learning environments for children. He is also a director of his family business, Resero, which supplies innovative furniture solutions to schools across New Zealand and Australia.
Gavin Streeter
Director – Isaacs Plumbing, Pumping & Electrical
Gavin is one of the co-owners and Directors of Isaac’s Plumbing, Pumping & Electrical, a prominent service company based in Hawke’s Bay. He purchased the business in 2013 when it had just seven staff members the company has grown significantly, now employing over 80 staff and expanding its services across the region supporting the Horticulture and Agriculture sector.
Gavin and his business partners have proudly been long-term supporters of the Wine Auction with sponsorship now into its 7th year.
Gavin and his wife Chloe live in Havelock North with 2 children – born and bred in Hawkes Bay and proud to contribute to the region.
Penelope Radburnd
Winemaker and Marketing Manager, Radburnd Cellars
With a decade of experience in the industry, Penelope Radburnd has established herself as an esteemed winemaker. She was already well-versed in the world of wine, with a hands-on upbringing in the industry, before taking the plunge to follow in her mother’s footsteps. She graduated with a Bachelor of Viticulture and Oenology from the University of Adelaide in 2017.
She has completed vintage at prominent wineries including Craggy Range Winery, Kumeu River Estate and Clearview Estate with Chardonnay winemaking clearly being a focal point. Further, Penelope has recently added Senior Wine Judge at the A&P Show Wine Awards to her resume. Penelope has been the Marketing Manager and Winemaker at Radburnd Cellars since April 2022, and 2024 marked her first year making wine under her own name.
Sam Kershaw
Hawke’s Bay Wine Auction, General Manager
Sam joined the Hawke’s Bay Wine Auction as general manager in February 2024.
Sam is a marketing and events professional who has spent the past decade working with some of Aotearoa’s most valued brands and largest events. As an Account Manager with Designworks, she helped support Kiwibank through a major rebrand, and managed Super Rugby finals and Test Matches in her time as Match Manager with the Hurricanes. Most recently, as a marketing and communications consultant, Sam has supported businesses in paving creative new pathways to their audiences and unearthing marketing opportunities ripe for the picking.
Sam grew up in Havelock North, but ventured off to Melbourne with her family in her teens. After nearly two and half decades away, Sam is loving being a Hawke’s Bay local again and all the lifestyle perks that brings, especially the proximity to NZ’s best wineries.
