Matariki

from the depths of midwinter in the southern Pacific...

From the vineyard, there is an astonishing view of the night time and early morning sky. During all night frost events, I’ve watched our slow spin reveal the arc of our star system. Seen meteors, satellites, Rocketlabs launches, inexplicable lights, and colours cycling through purple-orange on the eastern horizon at dawn, painting the snow-capped tops of the Tararuas.

Induced by fatigue, it is easy to imagine one’s self in a long line of human succession across time, place, and culture; staring up, pondering. Our species has always looked to the stars. We’re in the process of reconnecting our NZ culture with them as we celebrate Matariki; a time of renewal. Of gathering. To reflect and be thankful. To be mindful of the environment that sustains us. And to look up, be humbled and dream and plan for the season ahead.

Every human culture has revered those seven Matariki stars; the Pleiades, the seven Sisters in Greece, Subaru in Japan, Makali’i in Hawaii. We’ve made meaning, told stories and set our paths accordingly. Matariki is the same as it ever was. Our human story is not.

In 2024, we wrote about the Year of the Dragon; “In Chinese myth dragons are koi fish that swam up the waterfall on the Yellow River, falling through the Dragon’s Gate to be transformed into dragons.” This story asks us to be like a dragon. To continuously push through hardships to scale our waterfalls, becoming stronger and wiser along the way until reaching our potential; becoming a true dragon.

And in 2025, the Year of the Snake; “snake-lore is at the heart of the human story. The Garden of Eden in the Christian tradition. Cobra forming a protective phalanx for the sleeping baby Nanak. The Medusa. St Patrick shooing snakes from Ireland. The Rainbow Serpent in Aboriginal Dreaming, creator of land and all life. Jörmungandr the harbinger of Ragnorok in Norse lore. The Feathered Serpent, Quetzalcoatl, symbol of life & death in Mesoamerican myth ... snakes represent transition & change. The circle of life. Shedding one skin to adopt another more suited to conditions. Renewal, resilience, transformation. Letting go of elements that no longer serve their purpose”

This year the stories of Matariki, the Dragon and the Snake seem particularly apt. In our mid winter dormancy, it may look quiet and lifeless in the vineyard. But now’s the time to prepare and make ready. Our vines are doing the same. Gathering energy for spring’s renewal.

So, happy new year from us. Let’s pause. Look up and dream. And get to work on the stories we want. The world we want. Our story is in our hands. The stars are there to remind us.

Brent

9 Jul 2026