Rob MacCulloch's first with wine was when he joined Oddbins as an apprentice. Subsequently, he worked at Montana's Gisborne winery in New Zealand, then in the UK for Hatch Mansfield, Bibendum Wines, and for the Burgundy and Beaujolais specialists Domaine Direct. Rob then made a career change, leaving wine sales and entering wine production. He gained practical production experience around the world by completing five harvests in twenty months - in Australia's Margaret River, Germany's Mosel Valley, South Africa's Olifants River, New Zealand's Hawke's Bay and in Napa Valley. This practical experience ranged from working for traditional family-run small estates, bulk wine co-operatives, large custom crush facilities, and wineries making ultra-premium wines. Rob went on to complete the Graduate Diploma in Viticulture and Oenology, with its focus on cool climate viticulture, at Lincoln University in New Zealand. Thereafter he worked as Client Winemaker at the custom crush winery in Hawke's Bay where he had previously worked. He now works as a Winemaking & Oenological Consultant, assisting wine producers to research, analyse and identify methods to improve winemaking operations, systems, and ultimately, winemaking profitability.

Primary area(s) of work: Wine production

Industry sector(s): Consultant, Project management, QA/QC, Viticulture, Winemaking

Wine region expertise: Burgundy, California, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Mosel, New Zealand, Rhone

Market expertise: Australia, Europe, New Zealand, United Kingdom

Specialisms: Commercial advice on vinyard establishment, Cultivation of the vine, Environmental impacts, Establishment of vineyards, Factors affecting grape growing, Harvesting of grapes, Life cycle of the vine, Maladies of the vine and their control, Rootstocks and grafting, Startup and profitability, Structure and composition of grapes, Economics of wine production, Fermentation, Maturation and blending, Stabilisation and clarification, Processing of grapes, Production costs, P&L, Wine styling, Winery design and construction, Blending, Bulk shipment, Elevage / maturation, Preparation of finished wine for bottling, Quality assurance and control, Sensory evaluation , Supply chain efficiency, Distribution, Financial and commercial structures, Independent retail, Supplier/customer relationships, Supply chain efficiency, Wine laws and regulations, Wine judging