From Soave to Greystone: Enrico Manfron’s Exciting Journey into Discovering New Zealand Pinot Noir

Join us in welcoming Enrico Manfron to Greystone for the 2024 vintage, where he’s excited to work with New Zealand Pinot Noir for the first time. Originally from Zevio, near Verona in northern Italy, Enrico studied viticulture and oenology at the University of Verona and has worked vintages in both Italy and Portugal.

Now part of our international harvest team, Enrico is keen to explore new approaches to winemaking and gain experience with grape varieties outside his home region. With roots in Soave and a curiosity for diverse wine styles, he brings an Italian perspective to the season ahead.

Q&A with Enrico Manfron: From Italian Vineyards to Working with New Zealand Pinot Noir

Q: Where are you originally from, and where do you live now?
A: I’m living in a town near Verona, called Zevio, famous for the production of apples. I was born in Brescia but I always lived in the zone of Verona.

Q: What inspired you to pursue a career in the wine industry, and how long have you been working in this field?
A: Since I was a child I had a great interest in food world, thanks also to my family; growing up I continued to cultivate this passion adding also the study of wine. I graduated in July 2024 at the University of Viticulture and Oenology of Verona, I already took a part to three harvests during the period of the university and after in two different cellars. When I was 16 I also did a season of suckering during the summer.

Q: What’s your line of work back home?
A: At the moment I’m working in a winery where I do almost everything: the main occupation at the moment is the pruning of the vineyards but I also work in the cellar.

Q: How did you first learn about Greystone Wines?
A: The name of Greystone was suggested me by a person, Davide, who made the harvest few years ago at your winery. He told me very well about Greystone, not only as a place where great wines are produced, but also as a place where it’s nice to work, which is a very important thing for me.

Q: What excites you the most about this upcoming vintage?
A: The thing that excites me the most about the upcoming season is working with new people who comes from all over the world, seeing the production of new wines for me, like the Pinot Noir, and of course the fact of being in New Zealand.

Q: Have you visited New Zealand before, or have you explored other winemaking regions?
A: I’ve never been in New Zealand but I visited other wine region in Italy and Portugal.

Q: What do you enjoy most about vintage?
A: The most exciting part of the harvest is that every year is different with its proper peculiarities which can be find also in the wine.

Q: Was wine a part of your family life growing up? Did your parents drink it or let you try a sip?
A: Wine became a part of my family life as soon as I started the university, before that period in my family drinking wine wasn’t a common routine, my mother often uses all the wine for cooking dishes, like ragù.

Q: If you could choose one last wine to enjoy, what would it be (death row wine)?
A: If I had to choose a wine, I would say a good glass of Soave because is the wine of my zone of Verona and it is the first wine that I made.

Q: What future aspirations do you have – in or out of the wine world? 
A: At the moment I don’t know what I’ll do in the future, for the moment I want to do some harvest around the world and then come back to Italy or also stay in New Zealand, it will depend also on the job offer that I’ll get.