Our Team
Stephen White – Owner, Chief Winemaker
Graduating with a Diploma in Horticulture at Lincoln, University of Canterbury, Stephen then blasted off to sea on the Round The World Yacht Race in search of the meaning of life. He found it sitting under an olive tree in Tuscany, with a glass of red wine in hand…and so Stonyridge was conceived.
“…winegrowers who annually produce a painstakingly assembled Cabernet of extreme quality.”– Robin Bradley, Australian and New Zealand Wine Vintages
David Jackson – General Manager
David brings to Stonyridge a business mandate like no other. He comes highly qualified from the land of OZ with a Diploma in Business Management and leads the fabulous team at Stonyridge in their strive for perfection.His sense of humour is all his own!
Jo Woodward – Office Administration
Universally loved by all, Jo provides seamless and efficient office work and is normally the person behind the friendly telephone voice of Stonyridge…and she is beautiful.
Martin Pickering – Wine Production Manager
Martin started his career at Goldwater Estate back in 1992 and has worked on vintages in Pomerol, St Emilion & the Napa Valley. He returned to Waiheke in 2004 as winemaker of Mudbrick vineyard where he produced two trophies, twenty gold medals and dozens of other awards. He now heads up the winemaking team at Stonyridge and is a great friend to us all.
Ethan MacDonald – Winery Operations Manager
With vintages in New Zealand, Australia and Canada under his belt, Ethan stumbled into Stonyridge at Feista del Sol, woke up in the tasting lounge and hasn’t left since! His if you’re not working hard, you’re hardly working philosophy is a true inspiration.
Dayne Stagg - Vineyard Operations Manager
Dayne joined the Stonyridge team in 2008 with the enthusiasm to keep his hometown firmly on the global wine map. With experience in over ten vintages on Waiheke Island and a passion for organic viticulture, you are sure to find Dayne and the team working tirelessly in the vineyard to ensure greatness reaches every bottle of Stonyridge wine.
Roland Dale - Chef
Our summer menu was created by our chef Roland Dale . His sense for simple and fresh ingredients is the power of Stonyridge cuisine. Roland was born on Waiheke and has been part of the Stonyridge team since the tender age of 15. His efforts in the Stonyridge kitchen are much respected by us all and we are sure you will enjoy Roland's amazing creations.
Koji Kiminami – Chef
Koji has traveled extensively and developed a reputation for inspired cuisine from his time in the grotto with ‘Hef’ and BBQ’s on the back lawn with Paris.
Wanda Whitehead – Events/Functions Manager
Wanda joined Stonyridge during summer 2011. After falling madly in love with Stonyridge, and our cellar door manager Josh, Wanda now has taken on the role of Events Manager...and Josh! She is a dynamic addition to our team and can arramge your event or wedding seemlessly.
Katerina Vaskova - Restaurant Manager
Kate arrived on Waiheke all the way from the Czech Republic back in 2010. Kate began her Stonyridge experience in the summer of 2010 and was quickly promoted to Restaurant manager. Kate has many years in customer service and looks forward to welcoming you to Stonyridge.
Joshua Stalker - Cellar Door Manager
Josh came to Waiheke for holidays for 2 weeks and immediately got involved in the 2009 vintage. Being suitably impressed with Stonyridge wines Josh moved permanently to Waiheke 3 years ago. Josh is now the face of our cellar door and he has great passion and knowledge about wines...Josh is looking forward to meeting you at Stonyridge and showing you around.
Martin MacKenzie – Consultant
After 9 years as Stonyridge winemaker Martin now remains part of the team as consultant. Martin and Stephen have worked together for many years and are shamelessly obsessed with the goal of winemaking perfection.