Adam and Anna
Anna: “I went to Australia in 2010 with the intention of being there six months. I got offered a full-time job as an assistant winemaker, so I decided to stay. Our winery wasn’t set up for processing our whites; we did it at a contract facility, which was Adam’s work, and I met Adam there.
“I always wanted to one day have my own brand. We came up with a concept while we were in Australia; it was a little side project. Each variety has its own native bird. That was one priority: to have a really distinctive label.
“We moved back to New Zealand in 2020.
“We were looking around Christchurch, and I stumbled upon Riverside Market. We approached them about putting in a cellar door. We did a pop-up in September 2020 that did really well, so we decided to give it a shot. My dad is a retired builder, and all the bar tops came off an oak tree that got cut down on my neighbour’s property growing up.
“I grew up between Christchurch and North Canterbury. I love the lifestyle here; I’m not a big-city girl. I’ve always been a runner. I run because I love it and plan adventures around it for the challenge. We love hiking and take our dog Pippin as well.
“Adam loves his golf….”
Adam: “I do like playing golf. If I’m managing my time well, I’ll play a couple of times a week.
“I went to Adelaide University. Anna went to Lincoln. Once I finally got into the industry and got a job with people who had some belief in me, I got more and more passionate about it.
“Winemaking is something we are very comfortable with. We are very much aligned with our winemaking styles. The name comes from us having fun making the wines. With a lot of pretentiousness around wine, we wanted to steer away from that. So we came up with ‘Mischief’ over a few wines whilst holidaying in Arrowtown.
“We’re just coming up to vintage. So, another year of making new wines. Between February and May, don’t try and book us in for anything. It’s just not gonna happen. At the end of that period, you wonder why you do it, but once you get into it, you look forward to it each year.
“I’ve only ever seen Christchurch after the earthquakes. Being part of the community at Riverside, we’ve watched the city rejuvenate. It’s a really vibrant place to be; there’s a strong heartbeat in the city.”