Growers count cost as Cyclone Gabrielle buries New Zealand vineyards in silt

Deadly storm left wine regions of Hawkes Bay and Gisborne covered in mud just before harvest time

Some wine-growing regions in New Zealand’s North Island have been devastated by Cyclone Gabrielle, with vineyards there facing a long path to recovery after being buried by torrents of silt just before harvest time.

Wine drinkers face a long wait for their favourite bottle from the wine-growing regions of Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne after last month’s storm, which killed at least 11 people, and left Hawke’s Bay wine grower Philip Barber sheltering on the roof of his house with his wife and two small children.