THIRST: A Journey into Terroir (a work of creative non-fiction) & Tracing Place: A Study of the Literature of Land Reclaimed (critical thesis)

This thesis in Creative and Critical Writing comprises two parts. The creative work, Thirst: A Journey into Terroir, is a creative response to the concept of terroir, wine’s particular sense of place. Thirst expands the concept of terroir, and considers it as an expression of the poetics of place. A work of creative non-fiction, Thirst traces my route into wine beginning in Central Otago in the South Island of New Zealand to the viticultural and monastic traditions of Burgundy. Thirst considers place itself as a receptacle of knowledge within and beyond viticulture. The second part is a critical thesis considering the role of place in three contemporary works of creative non-fiction: The Hare with Amber Eyes: A Hidden Inheritance, The Trip to Echo Spring: On Writers and Drinking, and The Outrun. The thesis examines how the three writers trace their bearings within place through art, history and literature. Both parts of this thesis propose place itself as a receptacle of memory