Buck was also chairman of the board of the Hawke's Bay Opera House and the patron of Cranford Hospice.

[2] Since 1974, Buck and his wife Wendy have managed New Zealand's oldest winery, Te Mata Estate.

They live in the Coleraine Vineyard opposite the winery, have three sons who work at Te Mata — Jonathan, Nick and Tobias Buck — and six grandchildren.

He was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal in 1990, and appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services to the wine industry, in the 1995 Queen's Birthday Honours.

[2] In the 2013 New Year Honours, Buck was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the wine industry and the arts.