Wainui Beach, Gisborne, New Zealand At the end of last year I visited Gisborne, on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Pristine coastlines, outstanding local produce, delicious wine and the warmest of welcomes are to be found here. In the February/March issue of Gourmet Traveller WINE you can read about some of the […]
Photo: The original office of Gonzalez Byass founder Manuel Maria González Ángel In the 2019 April/May edition of GT Wine I wrote a few words about what to do next time you find yourself in Jerez, Spain or Nelson, New Zealand! Click here to have look: GT WINE Travel Log as a PDF OR here […]
For my first feature with Jetstar Inflight Magazine I take a look at where to find a tasty tipple and a delicious dish to snack on in one of my favourite places – Queenstown. Click here to see where I recommend. Happy Drinking!
Onetangi Beach, Waiheke Island. Published Halliday Magazine October/November 2018. Earlier this year I spent a long weekend on Waiheke Island in Auckland harbour, New Zealand. The weather was perfect, the beaches pristine and the wine pretty tasty! You can read about it in my next article for the October/November 2018 issue of Halliday Magazine here.
View over Waipara Valley, North Canterbury In this episode with Elizabeth Schneider at Wine for Normal People we discuss New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and in particular Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. After bursting onto the international scene and planting New Zealand near the top of the list of easy to understand and enjoyable Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough […]
In my first article for Gourmet Traveller WINE, I write about a recent trip to the North Canterbury wine region in New Zealand. I visited some wonderful producers and tasted a number of outstanding wines. If you’re tempted to visit the region check out the North Canterbury Wine Region website and in the meantime, have […]
Lunch at Black Estate, Waipara, North Canterbury. For this episode of Wine For Normal People, Elizabeth and I talk about my recent trip to North Canterbury. A short drive north of Christchurch, North Canterbury has something for everyone – fabulous wine, delicious local food including truffles, olives and honey, craft beer, bike trails, hiking trails, […]
Rippon Vineyard in Autumn. Image credit: Thirst Press. In this episode of Wine for Normal People I catch up with Elizabeth to chat about Central Otago – an area my family has spent many years in. Although Central Otago accounted for only 2% of total production in New Zealand for 2016, the wine from this region […]
The view from Bilancia‘s vineyard in Hawke’s Bay. My next episode with Elizabeth Schneider at Wine for Normal People moves to my home turf, New Zealand. We take a closer look at the Hawke’s Bay region, including the Gimblett Gravels region, the wines and the people. Some of the producers we chat about include: Alpha […]
Image credit: Mahana Estates “I want drinkers and winemakers to be shaken up, there are so many pathways that are undiscovered”. Michael Glover is taking us through a tasting of his latest releases from Mahana Estates and Mammoth Wines in Nelson, New Zealand. Here is a man who after years in the business is still clearly […]
Published Wine Times Hong Kong, 8 July 2016. Image credit: Craggy Range. Recently I attended a tasting of Craggy Range wines from Hawke’s Bay in New Zealand’s North Island. Chief Winemaker, Matt Stafford, led us through a selection of Pinot Noir from the Te Muna vineyard in Martinborough together with the Le Sol and Sophia wines from The […]
Published Wine Times Hong Kong, 21 December 2015. Chat with any winemaker and you are likely to find they have a barrel or two tucked away dedicated to that special project – a side project – representing their latest experiment and quite often, something rather special when it makes it to the glass. The notion of […]
(Image Credit: Seifried Estate) As part of the Watson’s Wine Grand Tasting Week a masterclass with seven key Pinot Noir producers was held at The Mira in Hong Kong. On offer was a selection of 12 wines covering the main Pinot Noir producing regions spanning from Central Otago in the South Island through to Martinborough […]
First published Wine Times Hong Kong August 2015 print edition. (Image credit: Harvesting Sauvignon Blanc for Greywacke Wild Sauvignon, Yarrum Vineyard, Marlborough. Photo: Kevin Judd.) Recent reports in the press suggest a shortage of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc may be imminent due to the comparatively small 2015 harvest and while quality has been assessed as very […]
Syrah vines at Stonecroft. Credit: Stonecroft. Wines Tasted Bilancia, Hawke’s Bay, La Collina Syrah, 2010 Stonecroft, Hawke’s Bay, Sereine Syrah, 2013 Te Whare Ra, Marlborough, Syrah, 2011 This is the final in my series of articles from our recent trip back to New Zealand and once again I find myself starting with “you may not […]
