Decanter double 
Two NZ wines received top honours in Decanter magazine's (US) annual World Wine Awards. Central Otago's Bald Hills Pinot Noir 2005 won the International Pinot Noir Over £10 Trophy and Nelson's Seifried Riesling Sweet Agnes 2006 the International Sweet Over £10 Trophy. Decanter's highly anticipated World Wine trophies are awarded to 25 international wines each year. 
(September 2007)

Not your average winery 
Americans can finally appreciate the work of artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser on home soil, with the opening of the Quixote Winery in California's Napa Valley. Owner Carl Doumani commissioned the eccentric Viennese-born artist to design the building after spotting his distinctive prints in a calendar. Work on the winery began in 1988 and took almost a decade. "People either love it or they think it's the nuttiest thing they've ever seen," says Doumani of Hundertwasser's design, which features a gold onion dome, trees growing out of the roof and no two windows alike. Born Friedrich Stowasser in 1928, Hundertwasser began exploring themes of ecology and personal freedom as a painter in the late 1940s. By the 1980s he was regarded as an influential artist and thinker, and began applying his revolutionary notions to the architectural form. He lived out his years in his adopted home of NZ, where he died in 2000 aged 71. The public toilets he designed in Kawakawa remain one of the country's leading tourist attractions for design enthusiasts. 
(11 February 2007)

Pedalling their wares 
NZ features in a New York Times guide to "less-pedalled wine regions to please the palates of cyclists." Writer Stefani Jackenthal recommends Marlborough, Hawke's Bay and Central Otago for their respective viticultural and scenic pleasures. Her picks for tour operators are Wine Tours By Bike (Marlborough), On Yer Bike Winery Tours (Hawke's Bay), and Trek Travel (Central Otago). 
(11 June 2006)

Kiwi wine takes US by storm 
An extensive article on NZ's burgeoning wine industry examines its history and development in an American context, interviewing US importers and connoisseurs of NZ wine as well as ex pat US vineyard owners such as Barbara and Patrick Stowe (Rimu Grove) and John Kemble and Karr Field (Kemblefield). "I still remember my first sip of NZ wine," says wine judge Paul White. "It smelled of kiwis, but when I tasted, it was this wild, spicy, herbaceous fruit salad with lettuce. It was this roller coaster experience. At the time, I had no idea that NZ even made wine." Now, as wine importer Howard Kalmer points out, "every top restaurant from New York to San Francisco has NZ on their wine list." NZ wine exports have grown from just 15,000 cases in 1995 to 1.5 million cases of wine per annum. 
(15 February 2006)

Pinot lovers unite 
Wellington is to host its third Pinot Noir festival from January 31 to February 3 2007. 500 of the world's leading Pinot Noir experts, producers and enthusiasts have been invited to the prestigious tri-annual event, which was founded in 2001 to showcase the depth and quality of what is now officially NZ's most widely planted grape variety. Confirmed speakers and panellists for Pinot Noir 2007 include top French wine writer Michel Bettane and leading UK wine lecturer and judge Matthew Jukes. "Pinot Noir 2007 has some serious aims," says board chairman Steve Smith. "We want to promote NZ's super and ultra premium wines to the world, focusing on the uniqueness of our wines and the special contribution they make. But we also want to have 500 of the world's key wine media, trade, connoisseur wine lovers and winemakers join us for a celebration of NZ Pinot Noir and give them an experience like they have never seen."
(9 December 2005)

Southern wine hub
A new development in the South Island’s Hurunui region hopes to provide a focus for the area’s flourishing wine industry. The Waipara Wine Village will eventually comprise a hotel, villas, wine bar, ale house and a food and wine school.
(29 May 2005)
   

New world vanguard
NZ doubled its gold medal count from 2004 at this year’s International Wine Challenge in London, picking up an impressive 15. The gold increase was almost entirely due to red wines, showing that the world has finally looked beyond Kiwi Sauvignon Blanc (great as it is). According to Wine International magazine, NZ was the only nation to receive medals for more than half (56%) of its red wines entered. As if the gold medals weren’t enough, NZ also won the International Pinot Noir trophy for St Clair Doctors Creek Marlborough Pinot Noir 2003 and the International Sauvignon Blanc trophy for Sileni Estates Cellar Selection Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2004.
(26 September 2005)
  

A toast to Martinborough
Toast Martinborough features in a Guardian overview of the world’s greatest wine festivals. “Martinborough is one of the few 'old world' wine villages in the southern hemisphere and home to much- lauded pinot noir and sauvignon blanc. Its population swells tenfold in November, when visitors glide, and later stagger, between neighbouring vineyards, high on a diet of rare older vintages matched with food devised by chefs from Wellington's finest eateries.”
(27 February 2005)
  

Wine boom continues
NZ wine producers are going for quantity as well as quality, with 2004 officially the largest vintage on record. At 166,000 tons, the national harvest was 40% higher than the previous high of 118,700 tons in 2002. Reflecting its status as the country’s best-known and best-selling varietal, Sauvignon Blanc made up 42% of the overall vintage.
(29 June 2004)
   

Best of the summer wine
The NZ wine industry is set to benefit from the country’s Rings-inspired tourist influx this year, with two major travel features in the Chicago Tribune and Boston Globe. The former relates an American journalist’s experience at the 2003 BMW Wine Marlborough Festival, where “the array of wineries and wine-related exhibitors evoked, somehow, the personality of NZ itself - adventurous but calm, clever but modest, a friend of nature, a strong advocate of peace and conservancy. Names of a few wineries hinted at love of land: Sacred Hill, Shingle Peak, Grove Mill, Sanctuary, Omaka Springs, Clifford Bay, Lawson's Dry Hills, Montana..” The Globe article directs wine enthusiasts to the Marlborough event (14 Feb), as well as the Waiheke Wine Festival (Jan 31 – Feb 1) and Harvest Hawke’s Bay (Feb 6 – 8).
(11 January 2004)
    

I see red, I see red, I see red
According to leading wine magazine, Decanter, “red wines in NZ are undergoing a revolution that promises to be as dramatic as the discovery that Marlborough could produce world-class Sauvignon Blanc.” The December issue included 10 Kiwi drops in its top 50 New World reds for 2003; 2001 Terravin J. Cabernet-Merlot-Malbec, 2001 Esk Valley Reserve Merlot-Malbec, 2001 Kingsley Estate Syrah, 2001 Craggy Range Sol Syrah, 2002 Te Mata Woodthorpe Syrah-Viognier, 2001 Villa Maria Reserve Merlot, 2001 Herzog Montepulciano, 2002 Akarua Pinot Noir, 2002 Two Paddocks ‘The Last Chance’ Pinot Noir, 2001 Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir.
(December 2003)

NZ: Wine Enthusiast 'Region of the Year'
American-based Wine Enthusiast Magazine named NZ "Region of the Year" at their prestigious Wine Awards for 2002. Said judges of our viticultural edge; "When examining the NZ wine industry, broader themes emerge, encompassing such important concepts as innovation, consistency, diversity and value. In 2002, no other region of the world offered as much in all of these areas as NZ. [...] New Zealand is a paradigm for other wine regions to emulate."
(13 April 2003)
   

A w(h)ine by any other name…
In a blow to New World wine producers - NZ included - the European Commission is seeking to place further limits on wine label terminology. "Champagne" and "port" are already off limits, now the Commission hopes to extend its "geographical protection" to standard terms such as "vintage" and "reserve." As one trade analyst notes the move is colonial hubris: "The global language of food and wine is European because Europeans took the language and their food and wine with them when they settled all over the world […] It's a bit rich for them to claim rights over terms which have become generic."
(4 September 2002)
       

One to watch
Special mention is given in Malcolm Gluck's wine column to the "spectacular" Wither Hills 2002 Sauvignon Blanc: "a beguiling sauvignon blanc of mouthwatering scrumptiousness." The 2000 vintage was NZ's most awarded sauvignon ever - could 2002 go the same way?
(14 September 2002)

Xmas cheer
Montana Wines, New Zealand's largest winery, have swallowed Corban's, creating a company that will produce 55% of New Zealand wine.
(7 December 2000) 
                    

Sauvignon savvy
Stoneleigh Vineyards' '99 Sauvignon Blanc: "this wine manages to have lots of tropical fruits in the nose, while maintaining the dry, herbaceous character that the grape is known for."
(22 November 2000)
                

Perfect Pinot  
An ever-increasing variety of New Zealand wines are being enjoyed and celebrated throughout the world. Al Bassano recommends our Pinot Noir.
(3 October 2000)

Giesen Estate best white of the show at prestigous US Awards
Giesen Wine Estate Double Gold 1999 Sauvignon Blanc, from Marlborough, has won best white of the show at America’s most important wine-judging event, the San Francisco International Wine Judging Competition. With 2,800 wines from around the world entered, it was largest competition yet.
(30 June 2000)

The fickle grape 
NZ actor Sam Neill talks Pinot Noir in a Time magazine profile. The star of Jurassic Park and The Piano established his Two Paddocks vineyard, which solely produces Pinot Noir, in Central Otago in 1993. "Pinot Noir is not one of those grunty, stand-a-spoon-up-in-it wines. It's fickle and voluptuous and complex," says Neill. "People say there's a lot of wine in the world, but there's not a lot of Pinot Noir, and admirers are looking for regional differences." A notoriously difficult grape to grow, the most prized Pinot Noir traditionally comes from Burgundy's 30-mile stretch of Côte d'Or. Central Otago Pinot Noir is gradually building a global reputation alongside those from similarly cool and rocky regions in Australia, the US and South America.
(13 September 2007)

Taking issue with food miles 
A UK Times eco-columnist's suggestion to reduce food miles by drinking French rather than NZ wine has stimulated a response by NZ winemakers and politicians. She argued that transporting wines from France results in fewer greenhouse gas emissions because of its closer proximity to the UK. "Our basic concern with the food-miles issue is that it is looking at only one aspect of the energy budget for production, marketing and sales of a product," says NZ Winegrowers CEO Philip Gregan. "Focusing just on transport, as food miles does, is not the way forward." Many NZ winemakers are involved in a sustainable agriculture initiative designed to reduce the environmental impact of their industry. Dave Pearce, winemaker for Marlborough's carbon neutral Grove Mill vineyard, argues that the NZ practice of shipping wine to the UK by boat produces less carbon emissions than "trucking a container of wine from Italy to London, and half the amount I would generate if I fly to London to do a presentation [on global warming]." 
(19 June 2007)

Air New Zealand's wines fly high
Air New Zealand's premium on board wine selection has been recognised as one of the best in the world. UK Business Traveller magazine named Air New Zealand the winner of three awards in its annual Cellars in the Sky competition, the most awarded to any one airline in this year's competition. The airline was awarded "Best Business Class Cellar" and "Most Original Business Class Cellar" and received "Best Business Class Red" for the Escarpment Martinborough Pinot Noir 2004. Other New Zealand wines that featured in the airline's cellar were the Konrad Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2005 and the Cottage Block Marlborough Noble Riesling 2002. Air New Zealand Group General Manager International Airline Ed Sims said that 35 airlines has taken part in Cellars in the Sky, the most since the competition began in 1985. "This is the first time Air New Zealand has won the two overall Business Class awards and the second year running that we've won the Business Class Red award. This international recognition is fantastic and reinforces what we and our customers knew all along - that New Zealand wines really are show-stoppers."
(15 February 2007)

Right royal exposure 
The Queen's official 80th birthday was marked in suitably sumptuous fashion, with a 4-course lunch at Mansion House for more than 350 guests. The four British chefs charged with overseeing the dinner won the honour after competing on hit BBC reality TV show, Great British Menu. Te Mata Estate's Woodthorpe Chardonnay 2004 was chosen to accompany two of the four courses: the starter of smoked salmon with blinis, woodland sorrel and wild cress, and the fish course of pan-fried turbot with cockles and oxtail. Guests sipping John Buck's Hawke's Bay wine included Prince Charles, Princes William and Harry, Prime Minister Tony Blair, and the Lord Mayor of London. 
(14 June 2006)

Heaven scent
NZ’s 2004 Sauvignon Blanc vintage has impressed American critics, with praise coming from numerous top U.S publications. Wall Street Journal: “Mouth-watering sauvignon blanc that just about [leaps] from the glass, with aggressive green-pepper smells, juicy tastes of lime and passion fruit, and clean, endless finishes.” Boston Globe: “The hallmark of Marlborough sauvignon blanc is citric and mineral flavors balanced by crisp, penetrating acidity. They have an appealing, almost electrifying zing.” Knight Ridder Tribune (Chicago): “Rooted so deeply to its location, a well-made wine can and does reflect its vineyard, its appellation, its country of origin and even its hemisphere. Just sip a sauvignon blanc from NZ if you don't believe me. At best, it is like first love: Surprising, breathtaking and unforgettable.”
(13 April 2005)
    

Man-made marvel
Peregrine Winery in Gibbston Valley, Central Otago, was one of five winners of the world’s biggest and best architectural award – the Architectural Review's ar+d Emerging Architecture prize - for 2004. The London-based award was inaugurated in 1999 and offers ₤10,000 in prize-money. The stunning winery was designed by Wellington firm Architecture Workshop. Architectural Review: The huge, calm gently curving silvery canopy floating over the massive base, all set among the orderly vineyards, makes an irresistible and poetic vision of civilization amid wild nature, and the jury was unanimously convinced by it.
(December 2004)

Top 40 hit
Cairnbrae ‘The Stones’ Sauvignon Blanc 2003 made Decanter’s list of top 40 wines under ₤10, following a rigorous blind tasting of more than 2,000 offerings. Observer critic Tim Atkin describes the silver medal winner as “lemon, sherbet; pungent and clean.”
(12 September 2004)

    

New World charm
The international reputation of NZ Pinot Noir continues to grow, with glowing features in both the Bradenton Herald and San Francisco Chronicle. The former article praises the grape’s “dark, earthy Burgundian profile with a little more consistency, a little more ripeness.” Burgundy expert Clive Coates agrees: “In the enologically short period of 20 years, an infatuated Pinot Noir has planted a big wet one on the lips of NZ,” he writes in the Chronicle. “If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Burgundy should feel pretty good about NZ's efforts to capture the aromatic, alluring, elegant, mercurial personality of red Burgundy in its Pinot Noirs. The wines aren't Burgundies, but they're pretty darn close.”
(25 October 2004)
    

New World edges in
Kim Crawford’s 2003 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc took top honours at the Sélections Mondiales des Vins in Montreal, winning the Grande Médaille d’or (grand gold) in its category as well as the Prix du Jury décernés par pays (best NZ wine in competition). “It’s certainly a feather in our cap to have the quality of our Sauvignon Blanc recognised in Montreal, the largest city of the province of Quebec, with its rich Francophone culture, conservative tastes and entrenched reverence for French wines, including Sauvignon,” said Kim Crawford Marketing Director, Erica Crawford, in Scoop. Gold medals went to the 2003 Stoneleigh Sauvignon Blanc, 2002 Coopers Creek Swamp Reserve Chardonnay, and 2003 Waipara Hills Botrytis Riesling, and silver to Brancott’s 2002 Reserve Pinot Noir.
(25 June 2004)
   

Mecca found in  Martinborough
“New Zealand, known for its crisp sauvignon blancs, may well become a mecca for pinot noir aficionados.” Boston Herald identifies Martinborough as the prime source for pinot production, in particular the dry river bed called the Martinborough Terrace.
(7 September 2003)
    

Charting the edge
Sydney's Sun-Herald publishes its 2003 top-10 lists for global rovers with Aotearoa again destination du jour. The chart toppers - Wine: Marlborough ("with its combination of bush, mountains and coastline ... Cloudy Bay, Cairnrae and Allan Scott are names to check out"); Animals: Taiaroa Head's Royal Albatross Centre ("the world's only mainland breeding colony for these impressive seabirds ... the concorde of the skies" above); Gourmet: Gourmet Garden Tours ("crispy pan-fried baby salmon served with stir-fried kumara threads in the Panorama Room of the Hermitage Hotel"); Walks: Fiordland's Hollyford Track; Snow: Tasman Glacier; Adrenaline: Fly by Wire in Queenstown ("the world's fastest controlled ride" in "the crucible for New Zealand's adventure sport industry") and Auckland makes the Music chart along with New Orleans, London and Memphis ("enough to entice Neil Finn home ... the core of a South Pacific groove")
(27 July 2003)
      

Two good
Four NZ whites won double gold medals at the San Francisco International Wine Competition - widely regarded as America's premiere wine judging event. Babich Wines 2002 Sauvignon Blanc, Kim Crawford 2002 Sauvignon Blanc, Mt Difficulty 2003 Sauvignon Blanc, and Seifried Estate 2001 Barrique Fermented Chardonnay were each awarded a double gold medal - which indicates a unanimous pronouncement of gold by the judges.
(3 July 2003)
 

Bay alchemy: red to gold
Sacred Hill Wines earned a gold medal for their Helmsman Cabernet Merlot 2000 at the renowned London International Wine Challenge. Chief winemaker Tony Bish sees the award as proof that "Hawke's Bay, indeed NZ, continues to produce outstanding red wines that can hold their own against some of the more traditional red wine producing countries." And - in a clear case of taking wine appreciation to new levels - a group of Kiwi climbers braved hazardous weather conditions to carry a bottle of the award-winning drop to the summit of Mt Cook, to honour both the winery and Ed Hillary's Everest conquest. 
(22 May 2003)
     

Get thee to a nunnery
Detroit Free Press recommends Marlborough's Old Saint Mary's Convent in a feature on romantic getaways "off the beaten track." "Lavender, vineyards and olive groves surround the property, and there's a pond you can putter in with a rowboat." The picturesque locale has an added appeal for "gourmand travellers," with the renowned Allan Scott vineyard and restaurant just across the street.
(9 February 2003)
     

Bottoms up
Deutz Marlborough Cuvee beat Bollinger, Moet & Chandon, and Veuve Cliquot in a blind-tasting by seven British bubbly experts. Which? magazine organised the test, asking local supermarkets and high-end liquor stores to submit the best of their respective bunches. The grand winner? Tesco's own-brand champagne, at just £12.99 a bottle.
(5 December 2002)
    

Nation of giant-killers
American wine guru, Michael Franz, has made a wager that the NZ wine industry ("well organized, unusually cooperative, and marked by a spirit of openness and innovation") will be producing the best wines outside Europe 20 years from now. “Despite a small population and a relatively limited land mass, NZ has the right kind of people and geography to act as a giant-killer when it comes to wine.” 
(5 November 2002)
       

The sweet taste of success
NZ wines raked in the medals at the 2002 London International Wine Challenge. The respected annual competition is the world's largest blind-tasting session, with thousands of wines judged alongside each other regardless of price or brand. Gold medal winners were Villa Maria's Reserve Clifford Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2001 and Reserve Chardonnay 2001, Gibbston Valley Reserve Pinot Noir 2001, Stoneleigh Rapaura Series Pinot Noir 2000, and Mount Riley Seventeen Valley Pinot Noir 2000. Deutz Marlborough Cuvee won the Great Value Sparkling Wine of the Year award for 2002.
(5 September 2002)
      

Values party - BYO
Don’t miss Marlborough’s “tangy, medium-bodied, cranberry-dried” Saint Clair 2000 Doctor’s Creek Pinot Noir.  “Perfect with poultry or perhaps salmon, it epitomizes the remarkable values coming out of New Zealand”.
(19 January 2002)
        

NZ wine's quantum leap
In the 21st century, on-the-edge New Zealand towers on the global wine map with what is acknowledged as some of the world's best sauvignon blanc (pinot noir is on the way). Europeans sit stunned by the quality of the wines.
(10 November 2001)
              

The real McKiwi
How can you tell New Zealand wine has really arrived? The French start labelling their products "Kiwi Cuvee".
(28 July 2001)
 

Sip worthy
Villa Maria Private Bin Riesling 2000 has "a delicious certainty of fruit".
(23 June 2001)
                  

Another shade of white
Bridget Jones not withstanding, the reign of Chardonnay is over - Sauvignon Blanc is the white of the moment, and Marlborough's "peppery, citrus driven" offerings have set the contemporary standard.
(1 July 2001)
            

Pinot edge
New Zealand "can and will" challenge the Cote d'Or for first place in the Pinot Noir stakes, with wineries like Felton Road, Ata Rangi and Palliser Estate producing complex, top-line drinking.
(13 May 2001) 
 

Vine delights
Check out "petroleum-charged, aromatic, oily" Villa Maria Reserve Riesling.
(7 April 2001)
           

Golden drop standard 
New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the USA are on the way to mutual acceptance of differing wine standards, making market access easier for everyone.
(10 April 2001)
           

Sauvignon summer
"Stick with sauvignon blanc. The good ones are so much better, for the price (Cloudy Bay, perhaps the best in the world–certainly the most striking–goes for less than a so-so California chardonnay), than other summer staples that there’s really no point in drinking anything else."
(30 January 2001)
                     

 

New Zealand wines meet the challenge 
Hong Kong: Kiwi wines dominate in the South China Morning Post's Kevin Sinclair's answer to the challenge of how to build the perfect home wine collection from scratch.
(17 May 2000)

Quality not quantity for NZ wines this year
Fickle Summer weather and cold autumn southerly winds have made it likely that New Zealand will produce a disappointingly small crop of sauvingon blanc grapes this year ... the plus side is that the small vintage could produce the best-quality sauvingnon blanc wines since the 1991 vintage that won world-wide acclaim.
(28 April 2000)
           

Superplonk
Is Cloudy Bay the new Champagne? "An utterly gob-smackingly gorgeous bubbly ... Track down the 1995 vintage of Pelorus, from the Cloudy Bay bunch in New Zealand. A massive advance ... this is one of the most richly elegant sparkling wines on the planet. The pastry-edged fruit is outstanding, and has to be compared with absurdities such as Krug which cost five or six times as much."
(12 August 2000)
                    

Fine wineries, better views. John Westbrooke visits a gourmet hotspot
Martinborough used to be a sunny, sommolent village serving the farmers on the Wairarapa River Valley. It's still a village, but it's also the latest hot spot for the New Zealand wine industry.
(15 April 2000)
           

Great whites 
US sommelier Jim Clarke explores the exciting developments in NZ white aromatic wines in an article for the San Francisco Chronicle. NZ's cool climate is proving ideal for growing the grapes made famous by France's Alsace region. Plantings of Riesling and Gewurztraminer in NZ have tripled in the past 10 years, and Pinot Gris plantings are more than 16 times what they were in 1998. "Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is a craze, and eventually, people are going to get tired of it," says Gregg Phillips, a buyer for the Southern Hemisphere Wine Centre in Huntington Beach, California. "I think Pinot Gris will be their next cash cow." Seresin Estate winemaker Clive Dougall agrees. "Of all the Alsatian varieties, New Zealand Pinot Gris has the potential to make the greatest impact on the world scene."
(2 November 2007)

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Champion red 
Central Otago vineyard Bald Hills has continued its remarkable winning streak with three more major international awards for its 2005 Pinot Noir. The wine beat 4,760 other entries to take the Champion Red award at the International Wine Challenge (IWC), the world's largest and most prestigious blind tasting. In addition, it won the IWC's inaugural Planet Earth Sustainability Trophy, in recognition of its producers' sound environmental practices. The Bald Hills Pinot Noir 2005 also won a Silver Medal and Best in Class award at the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC) in London. NZ wines won a further 7 gold, 90 silver and 123 bronze medals at the event, as well as taking out the top pinot noir and sauvignon blanc trophies with the Villa Maria Cellar Selection Marlborough Pinot Noir 2005 and Vavasour Sauvignon Blanc 2006. Bald Hills was established by Blair and Estelle Hunt in 1997, when the couple were both in their late fifties. According to a CNN profile on the pair, "The [IWC] judges called their 2005 pinot noir well integrated, harmonious and impeccably balanced. The same might be said about them." 
(4 October 2007)

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Another red destined for greatness 
Observer wine critic Tim Atkins calls Hawke's Bay Syrah "one of the most exciting wine styles I've tasted in the past five years." The red varietal makes up just 3% of the region's vineyards, which are dominated by Chardonnay, Cabernet and Merlot. "There may only be 1,500 acres of Syrah in New Zealand, compared with nearly 10,000 of Pinot Noir, but in my view the two varieties have equal potential for greatness," writes Atkins. His pick of the Hawke's Bay Syrah available in Britain is the 2005 Te Mata Bullnose: "a cellar-worthy red ... you'll never regret buying." The 2004 Te Awa, 2004 Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels and 2005 Villa Maria Cellar Selection also come highly recommended. 
(25 February 2007)

Premium export 
An ABC Radio report on Wellington's Pinot Noir festival credits the grape's - and NZ wine in general's - explosion in popularity in the US to the success of 2004 indie film, Sideways. "We had $500 million [in overall wine sales to the US] last year," says interviewee Phil Goff, Minister for Trade. "This year it may be $700 million in exports and we'll probably pass the $1 billion mark in exports by 2010, just three years away." The Pinot Noir festival is an international symposium held annually in Wellington which attracts an array of industry insiders and wine aficionados from all over the world. 
(3 February 2007)

Life after savvy 
A Massachusetts newspaper feature on NZ wine covers the country's world famous sauvignon blanc, increasingly renowned pinot noir and the cool climate whites now waiting for their turn in the spotlight. The author talks to winemakers from both ends of the production spectrum: industry heavyweight and "screwcap revolutionary" Kim Crawford and acclaimed boutique producer Kathy Lynskey. "If New Zealanders aren't quite the good-time, good-value blokes or such big producers as the Aussies, they are self-reliant, inventive and egalitarian, which gives their young industry a bit of green-clean purity, experimentation and pluck." 
(27 December 2006)

Bumper crop 
Kiwi wine exports hit a record high of half a billion dollars this year, according the New Zealand Winegrowers annual report. Pinot noir sales increased 55% to overtake chardonnay as NZ's second most exported varietal, after perennial favourite sauvignon blanc. "The record 2006 harvest will give us wine volumes to consolidate our presence in new markets and continue supply of our top three markets including the UK, USA and Australia," said Winegrowers chairman Brian Vieceli. The continued success of NZ wine is all the more remarkable given the current slump in global sales. 
(21 August 2006)

Knock off drink par excellence
Charlotte Observer wine critic, restaurant owner Catherine Rabb, gives US readers the low down on NZ Sauvignon Blanc. "Restaurant work is a hot, sweaty business. At the end of a long night, my favorite wine is a glass of NZ sauvignon blanc," she writes. "Crisp and racy, the wine is as refreshing as diving into a cold pool." Rabb's picks include offerings from Cloudy Bay, Brancott, Villa Maria, Kim Crawford, Nobilo and Craggy Range. 
(23 May 2006)

Post praise NZ wine
Washington Post writer notes the timely rise of NZ wine, which is strong in today's most in-demand varietals. "[NZ] is the emerging star for wines that live on delicacy and finesse, most notably, pinot noir and sauvignon blanc … NZ has a gift second only to Burgundy for delicately lacy and aromatic pinots. With sauvignon blanc, NZ delivers a racy, fresh herb and citrus white wine that compares well with French Pouilly-Fume from the Loire Valley, but with more overt freshness and fruit." The critics picks: Villa Maria Pinot Noir Marlborough Private Bin 2004, Saint Clair Pinot Noir Marlborough Vicar's Choice 2004, The Crossings Pinot Noir Marlborough 2004, Saint Clair Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Vicar's Choice 2005, Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2005 and Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Regional Collection 2005.
(25 January 2006)

Hot stuff
LA Times asks local restaurants which “obscure and esoteric wines have become sudden hits” on their wine-lists. Eric Espuny, sommelier at Patina, names the 2003 Brancott Gewürztraminer ‘Patutahi Estate’ as the hottest bottle on his.
(31 August 2005)

  

Wine rewritten
Leading Sancerre vintner Henri Bourgeois decamps to Marlborough to be part of the "the one new world country that has taken a classic French grape variety and rewritten the wine script".
(8 April 2001)
             

Unheralded Edge
"To connoisseurs for whom the thrill of discovering an unheralded wine is almost as much fun as drinking it, educator John Sheldon's advice is straightforward: 'Move to the cutting edge'." 
(29 January 2001)
                 

The Kiwi behind the Cork and Bottle
New World wines - wines from South America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand are making a big impact on Londoners’ palates and their pockets. "The advent of New World wines has made a big difference to what people are prepared to spend," says Don Hewitson, a New Zealander who runs one of London's best-known bars, the Cork and Bottle."
(02 September 2000)

Two Paddocks enters 
Asian market Actor Sam Neill has been busy promoting his Two Paddocks vineyard in Hong Kong, but has dismissed any suggestion of a major expansion into China. "We're a boutique winery. I think if we started expanding into China we'd be swallowed up in a minute," he said in the Washington Post. Instead Neill's range of premium wines will be sold exclusively through an organic food store in central Hong Kong. Two Paddocks is located in Central Otago and produces just 3000 cases of wine a year. 
(31 January 2007)

Medal worthy drops 
NZ producers picked up a swathe of trophies at the 2006 Decanter World Wine Awards this month. The medal haul included 86 bronze, 36 silver and one gold medal, for the 2005 Sacred Hill Sauvignon Blanc. Special awards went to the Bridge PA Vineyard Louis Syrah 2004 (Regional NZ Rhone over £10), Cairnbrae Wild South Sauvignon Blanc 2005 (International Sauvignon Blanc under £10), Grove Mill Riesling 2004 (International Riesling under £10), Morton Estate Coriglio 2002 (International Chardonnay over £10) and Wild Rock 'Cupid's Arrow' Pinot Noir 2005 (Regional Pinot Noir under £10). The highly respected London based awards are run by Decanter wine magazine.
(5 September 2006)

Power shift in world wine community 
The EU is instructing struggling European winemakers to follow the example of their increasingly successful New World counterparts in NZ, Australia, and America. The "wine lake" situation in Europe has now reached crisis point, with one in six bottles being converted to fuel or industrial disinfectant because it cannot be sold. The EU, led by agriculture chief Mariann Fischer Boel, has pointed to New World producers' modern production techniques and simple, user-friendly labels as the main factors behind their success. "Exports of our main competitors have exploded. We are producing too much wine for which there is no market," she says. 
(23 June 2006)

Liquid gold 
One of NZ's most respected wineries, Waiheke Island's Goldwater Estate, has been sold to the NZ Wine Fund for $10 million. The Wine Fund, which also purchased Marlborough's Vavasour Wines in 2003, is predicting combined sales this year of $12-15 million from around 200,000 cases of wine. Goldwater Estate was founded by Kim and Jeanette Goldwater in 1982, the first winery to be established on Waiheke Island. It currently holds the record for the most expensive bottle of NZ wine ever to be sold, after a 6 litre bottle of its sauvignon blanc fetched $13,680 at an auction in Houston last year. The Goldwaters have retained a seat on the board and a 20% share holding.
(30 March 2006)

Savvy marketing 
Monkey Bay is officially the number one selling NZ Sauvignon Blanc in America. Released two years ago, Monkey Bay is an affiliate of the Nobilo Wine Group. Senior winemaker Alistair McIntosh cites a number of factors in the wine's success; high quality grapes, a good price point, and top notch marketing courtesy of the eye catching brand label. "We are delighted with Monkey Bay's success," he says. "In fact, we are struggling to keep up with demand." 
(17 May 2006)

Cloudy Bay cred
The burgeoning NZ wine industry gets an extensive survey in The Drinks Business magazine (UK). Author Penny Boothman cites several factors behind NZ’s success on the international market, including the ongoing Cloudy Bay effect. “The icon of Cloudy Bay put NZ Sauvignon on the map … A lot of consumers who are willing to spend more than ₤6 on a bottle of wine probably would know what Cloudy Bay was, but they might not be able to name a ₤20 wine from Australia or the US.” The NZ industry is also helped by its size: small “boutique” businesses present a more focused and unified front than the complex image a country the size of Australia has to get across. Paul Stratford, MD of Stratfords Wine Agencies: “In all areas whether it be for a retailer or a restaurant, I think NZ certainly adds credibility and image to the whole range.”
(3 August 2005)
  

Trail-blazing twosome
LA Times feature charts the rise of NZ Sauvignon Blanc, courtesy of forward-thinking brothers Bill and Ross Spence who first planted the grape – against conventional wisdom - in the early 1970s. Their vineyard, Matua Valley, is now one of the most consistent and respected in NZ. “[Bill Spence] continues to take comfort — and pride — in knowing that he and his brother were first and that if they had not blazed the Sauvignon Blanc trail, there may have been no Cloudy Bay.”
(25 May 2005)
   

Pinot Noir’s Paradox
“No other wine conjures up poetic descriptions like pinot noir; no other wine forges as direct a path to the soul. If a wine could make a person cry, it would have to be a pinot noir. A wine like this is bound to have a pretty big mystique, and pinot noir wears its like a rap star wears gold. It's a femme fatale. It's a temperamental artist. It's very sensitive.” So rhapsodizes the New York Times wine panel after a tasting of pinots from the central coast of California and South island of New Zealand. Their top wine was the 2001 Peregrine from Central Otago (also their best value).
(16 February 2005)

Wine double feature
A Malaysian Star story on the NZ wine industry takes as its focus the award winning Villa Maria winery. According to the writer, NZ “has developed a unique niche on the world wine stage, with wines characterised by an intensity in flavour that’s directly related to climatic conditions.” The Richmond Times-Dispatch featured a broader overview of the “wacky and fascinating” world of NZ wine. Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc are recognised as the strongest varietals, with Allan Scott, Cloudy Bay, Giesen, Goldwater, Grove Mill, Isabel, Matua Valley, Nobilo, Omaka Springs, Te Mata and Villa Maria named the vineyards to watch.
(17 December 2004)
   

Top spot
Martinborough Hotel features on the Observer’s list of top retreats for wine lovers. “If you're looking for a nice drop of Kiwi class, character and convenience, this is just the job … The bistro serves excellent food alongside a superb list of local wines, including the region's highly acclaimed Pinot Noirs. It's also smack in the middle of Martinborough Village, from which the vineyards are just a stroll away.”
(5 September 2004)
    

Crisp, stunning humdingers
The Scotsman urged readers to sample NZ’s “crisp, green apple and gooseberry-steeped sauvignons” and “stunning, cold-climate reds” at The New Zealand Wine Fair in Edinburgh. In a separate tasting section, Drylands Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was given a glowing review: “[An] absolute humdinger. The minerally acidic zip up the middle is electrifying. Shellfish of any hue will die in its arms.”
(21 October 2004)
   

You say shiraz, I say syrah
The Age praises NZ syrah - not to be confused with Australian shiraz. "Like the name itself, Kiwi syrah - see-rahhh - has a wistful quality to it. Delicately perfumed, intensely rich in colour, it is generally much finer and lighter in structure than the warm, ripe Aussie shiraz we are used to." Recommended are Craggy Range 2001 Le Sol Syrah and 2001 Block 14 Syrah, and Te Mata 2002 Bullnose Syrah and 2002 Woodthorpe Syrah-Viognier.
(24 February 2004)
   

Matchmaker
Scotsman sommelier, Rose Murray Brown, sheds light on the delicate task of food and wine matching. Not one to be bound by the traditional “white with fish, red with meat” mentality, Murray Brown recommends Kim Crawford Unoaked Marlborough Chardonnay for roast chicken and Montana Barrique Matured Reserve Pinot Noir 2000 for salmon.
(1-3 November 2003)

Cloudy Bay's silver lining
Japan's Daily Yomiuri tracks the stellar career of NZ's best known vineyard - Cloudy Bay - in a feature on summery Sauvignons. "NZ zapped into the spotlight in 1985 with Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. The wine was in your face and up your nose with aromas of gooseberries, jalapeno peppers, green peas and asparagus. Was it a salad or a wine? Cloudy Bay's creative winemaking and skilful marketing thrust the wine into worldwide cult status." The 2002 model is described as "subtler," but still an example of "beautifully handled winemaking." Marlborough's 2002 West Brook Sauvignon Blanc also gets a favourable mention.
(19 July 2003) 

Scotsman sees red
Scotsman feature 'Best of the Summer Wine' adds some body to their list with the 1999 Palliser Pinot Noir. Wine critic Rose Murray Brown: "One of New Zealand's best attempts at this grape so far. Really stylish stuff […] My favourite Kiwi red to date."
(21 June 2003)
   

Kiwi wine puts a cork in critics
"The idea that screw-caps are not socially acceptable is absolute nonsense. People should go by their senses, palate, and nose." The trend-setting move by NZ winemakers in favour of screw-caps over corks is applauded by Guardian wine critic, Malcolm Gluck. His opinion was backed up by the tasting panel for Britain's Consumer Association, who judged Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough as the best screw-capped variety on offer. 
(5 June 2003)
   

A toast to the "new classics"
British wine writer, John Hunter, educates his readers in the (remarkably brief) history of NZ wine. Urging them to cast aside any lingering associations with Australia - "it's a darn sight closer to Antarctica" - Hunter recommends Kiwi Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling, and predicts a bright future for our Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris. His personal pick is the 2002 Awatere Sauvignon Blanc: "a beautifully-crafted wine and a classic of its type."
(18 May 2003)
   

A savvy critic
"New Zealand wines have zest." So proclaims Michael Apstein, wine writer for The Boston Globe. His picks of the sauvignon-blanc bunch include Mount Riley (Marlborough, 2002), Thornbury (Marlborough, 2002) and Craggy Range (Martinborough, 2002).
(27 February 2003)
    

Change of pace
BBC series on ex-pat Brits profiles Jake Barnett, a London banker turned Christchurch viticulture student. Barnett has nothing but praise for the NZ wine industry, not to mention his adopted homeland. "The nearest we get to noise pollution is when all the lawnmowers start to drone gently on a Saturday morning […] With the Southern Alps an hours' drive away and some of the best Sauvignon Blanc in the world just up the coast, it looks pretty promising to me."
(4 March 2003)
   

Bacchic and bucolic in NZ #2
The Guardian's 'Superplonk' column discovers the flavour of New Zealand in a six-week wine tasting trip. Highlights include the "superb, tannic tenacity and layered fruit" of Delegat's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 1999, and the "racy, complex, finely textured and delicious" Villa Maria Private Bin Sauvignon Blanc 2001.
(6 April 2002)
        

Grapes of worth
Boston Globe: "NZ sauvignon blanc goes so well with lively Pacific Rim cuisine, you might think winemakers produce it with that food in mind. In truth, the citric flavors and penetrating acidity of New Zealand sauvignon blanc make it an excellent match for a wide range of food" Independent wine of the week: 2000 Montana Reserve Barrique-Fermented Marlborough Chardonnay. New York Times on 2001 Brancott Vineyards, Sauvignon Blanc Reserve
Marlborough, "Lively with a distinct lemon/lime character, this sauvignon blanc is snappy but substantial and will take on the cacophony of flavors in the calamari salad with ease."
(April/May 2002)
       

Drink on the wing
Looking to grab a drink a mile up? Try Air New Zealand, whose cellars rate third in the world for quality in the air.
(30 July 2001)
         

Ata Rangi's stunning achievement
The Martinborough vineyard wins the Pinot Noir international trophy for the third time with a "beautifully balanced, seductive wine." NZEdge brings you the press release of this impressive feat.
(22 June 2001)

Screw up
Marlborough winemakers ditch traditional cork in favour of screw tops for better quality. 
(9 June 2001)
                 

Marvellous merlot
"From the legendary wines of Pomerol, the tradition of Italian Merlots and the "new classic" wine regions of California, Oregon and Washington, to the great vineyards of South America, Australia, New Zealand and beyond, Merlot has proved to be incredibly adaptive to it's surroundings, producing wines of amazing and varied complexity wherever it's grown."
(22 March 2001)