Chopped, but Not Out
New Zealander Mark Simmons, 29, a sous chef at New York restaurant Public and until recently a contestant on popular reality show Top Chef, wants to open his own restaurant in the Big Apple…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
WOWed by India
Wellington’s annual Montana Wearable Arts Awards continues to entice greater number of international participants to enter in the “ultimate arts competition”. A recent preview of this year’s competitors saw the final design entries from…
At Large in Sydney
New Zealand is well represented at this month’s Australian Fashion Week with thirteen fashion designers joining together to create a formidable showroom line-up. These include Kate Sylvester, Cybele, Lonely Hearts and Stitch…
Potentially Pinot
Though Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc continues its global popularity – sales grew nearly 29 per cent last year – New Zealand winemakers seek a new viticulture challenge. This challenge is Pinot Noir. The winemakers’ excitement…
Aotearoa a la Mode
New Zealand lifestyle and design fills 15 pages in this month’s Marie Claire Maison. The French publication’s spread includes Outpost Hokianga (Rangi Kipa’s Corian Tiki pictured), EON, Stevens Lawson, David Trubridge, Black…
Feasts in Factories
New Zealander Margot Henderson, sought-after London gourmand and the other half of Arnold & Henderson catering, does not like to use the word ‘simple’ when describing their menus. “It’s more like it…
Company in LA
Auckland artist Misery, aka Tanya Thompson, best known for her work with New Zealand clothing label Illicit, is part of group show Anything Could Happen … at Carmichael Gallery in West Hollywood. For the exhibition,…
All for a Chat Show
Twenty-two year old Christchurch design student Nick Lowe wants to raise $1 million on YouTube in the hope of millionaire-status and a spot on Ellen Degeneres’ talk show. This week Lowe passed the $1,000…
Smith’s Cool Design
Massey University Industrial Design student Aucklander Stephen Smith is New Zealand’s top emerging designer winning a $3,000 Dyson Product Design Award for his “Arctic Skin”. The vest stabilizes a sportsperson’s body temperature via a…
Greenhouse Boom
New Zealand vineyards are benefiting from a warming planet, prompting traditionally cooler areas of the country to cultivate grapes and a bright forecast for export growth. Pinot noirs from the South Island region of…
Tastebuds Will Travel
Guardian reporter Emma Johns and friend spent a two-week culinary tour of New Zealand “exploring the local flavours before attempting to recreate them ourselves.” From fine-dining in Wellington to cooking lamb fillet off a…
Beyond Cloudy Bay
Twenty years on from the discovery of New Zealand sauvignon blanc, Washington Times writer Paul Lukacs surveys the latest on the New Zealand wine market. The Times article is particularly praiseworthy of the pinot…
Gourmands Flock to Matakana
The New York Times heads to Matakana Village, a thriving boutique wine town an hour north of Auckland City. Matakana Village is a gourmand’s delight, boasting an award-winning artisanal bakery, scores of boutique…
Tapping into Kazakhstani Market
A tiny Martinborough vineyard has become the first NZ winery to establish a presence in Central Asia. Alexander Vineyard, a family-run business headed by Michael Finucane, has added Kazakhstan to its growing list of…
Stamp of Approval
NZ label Untouched World is about to become the first fashion company in the world to carry a United Nations sustainability logo. Untouched World has been given UNESCO approval to attach the UN Decade…
Natural Selection
Telegraph writer Jonathan Ray discovers the art of high-altitude wine tasting with Air New Zealand’s team of wine buyers: Jim Harré, John Belsham and Kate Radburnd. Air NZ is the single largest purchaser of NZ wine…
“Food Miles” Shredded by Chef
NZ celebrity chef Peter Gordon has made discrediting the “food miles myth” and promoting quality NZ produce his mission in the UK. In recent months, the London-based chef has appeared on British TV,…
Enlightened dining
NZ-owned restaurant Seamstress has won over critics and diners just weeks after its opening in Melbourne. The four-storey modern Cantonese eatery is co-owned by Dunedin-born Jason Chan, who runs the successful NZ-themed cafe…
Two Atkins for NZ Wine
Influential Observer wine columnist Tim Atkin has published his Best Of list for 2007. Atkin named NZ his wine producing country of the year, with the 2006 Mount Difficulty Pinot Noir (Central Otago) and 2007 The…
Tees Please
An NZ couple has launched a line of tasteful tourist tees in Canada. Last year, Lauren McKee and Wynne Pirini left home, and their respective careers in accountancy and construction, to start a creative…
Speight’s sails into London
The first Speight’s Ale House outside of NZ has opened in London, after an epic 75-day boat journey. The pub set sail from Dunedin and passed through Samoa, Panama, the Bahamas and New York…
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…
Next Big Things
NZ’s white aromatic wines rival its world-famous sauvignon blanc, according to Telegraph writer Jonathan Ray. Ray vowed not to drink any sauvignon on his week-long tour of NZ wineries, despite being a “sucker” for the…
Michelin man
Waikato-born chef de cuisine Josh Emett has won two Michelin stars for his menu at Gordon Ramsay at The London, the celebrity chef’s new venture in New York. Emett oversees the menu…
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…
Screw the Critics
The NZ wine industry is leading a global anti-cork movement, according to a book published in the US this month. To Cork or Not to Cork by George Taber measures the practical benefits of…
Best Foot Forward
Karen Walker has joined forces with Brazilian flip-flop giant Havaiana to produce a line of limited edition jandals for Spring/Summer 2008. The two designs feature Walker’s classic Runaway girl and her new season Fruit…
A Wine Tourist’s Paradise
Telegraph wine writer Adrian Woodford spent six days in NZ on an intensive wine-tasting tour that encompassed Marlborough, Hawkes Bay and Gisborne. He pronounces NZ the “finest country in the world for a wine tourist” and agrees…
Debuts, Divas and Dark Designs
Wellington writer Carolyn Enting provided an overview of Air New Zealand Fashion Week 2007 for the Melbourne Age. Highlights of the week included impressive debuts by Alex Kim and Alexandra Owen, a media stampede…
Guilt-free Fur
NZ possum fur features in a Guardian article on “weird and wonderful” examples of eco-friendly products. Imported from Australia in 1837, possums have been wreaking havoc on NZ’s native flora and fauna ever since. “We support killing…
NZ Wine, Now and Then
Features in two US newspapers discuss the past, present and future of NZ wines. The Palm Beach Daily News outlines the development of the NZ industry, from the first grapes planted by the Rev. Samuel Marsden…
High Style
This year’s Air New Zealand Fashion Week launched in unique style, with a catwalk show aboard one of its primary sponsor’s commercial aircraft. More than 120 passengers watched a sneak preview of the 2008…
Familiar tastes in France
NZ rugby fans in France have been able to enjoy a taste of home at Le Maori Cafe in Lyons. Owned by Aucklander Tai Pepere, who played rugby league for French club Catalans…
Wine of the Times
Guardian wine writer Victoria Moore reports on the overwhelming success of NZ wine in the UK. NZ wine boasts the highest average retail price in the UK (second-place Australia lags by £1.77) and almost 10% of…
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…
Moko in Vogue
A French fashion designer’s use of moko in advertisements for his latest collection has caused a stir in NZ. Jean Paul Gaultier’s campaign shots, featuring male and female models with Maori facial tattooing, have…
Designing Women
New Zealand Herald writer Fiona Hawtin reports on the unique nature of the NZ fashion scene for the International Herald Tribune. “Of the 45 labels showing at the seventh New Zealand Fashion Week ……
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…
Down Under Planter
Next month sees the NZ launch of the Antipode Planter, an award winning upside-down planter by the Matakana-based Morris Design Office. Designed by Patrick Morris, the Antipode Planter won the UK New Designers Award in 2006 and…
China wine and dine
Aotearoa wine and cuisine has gained a significant foothold in China with the opening of the first restaurant and bar dedicated to premium NZ produce. Located in Guangzhou, China’s third largest city, Back Street…
True Romance
Ponsonby Road’s Harrowset Hall was featured in the New York Times travel section this month. Described as “a romantic den of feminine clutter”, Harrowset Hall stocks cotton nightwear, robes and bed linen. The shop…
Design Mobel Goes Global
Tauranga bed and furniture maker Design Mobel has launched the first of its Okooko global concept stores in Wellington and Hong Kong, with more to follow in the US later this year. Okooko stores integrate award…
Top tucker
US economics professor and blogger extraordinaire Tyler Cowen rates fish and chips as being “to New Zealand what barbecue is to Texas-tops in the world” on his popular website marginalrevolution.com. Cowen regularly compiles…
Tee King
New Zealander Glenn Jones has won the US-based Threadless t-shirt design competition a record 17 times. Jones, the creative director at Auckland’s Dashwood Design studio, gets regular fan e-mail and has been featured on…
Jeweller Finds Wonderland in NZ
British jeweller Alice Hughes has created a range of bespoke pieces inspired by NZ plants and sea life. She established Alice in Wonderland Jewellery in 2004 after undertaking an apprenticeship in NZ, where she…
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…
Burger Boom
A restaurant chain founded by three New Zealanders has become one of the most successful businesses in the booming UK “posh burger” market. Gourmet Burger Kitchen was established six years ago by school…
Stonyridge a Must-see
Waiheke Island’s Stonyridge vineyard featured in the Guardian’s top ten must-visit wineries, alongside Chateau Mouton Rothschild in Bordeaux and the Frank Gehry-designed Marques de Riscal in Rioja, Spain. Guardian: “Stonyridge is a cult winery with a global…
Piece of Cake LA
Times food writer Amy Scattergood introduces Americans to the humble pavlova: “a dessert with an unexpected, rustic elegance.” As well as providing a step-by-step recipe, Scattergood details the historical and cultural background of the…
What Makes NZ Sav Blanc so Special?
The NZ government and members of the wine industry are funding a multimillion dollar research project to examine the distinctive qualities of the country’s prized Sauvignon Blanc. The six-year NZ $16.9 million project is being carried out…
Pure and Simple
NZ mineral water Antipodes was reviewed by Michael Mascha, author of Fine Waters: A Connoisseurs Guide to the World’s Most Distinctive Bottled Waters, in the LA Times. “The soft, light bubbles (it’s artificially…
A taste of Nelson in New York
A NZ-themed gastropub, Nelson Blue, has opened in New York’s burgeoning Seaport area. Owned by Pauli Morgan, a Nelson-born veteran of New York’s bar scene, the 100-seat restaurant features a suspended waka,…
Surfing the Menu in NZ
NZ chef Mark Gardner will co-present the fourth season of popular cooking show Surfing the Menu, with London-based Australian Ben O’Donoghue. Gardner, 29, replaces O’Donoghue’s previous co-presenter, Australian Curtis Stone. The fourth season comprises…
Designs on New York
Christchurch-born art director and graphic designer, Jeff Docherty has spent the last seven years making a name for himself in NZ, Australia, and New York. To date, Docherty’s work has appeared in the New…
Gates of Hell open in Fulham
Hell Pizza has opened its first UK outlet in Fulham, northwest London. Founders Callum Davies and Stu McMullin decided it was time to test a new market after 11 successful years in NZ….
Royal Welcome for NZ Flora
The largest collection of NZ native plants in the UK has opened at the Savill Garden, near Windsor Castle in Surrey. The NZ Garden in Great Windsor Park was officially opened by the Duke of York…
