News of New Zealanders via Global Media

Best Bubbles

Best Bubbles

Observer wine critic Tim Atkin champions New World sparkling whites, particularly those from NZ, stating ” every bit as good as most non-vintage champagne and usually considerably cheaper.” According to Atkins, Lindauer Special Brut “consistently delivers the…

I Spy with My Little Eye

I Spy with My Little Eye

NZ wines scored a slew of major awards at America’s largest and most prestigious wine show – the San Francisco International Wine Competition. Best in Show awards went to the 2002 Lake Hayes ‘Amisfield’…

Wine Boom Continues

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….

New World Edges In

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…

Kai a la Kiwi

Kai a la Kiwi

A NZ themed restaurant – The Kiwi Grille – is doing a roaring trade in Newburyport, Massachusetts. According to owner Bruce deMustchine (ex-Hawkes Bay), the Grille served 10,000 happy customers in its first 8…

Raw power

Raw power

Adoptive Canterbrian, Leslie Kenton, has published her 35th book: The Powerhouse Diet. The comprehensive guide to eating raw foods is the award-winning author’s latest contribution to the field of health and well-being.

Oil or nothing

Oil or nothing

NZ olive oil producers won 5 gold medals at the annual LA Country Wines and Olive  Oils of the World competition in May. Serendipity Olive Company won a gold each  for its barnea and extra…

Otago is “Lord of the Reds”

Otago is “Lord of the Reds”

“The Pinot Noir grail is to be found in Central Otago,” writes British wine expert Janice Robinson in the latest World Atlas of Wine. The availability of Pinot Noir and other New Zealand wines in Tokyo…

Fashion’s High Fliers

Fashion’s High Fliers

Air NZ has launched a much-needed overhaul of its flight attendants’ uniforms (last updated in 1991), with Elisabeth and Neville Findlay of Zambesi at the helm. The airline was recently announced as the new…

Chelsea Flower Gold Show.

Chelsea Flower Gold Show.

The 100% Pure New Zealand Ora – garden of wellbeing, won one of four gold medals at the Chelsea Flower Show in London. The garden was designed by Kim Jarrett, Trish Waugh and Lionel Grant, and…

Increased Coverage This Season

Increased Coverage This Season

“Dusseldorf, Reykjavik, Melbourne, Madrid and Hong Kong may as yet be household names only in the households taking part, but Mercedes-Benz Sydney Fashion Week, Air New Zealand Fashion Week and Sao Paulo Fashion Week…

Edge of Eden

Edge of Eden

A NZ themed garden is to feature at the most prestigious horticultural event of the year – the RHS Chelsea Garden Show, May 25-8. The 100% Pure NZ Ora Garden of well-being is inspired by Maori mythology…

Go Fish

Go Fish

Fish la Boissonerie – co-owned by Kiwi Drew Harre and American Juan Sanchez – features in an LA Times guide to dining well (without breaking the bank) in Paris. “Here’s a place to go,…

Edge-Mobile

Edge-Mobile

Kiwi furniture designers David Trubridge, Purple South, and Simon James exhibited at Milan’s 2004 Salone del Mobile in April. The event is the largest and most respected of its kind, drawing over 260,000 visitors…

Export success

Export success

Lamb exporting to the UK is set to rise even further following a favourable report by the British government on NZ’s methods of slaughtering stock. According to the report, the standard technique in NZ…

Location, Location, Location

Location, Location, Location

1 April 2004 – i-D magazine’s Location issue gives pride of place to NZ’s up-and-coming “kings of creation.” Featured are Huffer designer Steven Dunstan, author Chad Taylor, artists Richard Maloy and Yvonne Todd, musicians…

What’s cooking good looking?

What’s cooking good looking?

NZ-born Brad Farmerie – head chef at Peter Gordon’s Public – was named one of the New York culinary scene’s rising stars, in a Post piece entitled ‘Lord of the Ranges.’ As well as…

Chick to Watch

Chick to Watch

Massey University fashion graduate, Alice Goulter, profiled in a ‘Behind the Seams’ feature by Australian teen magazine, Chik. At the time of the interview, the 23-year-old was working as Design Assistant at Mossimo Woman,…

26 Reasons to Love NZ

26 Reasons to Love NZ

Australian Harper’s Bazaar gives an A-Z run down of Kiwi style in response to last year’s L’Oreal New Zealand Fashion Week. Beneath the header “small enough to get seriously edgy, big enough to do…

You Say Shiraz, I Say Syrah

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…

Talent with Depth

Talent with Depth

Observer wine critic, Tim Atkin, looks beyond the ubiquitous NZ Sauvignon Blanc, recommending instead our Pinot Gris, Riesling, Syrah, and – above all – Pinot Noir. “NZ may produce only 0.79 per cent of the world’s vino,…

Oh Happy Days

Oh Happy Days

Auckland performance producers, designers, choreographers and maestros-in-general Mike Mizrahi and Marie Adams and a team of 150 created Louis Vuitton’s 150th anniversary celebrations around the world with the new LV store at 5th and 57th being the…

Edge espressoholics

Edge espressoholics

The Star attributes Wellington’s creativity and can-do attitude to its extraordinary topography and world-ranking caffeine intake. “Wellington, the ‘windy city,’ definitely enjoys one of the most challenging locations on earth. ‘Here’s your brief,’ the…

The Future is Kiwi?

The Future is Kiwi?

1 February 2004 – The latest issue of Italian trend prediction magazine and style bible, Sport & Street Collezioni, includes a significant spread on NZ fashion, with Nom*D as the headlining feature. S&S on Nom*D:…

Quality tucker

Quality tucker

January 14, 2004 – Significant New York Times feature ‘The Other Down Under’ chronicles NZ’s culinary revolution – from land of the long boiled mutton to world-class gastronomic player. The new breed of Kiwi…

Best of the Summer Wine

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…

Whale watching on Ponsonby Rd?

Whale watching on Ponsonby Rd?

Moby, the world’s most vocal vegan, has spilled the beans on his favourite places to dine around the globe. His list of ethical eateries includes Ponsonby Road mainstay, Musical Knives. ” cute little…

Eating on the edge

Eating on the edge

Public – helmed by NZ chefs Peter Gordon, Anna Hansen, and Brad Farmerie – has administered a welcome shock to the tastebuds of New York diners. According to New York Times  food critic, William…

South Seas style in Costa Meca

South Seas style in Costa Meca

Noel Turner’s epoynmous LA eatery continues to raise the flag for antipodean cuisine and produce along the US West Coast. “The climate produces some of the world’s cleanest foods, most notably from Noel Turner,…

Top Christmas Tipple

Top Christmas Tipple

Villa Maria’s 2002 Private Bin Riesling is one of the Observer‘s top 36 wines for Christmas drinking. “Villa Maria is better known for its in-your-face Sauvignon Blancs than its other New Zealand whites, but this screwcapped Riesling…

I See Red, I See Red, I See Red

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 1 Kiwi…

Karl’s Eye View

Karl’s Eye View

Australian Vogue’s December 2003 collector’s edition includes NZ designs hand-picked by guest editor/fashion icon, Karl Lagerfeld. Featured are Karen Walker’s baby-doll dresses and op-art minis, Zambesi’s cutting-edge sportswear and metallic accessories, and Kate…

Sauvignon Tsunami

Sauvignon Tsunami

CNN and the Arizona Republic lavish praise on NZ Sauvignon Blanc, recommending the 2003 Brancott Estate and 2003 Nobilo Icon Series respectively. “NZ is now a tsunami of Sauvignon Blancs, and diligently as I’ve tried, I…

Colour Me Bad

Colour Me Bad

The outlines of stylist/illustrator Kate Ruth are adorning hip US magazines Nylon, Soma and Fader. Drawings by the Victoria University grad have also graced the clothes of such edgy popstresses as Shirley Manson and…

Street Cred

Street Cred

“Dressing icons of the now” on the streets and slopes  are home-grown favourite Huffer. The street-wear label, created by Steve Dunstan and Dan Buckley in 1997, is now sold through 10 stores in Australia,…

Edge eatery hits NoLIta

Edge eatery hits NoLIta

21 November 2003 – Celebrated ex-pat chefs Peter Gordon and Anna Hansen (the team behind London’s The Providores and Tapa) have opened a new restaurant in New York’s trendy NoLIta district – Public.  In…

A Tailor of Two Empires

A Tailor of Two Empires

Bafta award winning costume designer Ngila Dickson profiled (+ slide show) in the New York Times. The signature of Dickson’s work on Lord of the Rings and Last Samurai is its fluidity and authentic…

Matchmaker

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…

Out-standing

Out-standing

Ex-pat bar proprietor, Kim Lucas, shares her views on “pride and prejudice” in an Observer feature on Britain’s 20 most outstanding homosexuals. Lucas opened London’s first official lesbian hangout – the Candy Bar…

Runway Successes

Runway Successes

19 October 2003 – The usual suspects stood out from the crowd at the 2003 L’Oreal NZ Fashion Week in Auckland, with WORLD (above), Nom*D, and Zambesi flying the edge flag for innovative and individual…

Hillary the Height of Fashion

Hillary the Height of Fashion

Newcastle designer, Nigel Cabourn, has released a limited-edition clothing range inspired by Sir Edmund Hillary’s conquest of Everest in 1953. The collection was launched at an exhibition in Tokyo honouring the event’s 50th anniversary…

Thinking Inside the Square

Thinking Inside the Square

Auckland-based graphic design company, Creative Force, has won two awards at America’s Creative 33 competition for the second year running. Established in 2001 by Emma Mann, Creative Force beat thousands of entries from around the globe –…

Deep south delights

Deep south delights

The Australian finds the university city of Dunedin a “hearty mix of charm and character – with plenty of wee surprises”. In the ‘Scotch Broth’ Stephen Brook includes culture and characters during a visit…

42 Below NZSX-y

42 Below NZSX-y

Award-winning NZ vodka label, 42 Below – has enlisted the help of Kiwi supermodel Kylie Bax and San Antonio Spurs basketball player Sean Marks to promote his product in the lucrative US market….

Kapiti Creme Anglaise: Finger Licking Good

Kapiti Creme Anglaise: Finger Licking Good

SMH’s ‘Good Food Guide’ salivates over Kapiti Creme Anglaise: “Talk about the perfect dinner party treat. Heavenly drizzled over cakes and tarts. Or on your finger when you’ve got a hankering for something sweet…

All Roads Lead to ROAM:

All Roads Lead to ROAM:

Edited by edge architect Anthony Hoete, ROAM: Reader on Aesthetics of Mobility receives raps in the UK’s key weekly architectural read, Building Design. Hoete’s wide-ranging reader for the global soul takes in work from artists, architects, cultural theorists,…

Big Ups for “Small but Perfectly Formed” NZ Fashion Week

Big Ups for “Small but Perfectly Formed” NZ Fashion Week

The Age calls L’Oreal NZ Fashion Week a thorn in the side of its Australian counterparts, warning that its “peculiarly talented protagonists” are in danger of showing up bigger fish across the Tasman. “Fashion…

Mecca Found in  Martinborough

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…

Turning it up

Turning it up

Californian A-listers dined on the very best of NZ produce at UNICEF’s Gala Awards Banquet and Fundraiser, where ex-Bond, Roger Moore, was named Humanitarian of the Year. Entrepreneurial restaurateur, Noel Turner (Turner New Zealand…

Social Climbing at Wellington’s Matterhorn

Social Climbing at Wellington’s Matterhorn

Wallpaper features newly refurbished Wellington bar The Matterhorn in its global navigator. In a piece entitled ‘The heart of the matter’ the bar is the hub of a cosmopolitan revivified Wellington. Surveying the…

Teen Queens Fly High

Teen Queens Fly High

The latest designs by Deborah Sweeney and Karen Walker feature in Oyster magazine’s August/September issue. Sweeney’s aviatrix-inspired ‘Fli-Girl’ collection – a salute to original fly-girls Amelia Earhart and Jean Batten – teams mini parachute…

Zambesi: the Story of a New Zealand River

Zambesi: the Story of a New Zealand River

Australian Financial Review Magazine devotes 5 pages to edge fashion label Zambesi. “They have been called the Belgians of the Asia-Pacific region . Over a quarter of a century, cult fashion…

Bottoms Up

Bottoms Up

CNN feature reveals a hemisphere-reversal in wine appreciation and availability in America. New World wines are doing a roaring trade in the US, in many cases outstripping their European counterparts in sales. “One of the…

Wahine Takes Manhattan

Wahine Takes Manhattan

Pania Rose, Australia’s latest supermodel has an Aotearoa genetic advantage: “After securing local campaigns for Country Road and the all-Aussie undies label , the 19-year-old has hit the big time in the US, scoring…

Lawson’s Joins Mile High Club

Lawson’s Joins Mile High Club

Lawson’s Dry Hills Sauvignon Blanc scored the highest overall marks for a white wine in the Scotsman‘s high-altitude taste test. In conjunction with 6 international airlines, the Scotsman and a panel of expert judges sought out…

Tanning Back in Fashion

Tanning Back in Fashion

Fish tanners in NZ, France, and Ireland are peddling their wares to the elite fashion houses of Europe, claiming that fish skin is as durable as crocodile and as strong as any man-made fibre….