VINO BLOG

The Thomas family purchased the Omihi hillside site in 2000 and set about establishing and planting the various small blocks on these slopes in 2004. The combination of viticulturalist Nick Gill and wine-maker Dom Maxwell has been a fortuitous and...

Again a packed house attended the annual Te Mata Showcase tasting at the George Hotel. It was great to have the 'retired' John Buck return to present the wines, accompanied by his teenaged Grand-daughter Zara - preparing the next generation?...

This tasting was based around my experiences at Pinot 2017, a three-day event which was held in Wellington a couple of weeks ago. First held in 2001, this 4-yearly event aims to showcase New Zealand Pinot Noir to the world. Described...

Villa Maria is New Zealand’s largest family owned winery and the continued commitment to producing not only great value wines, but also exceptional, ground breaking wines has to be admired. As part of the move to sustainability they have made...

The Earthquakes put paid to Jules Taylor making it down here personally for the tasting, but assisted by some of Jules’ video clips and local rep Don McLorinan adding his knowledge, we still did justice to showing off Jules’ very good...

Champagne Taittinger are one of the few Grande Marque Houses that are still family owned and run.  Presiding over this fabulous estate is Pierre-Emanuel Taittinger who is assisted by his children Clovis and Vitalie.  With over 650 hectares of their...

Lawson's Dry Hills was established in 1992 by Ross and Barbara Lawson after being growers since 1981. Their first wine was Gewurztraminer produced from their Alabama Road property after being told that the winery they usually supplied no longer wanted Gewurztraminer. Since...

Pegasus Bay doesn't need any introduction, its place as Canterbury's leading winery is well established. A lot of the success of the Waipara region can be attributed to the pioneering success of Pegasus Bay. After 25+ years the Donaldson family's...

First established in 1897 Church Road is one of New Zealand's oldest wineries. The original owner returned to Luxembourg in 1920, leaving the winery in the hands of a 19 year old Tom MacDonald, who later purchased the winery and...

Planting the first vines in 1979 Hunter's were one of the pioneers of Marlborough wine. They helped establish Sauvignon Blanc in the UK market, changing the face of the New Zealand wine industry forever. Today they are still a family...