At each of the dinners at the Southern Pinot workshop in Hanmer, participants are encouraged to bring wines to dinner. This is a fun exercise, because there is no coordination,…
Adding appellations: developing new GIs and why conjunctive labelling is important
I’ve been involved in quite a few discussions of late about developing new appellations (technically, geographic indications [GIs]) in new world countries, particularly New Zealand. Currently, New Zealand only has…
Ata Rangi McCrone Pinot Noir 2006
Ata Rangi is rightly considered to be one of New Zealand’s top Pinot Noir producers. This is a special cuvée that they make from a small portion of the vineyard…
Interesting Marlborough: Corofin, with Mike Paterson
Mike Paterson used to be the winemaker at Jackson Estate, but now he’s making his own wines, along with his wife Anna, under the Corofin label. The idea behind Corofin…
Interesting Marlborough: the Pioneer Block wines from Saint Clair
Back in 1978, in the early days of Marlborough, Neal and Judy Ibbotson planted grapes, and began supplying Montana. Fast forward 16 years and they decided to launch their own…
Pink bubbles: Cloudy Bay and Gentle Folk
Two bottles of pink fizz that went down well. The Cloudy Bay was a real surprise: encountered on a couple of occasions and really delicious. Gentle Folk ‘Pink Fizz’ Pinot…
Interesting Marlborough: Fromm, single-vineyard pioneers
Fromm is an important winery for Marlborough, because they were one of the first to champion single vineyards in the region. They are also unusual in that in a white…
Interesting Marlborough: Mahi, with Brian Bicknell
Brian Bicknell has made wine in the Marlborough region since 1989, so he knows the region pretty well. But he’s also had spells abroad, providing much needed context. Most significantly,…
Novum, an exciting new producer from Marlborough
Scratch below the surface and there’s lots of interesting stuff going on in Marlborough. Here’s an example. Will and Rachel Hoare have just launched their new label, Novum, which focuses…