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Californian Cabernet shows a cool side

For a region (or should we say a 'state') that has the perhaps dubious accolade of being the fourth biggest producer of wine in the world, California features strangely rarely in our glasses at this far flung end of the Earth. But two recent encounters with big bold reds from the sun drenched climate of California (which made 81% of all United States wine, in 2020*) have forced a rethink of hot climate red wines. Not least because California also has cooler climatic pockets, as the second vintag...

Bendigo's best foot forward

2025 Mondillo Central Otago Pinot Noir RRP $58Bendigo may be situated 80 kilometres from Queenstown but its latest 2025 Pinot Noir reflects all the majestic beauty of the deep south. The new 2025 vintage (officially released in July this year) shows the estate’s silkiest side with this wine's velvety smooth mouthfeel layered over purity of dark fruit in a wine with a savoury mid palate. Its vibrancy reveals an accessible and approachable wine to enjoy now, in its youth, and its firm structure ...

Rockburn's punchy new releases from the deep south

Where did the past 20 years go? The latest releases from Rockburn of Central Otago mark the 21st vintage of winemaker Malcolm Rees‑Francis, whose tenure has shaped Rockburn into one of the region’s most consistent wineries for quality and diversity but also span Central's journey from a new wine frontier into one of the world’s most respected cool climate wine regions. Central is the most southerly major wine region on Earth. It has forged a global reputation in a few short decades for win...

Honouring the past in Martinborough

This column is also published in the Martinborough Star, June 2026There’s something to be said for Pinot Noir clones and New Zealand winemakers have had plenty to say about them over the past month with the seventh vintage release of Martinborough Vineyard’s top wine, Marie Zelie, made from 10/5 and Abel clones. Not only that but the announcement that the 2024 Nga Waka Lease Block Pinot Noir scooped four trophies, a gold medal and high score at the one of the world’s biggest wine competiti...

Hope for a generation

Virginie le Brun's first memory of selling was as a young child, boarding a bus of visiting tourists and asking if they would be interested in buying bags of pine cones. It was her own idea to package up several bags of green pinecones, much to her mother's surprise, and (also to her mother's surprise) several people bought a bag. It was a confidence building experience and it came naturally to Virginie. So, it's no surprise that led her as a young person into a part time role as a sales pe...

Rock and a good place - Wine of the week

Central Otago was once as famous for its rocky canyons and hair raising gravel roads as it now is for its Pinot Noir but whether it is driving or making wine in this dramatic mountainous landscape, it can be a risky venture.The most famous of all the well known risky drives in Central has historically been Skipper's Canyon and yes, I have been down there - several times - in a Land Rover, on a mini bus and in a car but I sometimes think that making wine is even more challenging than attempt...

Red Hut makers release second Chardonnay

Red Hut Chardonnay has moved onto its second release with the launch of the 2025 vintage of this inaugural wine brand. The Red Hut wine brand was launched last year in New Zealand by the duo behind the concept - Mike Farrugia (New Zealand wine importer, distributor and producer) and Corey Ryan, winemaker of this and other brands (Australian-based).From the get-go, the Red Hut wines have over delivered on taste, marketing and - obviously - good value, offering more than many of their co...

Top 12 from 2024 - Gimblett Gravels wines announced

What a vintage. The 2024 top 12 reds from Gimblett Gravels in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand, have been announced and independent taster Andrew Caillard MW describes the wines from the 2024 vintage in Gimblett Gravels Wine Growing District® (GGWD) as "An embarrassment of richness.” The wines are selected via a blind tasting led by Master of Wine Andrew Caillard, the 2024 AVS represents the best of the vintage. Now in its 17th  year, the initiative ensures influential wine media and market lead...

"Dream Martinborough vintage" wins top scores in London

Every vineyard has a story behind it and that story gained a lot more significance this week for Nga Waka Lease Block Pinot Noir 2024 from Martinborough, which won four trophies, a gold medal and 96/100 points at the 2026 International Wine and Spirits Challenge.The Challenge has forged a name for putting wines through their paces rigorously every year since it was founded in 1969, so it's no mean feat to gain high scores, let alone so many trophies. And while this is a significant win for the s...

From France to New Zealand - the inspiring family behind Clos Henri

When scanning the land in Sancerre for new places to expand, brothers Jean-Marie and the late Rémi Bourgeois discovered it was going to be extremely tricky, which led them to... Marlborough, New Zealand. Some might say it's the epicentre of Sauvignon Blanc but for a family whose members have been making wine in France for 10 generations, that might be a little bit of a stretch. That was in 2000 and the two brothers bought 98 hectares of land, naming it 'Clos Henri'. In many ways, they are ...

Pinot Noir from 'one of ' the world's most southern vineyards

Central Otago is a wine buzzword (or two, as the case happens to be here) for Pinot Noir from an edgy environment with a cool climate, dry soils and high volume of vineyard area (and wine) devoted to Pinot Noir.This week I dived into a three year old wine from a vineyard that “was” considered to be the most southern in the world and is also situated in the most eastern of Central Otago’s wine growing areas at a latitude of 45.25 degrees south. The wine is Grasshopper Rock Block 2 Pinot Noi...

Aotearoa Albariño - a fresh take on tradition

Ant Saunders was in Seville when he first fell for the lip‑smacking acidity and salty freshness that make the white Spanish wine, Albariño, such a joy to drink but it was another 26 years before that joy became a business. "When I first tried Albariño in 1998 in Seville, I'd never even heard of it before and the wine that arrived was a revelation - so delicious with that salty taste and acidity that had me coming back for more.”It was a moment that planted a seed which finally sproute...

Riding the Southern Valleys Sauvignon Blanc wave

Today is Friday 1 May, also known as May Day, and as International Sauvignon Blanc Day, which means it's a chance to try great alternative styles as well as well known and loved fruity fragrant little numbers. This new brand from Astrolabe Wines in Marlborough is a compelling new wave style of Sauvignon Blanc, made entirely from an elevated vineyard site in the Southern Valleys sub-region. Here's my review of this outstanding new addition to Astrolabe's Sauvignon Blanc stable; a wine t...

Central Otago's oldest winery starts new tours this month

From its cinematic name to its long history of winemaking, Monte Christo Winery has earnt the title of oldest winery in both Central Otago and the South Island of New Zealand, even if it is a relatively unknown tale. But new winery tours are set to change that, as of this month, April 2026.The low down is that Monte Christo's winemaking began in 1864 when Jean Désiré Féraud planted the first 200 vines on the property, which were producing wine by 1867 and winning awards by 1881. Sadly, t...

Silver lining to the capital city's torrential rain clouds

For a city that has had a net loss of over 1500 businesses over the past two years and is now in a state of emergency following torrential rain this week, Wellington has had something of a cloud hanging over it, both literally and metaphorically. But last week saw the opening of a new business by optimistic entrepreneur, Liz Wheadon. She brings three decades of experience to bear in opening a specialist wine retail store - with a difference. It's set inside an art gallery on a side street and wi...

Why diversity pays dividends in winemaking

Can diversity pay dividends in a small wine region devoted largely to Pinot Noir? It’s a pressing question, especially in a place as compact and climatically unforgiving as Martinborough, the remote rural village situated in the south east of New Zealand's North Island.The name Martinborough is synonymous with distinctively earthy tasting Pinot Noirs and is the hub of the winemaking in the wider Wairarapa Wine Region (the region's official name), with approximately half of the overall pla...

Are flavour infusions taking wine to a new place?

As new wine releases go, the launch of fruit flavour-infused, lower alcohol wine in a can is an interesting concept. Combining a single portion size with a lower than standard alcohol content are both ideal ways to market wine to parents of teenagers and teenagers themselves. It's the fruit part that piques my interest because wine is made from fruit already - grapes. Over the past week, I've had the chance to taste three cans and five bottles that look like wine but don't smell or tas...

New Zealand Winegrowers appoints new CEO

New Zealand Winegrowers announced today that it is appointing Anishka Jelicich as its next Chief Executive Officer from the end of July 2026.Winegrowers' Chair Fabian Yukich describes Anishka as a stand-out candidate with a deep understanding of the New Zealand wine industry, combined with extensive global knowledge and experience. "She offers strong credentials in navigating complex international environments, a deep understanding of policy and trade and a proven ability to build alignment...

Is Merlot gaining momentum?

If you’ve watched the film Sideways, it will come as no surprise to hear that Merlot has spent a significant proportion of the past 22 years being mocked as a moderate, middle-of-the-road and safe wine, unless it's blended with more noble grape varieties or comes from a specific and highly rated site, such as Masseto; the iconic 100% Merlot Super Tuscan from Bolgheri in Italy, which has long had a reputation as one of the world’s most collectible wines.For most Merlot, it's a different ...

When is the 'right' time to drink wine?

It's rare to remember a conversation held 12 years ago with as much clarity as this one but such is the power of great wine and ideas when they collide. The conversation in question was held over a bottle of aged Barolo shared with a wine marketing man Ed Donaldson, who said "This wine reminds me of a plan that our family has put in place because we're really aware that people drink our wines as soon as they're released, which is basically too young to taste what we're aiming for. Because we lov...

"In victory I deserve it, in defeat I need it"

Winston Churchill famously consumed a bottle of Champagne Pol-Roger every day throughout World War II, which is sometimes hard to believe, given the scarcity of availability of champagne during the war, but it's a good story. And it's one I was reminded of this week for more reasons than one but the key reason was the late, great man's famous words "In victory I deserve it and in defeat I need it" - or something alone those lines. A visiting friend delivered a champagne to my doorstep to taste a...

Best of the West - Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon

Driving south through the burnished red landscape and relative lushness of Perth city to its nearest and dearest wine region - Margaret River - is a feast for the eyes and the tastebuds. I returned less than a week ago from a first-ever visit to this great wine region, in which I found myself for a very old friend's wedding rather than an in-depth wine tour but both were on my agenda.This was my pick of the wines I was able to try while there. More to come as there will be many other visits...

Vintage comes early to NZ 2026

Harvest is underway and about to begin across New Zealand’s wine regions as the industry prepares for the 2026 vintage, which is shaping up to be the earliest one yet, says New Zealand Winegrowers.Northland kicked off on 23 January, followed by Hawke’s Bay and, in more recent weeks, Marlborough and North Canterbury have begun to harvest grapes. Central Otago is looking slightly later this year. “January to March are critical months for growing and ripening grapes. We are looking forwa...

Will the real low alc' wine please stand up

"You have to be a mountain goat to work on these slopes," said Dr Ernst Loosen when speaking to a packed room of wine devotees in Wellington last month. Dr Loosen (as the winemaker and his eponymous wines are known - pronounced 'low-zen') is one of the wine world's most articulate ambassadors. And the slopes in question are impossibly steep, blanketed in vines as they flank the banks of the Mosel River in Germany's most famous wine region; the Mosel.There are places that leave a positive im...

Looking Back at Kiwi Pinot Noir

This article was first published on TimAtkin.com on 18 February 2026Read this and other stories on Tim's website here.New Zealand winemakers have blazed a trail across the global white wine landscape with Sauvignon Blanc. Now the country’s most planted red grape, Pinot Noir, is demonstrating equally compelling potential, despite its comparatively short history.In terms of scale, Pinot Noir is still overshadowed by New Zealand’s dominant white grape, of course. Sauvignon Blanc commands 28,702...