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Ten of the best bubbles

From featherlight fizz to vintage Champagne, sparkling wine is firmly on our radar at this time of year - "our" being you and I since I'm assuming you're a wine lover, if you're reading this column. What with the cost of everything heading in one direction right now - up - the good news is: sparkling wine comes in a wider range of styles and prices than ever before and most are widely available. The latest issue of Drinksbiz magazine is out this week with my annual sparkling wine report, so...

End of a ground breaking era for Millton Vineyard

It is the end of a pivotal era in modern winemaking in Aotearoa New Zealand - Millton Vineyard has announced the end of its brand and the pioneering work done to spearhead organic and biodynamic wine production in this country."After more than 41 vintages, we have chosen to retire the vineyard and now look forward to spending more time with our family," says co-founder and owner Annie Millton. The estate was founded in 1984 by Annie and James Millton and while this chapter of the Millton st...

Huntress' unbreakable bond with the land

Jannine Rickards has forged a close relationship with nature since childhood, growing up on a farm in the Coromandel where she felt the inextricable connection to the land that defines her philosophy in food and wine today. The creation of the brand Huntress Wines in 2017 furthers her resolve to express that connection in both the bottle and the bounty of her hunting - when precious time allows, but that's another story. This week, Jannine popped over one sunny afternoon to taste her t...

A taste of Italy and Australia

The Maretti Italia range continues to evolve under the guidance of Corey Ryan, who was visiting New Zealand earlier this month when he took the time to taste through new wines from his Sons of Eden range - and two other new ranges of wines. These include a new IGP tier, which joins the traditional DOCG offerings from Maretti. The DOCG wes are made and bottled in Italy...

Chardonnistas bring it home in 2024

This year has been a game changer for winemakers Tony and Oscar Bish, who have launched five new Chardonnays from three highly revered vineyards in Hawke's Bay - Skeetfield, Kokako Farms and Two Terraces."The move to sourcing all our grapes from just three spectacular vineyards has had a profound impact on our wine quality," says Tony Bish, founder of Bish Wines. The new wines are all made from hand-picked grapes and all from Hawke's Bay, which has been a game changer following 2023 when tr...

Pinot Noir in three different styles from Akitu

The name Akitu originates from the Sumerian festival Zagmuk and is deeply tied to agricultural cycles. It is also Te Reo Māori for success or summit and that's something Central Otago has plenty of - summits and peaks in its majestic landscape - and great success with its wines. The Akitu Vineyard is six kilometres from Lake Wānaka waterfront in Central Otago and is home to the Pinot Noir grapes that go into the following trio of wines, which set a high bar for quality, style an...

Behind the scenes of Winetopia with founder Rob Eliott

Rob Eliott is the founder of Winetopia and heads up Lemongrass Productions, which runs this epic event each year. This year was the tenth for Winetopia and the event was held at the Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland.Rob and his team are an inspirational, well run machine and work incredibly hard to make this consumer wine lover focussed event so successful. I have been employed to host masterclasses, stage talks and wine blind tastings at Winetopia every year for the last seven. This year I want...

Five top drops - fabulous festive fizz from No 1

Good things take time, as the old saying goes, and it always strikes me as an incredible untapped opportunity to talk more about what time brings to the world's greatest sparkling wines. The pinnacle of great bubbly may traditionally have been champagne but there are sparkling wines that are modelled on it, made the same way and which can, as a result, give champagne a pretty good run for its money. The wines from No 1 Family Estate in Marlborough are an extremely good case in point. Not le...

Top drops - Annual Pinot Noir Report published

This annual Pinot Noir report was first published in Drinksbiz magazine, September/October 2025Fresh from tasting long line ups of Pinot Noir for this story, judging at the New World Wine Awards and hosting a Burgundy tasting, it is easy to see why Pinot Noir in New Zealand is on a roll. The following wines span a wide range of prices, styles and winemaking philosophies, all of them putting forward a compelling case for Pinot in this country (with one great Burgundy added in for good measure).&n...

Hunter's MiruMiru gets a makeover

Hunter's MiruMiru has a new look and a renewed focus on sustainability, says James Macdonald, second generation member of Hunter's Wines in Marlborough.The ethos around sustainability is taking the shape of lighter weight bottles for 95 per cent of the winery's production, along with more focus on recycled materials throughout the production process - from the glass, paper and cardboard used in packaging to the lighter weight bottles which are have been estimated to save 41 tonnes of glass ...

Dry whites from 2025 wines shine light on quality

Spring is here in full force with winds, pollen, hayfever and, more enticingly, a trickle of fresh new white wines beginning to make their way onto store shelves near us all. The following trio from Soho Wines highlight a strong quality vintage from Waiheke to Marlborough to Central Otago. 18.5/202025 Soho Stella Sauvignon Blanc RRP $28Succulent  juicy, mouthwatering new release from Soho. This wine shines a light on the best of New Zealand’s largest wine region and its ini...

Top drops under $30 from the NWWA Top 50

As the year speeds swiftly towards a close, many industries pause to reflect on the past 12 months, often by publishing annual reports. They may sound dry but many of them contain gems of information, as the latest New Zealand Winegrowers Inc Annual Report 2025 does. Never fear. I am not going to regale readers with the data because it's all available here: https://www.nzwine.com/media/ohtobhbr/nzw-annual-report_2025_digital_lr.pdfI am still part way through reading this report, which arriv...

Top 50 under $30 revealed this week

at a time when three little words - cost of living - are finding their way into our conversation more than most of us would like, it's refreshing to find 50 top wines under $30, which are widely available and have made the grade on the basis of independent blind tasting. This week the Top 50 wines under $30 were officially revealed following the New World Wine Awards (NWWA) 2025, which I was part of the judging team for, mid year. Every wine was scored using the internationally respect...

Blushing with spring - Martinborough Star wine column

This column was originally published in The Martinborough Star, October 2025Rosé is thriving in the Wairarapa and New Zealand, having  hitched a ride on the coat tails of pink wine’s global success. Rosé now accounts for about 30% of French wine sales compared to 16% in 2002. It has surpassed white wine sales in France and some predict it could soon outstrip sales of red wine there – no mean feat in a country renowned for the world’s classic red and white wines. Here in Ma...

Variety is the spice in Elephant Hill's new releases

Elephant Hill winery is situated on one of my favourite stretches of wild, windy coastline in Aotearoa New Zealand. Its location at Te Awanga, south of Napier city, is an edgy one for growing grapes, which accounts for why the wine wines from here shine with vibrant acidity and depth from the relatively long growing season. The following wines are the latest to land on my tasting table from this winery and all of them are underpinned by fresh, fine acidity that lends brightness to each sip....

State of Chardonnay in New Zealand

Chardonnay is the world's favourite white wine and the second most planted white grape in New Zealand with 3,069 hectares of grapes, which might pale in comparison to Sauvignon Blanc's 28,109 hectares but where the taste, quality and range of styles are all punching well above their weight these days. Chardonnay was once, briefly, the most planted grape variety overall in New Zealand but size isn't everything. Numbers aside, the uniformly high quality of Chardonnay made in this country...

And just like that Jules Taylor marks 25 years of winemaking

Jules Taylor is having an "and just like that moment" because this is her 25th year of winemaking in Marlborough. She made the first Jules Taylor wines - 400 cases of Pinot Gris and Riesling in 2001 - the same year that screw caps were launched in New Zealand on a chilly August day in Marlborough. The screw cap launch took off immediately and if appearances are anything to go by, so did Jules Taylor Wines but Jules admits that it hasn't all been plain sailing.“Every year, I feel a wave of nerv...

A life in wine - Philip Gregan announces retirement

It is the sort of announcement that marks the end of a long era of leadership for New Zealand Winegrowers - Chief Executive Officer Philip Gregan has announced that he will retire in 2026.The end of his dedicated tenure at NZ Winegrowers will mark 43 years of service to the New Zealand wine industry and the board of NZ Wiengrowers extends its deep gratitude to Philip for his contribution and lifelong commitment to the industry.“This remarkable tenure reflects a working lifetime of unwaver...

Winetopia turns 10 years young

Where can you try glasses of high priced, perfectly cellared, 10 year old Pinot Noir from some of New Zealand's best vineyard sites - and try lots of wines like this in one day?The answer is the 10th annual Winetopia in Auckland on Friday 3 and Saturday 4 October - and tickets are on sale now.“We wanted to take the serious wines usually found in exclusive trade tastings and put them into an environment which was fun and celebratory," says Winetopia Founder and Event Director Rob Eliott. �...

Pretty in pink and polarising - new rosés

Is there anything more contentious for wine drinkers than dry versus sweet wine? I'm not talking here about the obvious debates around packaging - corks versus screw caps (which is so old as a debate now, as to render it completely bizarre that it still enters conversation), boxes filled with plastic bladders and low priced large volume vessels, such as magnums for sub $20 bottles of wine.I am talking about pink wine that's pale but not dry. There's a long line up on my tasting table right ...

Boxing on Rosé - surprising new boxed rosé

Just when we (the royal 'we' - that's me, for one) thought wine in a box was a relic of bygone days, along comes a wine to prove otherwise. The new range highlights four varietals; Chardonnay, Dry Rosé, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz; all made in collaboration with South Australian artist Claire Ishino, whose role was the artwork on each two litre box. The producer is Yalumba, whose mantra for this range is something along the lines of dress to impress while also walking the sustainability talk ...

New reviews - Takapoto Estate Pinot Noirs

Just how many Pinot Noirs are made in New Zealand today?If the ever expanding lineup crossing my tasting table is anything to go by, there appears to be no ceiling - either in style or sheer volume - on the number of Pinot Noirs being produced across Aotearoa New Zealand today.Among the latest to impress is a standout from Takapoto Estate, with the Gibbston Valley Pinot Noir leading the charge. Once considered a marginal (read: cold) corridor connecting Central Otago’s warmer Cromwel...

Hunter's Wines adds an Australian connection

Hunter's Wines is paying homage to an Australian connection this month with the launch of Golconda Shiraz. The wine is made in homage to second generation family members, James and Edward Macdonald (nephews of Jane Hunter). Their great-great-grandfather’s paddle steamer, the Golconda, once plied the waters of the River Murray - and provided the inspiration behind this wine's name. 18/202022 Golconda Shiraz RRP $39.99The first swirl of the 2022 Golconda Shiraz tastes like wa...

Friendship and fine wine

Red Hut Wines is a tale of friendship, frustration and fine wine, only in this case it's also relatively affordable wine, which was launched this month by Mike Farrugia and Corey Ryan. The pair have collaborated on other winemaking enterprises so there is a high level of trust. And they both acknowledge that sometimes the best ideas are born out of frustration as well as out of friendship. For Corey Ryan, a winemaker with decades' of experience under his belt, and Mike Farrugia, a long...

A Pinot week

To say it's been a Pinot Noir week is an understatement. It has been a Pinot month as I have been immersed in thoughts, tastes and the incredibly diverse range of styles of Pinot Noir in New Zealand today, in preparation for the annual Drinksbiz Pinot Noir Report. The contents of which remain under wraps until the magazine is printed and in the hands of the wine, food and beverage industry in this country, within the next week or two. There have been far more Pinot Noirs to taste, rate, rev...