Has it been six years? Really? When I first met Kirsten and Richard Searle they were a fresh-faced young couple bursting with nervous excitement having just taken possession of the iconic Matawhero Wines in Gisborne. It was 2008, they had three babies, a whopping mortgage, a rundown, rambling wine estate and wide-eyed dreams for the … Read More
A Year in Burgundy Now on VOD & DVD “Tender and real. It shows the hard work, the travails and tribulations of working the soil for a living.” — Wine Spectator VOD Streaming — Watch Now! A YEAR IN BURGUNDY is available now on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video and all other leading VOD platforms internationally. … Read More
Esk Valley Winemakers Reserve Gimblett Gravels Merlot Malbec Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 $59 ★★★★★ Inky purple in the glass and boasts aromas of pomegranate molasses, sweet fruit-wood smoke and prune followed by layers of complex, berry and cocoa notes. It’s built like a skyscraper, each level opening up to a floor with a different décor. With … Read More
Rimu Grove Pinot Gris 2010 $31 ★★★★½ Exotic confection and sweet, strudel-like aromas make way for a wave of luxuriously slick spices, succulent stonefruit and zesty acidity which creates a platform for excellent persistence of flavour. Not a pinot gris for the fragile or faint-hearted. www.rimugrove.co.nz
“Oh that’s such a cruisy job – wanna swap?” is something I hear regularly when I meet someone new and they find out what I do for a living. They must think it’s all just wine tasting day in day out, making a telly show and going to the occasional flash party. They don’t see … Read More
TOP NEW FOOD TV SHOWS FOR JANUARY FOOD TRIP WITH TODD ENGLISH TUESDAY 12.00PM, 4.00PM, 8.00PM on 1ST JANUARY In Food Trip with Todd English, the master chef, author and restaurateur again brings his talent and taste for reinventing traditional cooking to the screen. During his travels at home and abroad, Todd explores a different dish or … Read More
One Million Cases of New Zealand Pinot Noir New Zealand is now exporting well over one million cases of Pinot Noir a year. No surprise considering UK’s wine writer Jamie Goode recent comments that within 10 years New Zealand could be known for making the world’s consistently best Pinot Noir & Syrah. “That is 14 … Read More
SEPTEMBER 2012 PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS “SWEET SEPTEMBER” heston’s feast (new to food tv) MONDAY 12.30pm, 4.30pm, 8.30pm FROM 17th September 5X60 Heston Blumenthal becomes a gastronomic timelord as he turns off his blowtorch, puts on his chef whites and travels back in time to culinary worlds that have gone un-tasted for centuries to … Read More
How has your week been? Not too traumatic I hope. Sadly, I’ve suffered a fate in the last few days that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I’ve been found by Readers Digest. Only two years ago I celebrated finally being rid of those constant “Authorised Prize Guarantee” and pushy “Sweepstakes Chances” letters, but … Read More
Duck Creek ‘The Messenger’ Merlot Malbec Cabernet Franc 2010 $85 Who says the Gimblett Gravels and Waiheke Island are the be all and end all of great kiwi Bordeaux-style reds? This is a stunning example from the Stillwater area just north of Auckland near the Whangaparoa Peninsula and it’s a muscular, multilayered wine with leathery, … Read More