– – It’s dark. A few minutes after midnight. An almost full moon shines down upon a hollow patch of clouds, turning them silver, and leaving only a little light left to illuminate the hallowed ground below. A gentle wind rises and rushes through the bony remains of harvest, causing the canes to rattle and shake, and disturb the peaceful silence. Shadows … Continue reading ‘Fortunate Futures’ – Ata Rangi Martinborough N.Z.
“In the end, there’s a certain amount of luck in choosing to plant chardonnay on the Moutere Hills,” says Tim Finn from Neudorf Vineyards in Nelson, New Zealand. “We suspected the potential for New Zealand to make great wine…” Neudorf was first planted by Tim and his wife Judy in the late 70’s. They were … Continue reading ‘Back To Land’ – Neudorf Vineyards, Nelson, N.Z.
Alex Craighead is an Australian born New Zealander who trained as a chef, before moving to Western Australia for the warm weather, and to study accounting. “I moved to WA because I was so sick of the cold in Wellington,” says Alex. “I didn’t have very much money and the only place we could go … Continue reading IS DON IS GOOD – DON Wines, Martinborough, NZ
“Everything we do is really to look after a very singular and unique piece of land,” says Nick Mills, from Rippon. Rippon is the name of (probably) the most beautiful piece of land in the world that grows wine. It’s located “on a bit of dead end road,” on the outskirts of the resort town … Continue reading ‘Articulating Place’ – Rippon, Wanaka, New Zealand
“Wine has this magical capacity to become a kind of liquid geography that can show the little nuances of a particular time and place, and I feel like it’s a moral failure not to aim for that,” says Mike Weersing, of Pyramid Valley in New Zealand. “You might not get there every time, but you must do … Continue reading ‘Transcendence’ – Pyramid Valley, Waikari, New Zealand (Part Two)
“I wanted to find a place where the voice was so loud that you couldn’t hear the grape,” says Mike Weersing, winegrower at Pyramid Valley, in New Zealand. After 15 years of searching, Mike and his wife Claudia, who were originally from the US, finally settled on an old sheep farm in Wairkari, North Canterbury. They … Continue reading ‘The Empyrean’ – Pyramid Valley, North Canterbury, New Zealand (Part One)
“I have a few colleagues who are very particular about the way they think wine should be made… When we released our first wine, in 2012, we had no idea what we were going to call it, and someone at work said to me, ‘the way you make wine is the wrong way’, and I said, … Continue reading ‘Learn The Rules’ – The Other Right, South Australia
In evolutionary biology, punctuated equilibrium theory states, ‘that most species once formed will exhibit little net evolutionary change for most of their geological history, remaining in an extended state of stasis.’ However, when a significant evolutionary change does occur, the theory proposes that it is generally restricted to a rare, but rapid event (on a geological time scale), … Continue reading ‘Of Place And Time’ – The Future of Australian Wine
“I don’t really know how I got into wine,” says Gareth Belton from Gentle Folk. “It just sort of happened over time…” Gareth has a degree in marine biology from the University of Adelaide and was studying for a PHD, to become a specialist in seaweed phycology, which means he goes diving in search of rare … Continue reading ‘Born Natural’ – Gentle Folk, Basket Range, SA
“There’s a really nice balance that a vineyard has between its rural setting and its closeness with the land, and wine as a product that you can take and showcase around the world,” says Nicholas Brown, winemaker at Black Estate. “And, it’s a product that New Zealand seems to be doing some pretty good … Continue reading ‘In Pursuit of Place’ – Black Estate, Waipara, NZ
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