Posted by peter | August 6th, 2010 (by peter)
Prior to my lunch date at Terroirs with Susie (plus dozing baby), I had been attending an event at the Royal College of Physicians in which the UK was described as being in the grip of a ‘raging epidemic’ attributable to alcohol, a substance branded ‘a corporate-borne disease like mosquitoes carry malaria’. (More of which scientific harrumphing you can read on my immediately preceding blog entitled ‘Corporate-borne disease’.)
Time for a drink, and a meditation
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Posted by susie | June 29th, 2010 (by susie)
Here’s an article of mine on the wonderful subject of the best rosé champagnes to drink this summer.
There’s something for everyone, from big names to great bargains from lesser known growers. Yes it’s hedonistic but we need something to take our minds off the football…(plus you can use it to get into training for our Celebration of Champagne course on Sunday 17th October 2010!)
It originally appeared in the June 2010 edition of Decanter, and is
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Posted by peter | April 11th, 2010 (by Oliver Smallwood)
The following article was sent in to us by Oliver Smallwood, freelance photographer and amateur booze hound of pure Kentish stock. In it, Olly identifies an intriguing cross-fertilisation between the local wine and hop/beer industries, and wonders if this might not be leading to a revival in what he terms the UK’s “sorry garden state”. He’s also included a few welcome recommendations for Kentish tipples.
September 1980, a country lane setting. Warm sun, dusty
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Posted by peter | March 24th, 2010 (Author: Peter)
I have received many messages from Chile in the wake of the massive earthquake that stunned the country before dawn on Saturday 27th February 2010. (Click here for my earlier report.)
Of all of them, one stood out for its vivid, intensely personal, very moving and ultimately thought-provoking nature.
It was from Andrés Sánchez. Andrés is a respected winemaker in Chile, albeit still young and also something of an outspoken maverick. He married Daniela Gillmore, daughter of
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Posted by peter | March 22nd, 2010 (Author: Peter)
Since we arrived back from New Zealand a week ago, I’ve finally managed to get in touch with many of my friends and colleagues in the Chilean wine industry.
The responses that have flooded in are very telling, mainly as a result of their striking similarities.
There’s not a trace of self-pity. Just sadness for those who perished. And a profound sense of gratitude for having survived, along with loved ones. (As far as I can make out, very few connected with the wine
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Posted by peter | March 10th, 2010 (by peter)
Our Kiwi odyssey came to an end in Nelson, with the obligatory visit to local vinous heavyweight Neudorf.
We were hosted by the delightful Judy Finn, wife of Tim, in their bright yet breezy Upper Moutere base, where they have been since first setting up in 1978. (They had an option to buy the plot or go sailing round the world with friends; the yachting world’s loss was the wine world’s gain.)
Neudorf has around 35 hectares of vineyard, with production split between Brightwater
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Posted by peter | March 10th, 2010 (by peter)
The mobile road sign read “tsunami alert” as we drove towards the coast on a blazing hot Sunday morning in Marlborough.
We stopped, and turned the car around.
It was just one of the many sobering reminders of the Chilean earthquake that have been filtering through to us in recent days. Being on the road, we’ve been somewhat disconnected from the real world of late, and have not been able to be in touch with our many Chilean friends and colleagues as we would have liked.
As
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Posted by peter | March 10th, 2010 (by peter & susie)
2008: the tipping point
In 2008, various factors conspired to make an annus horribilis for the New Zealand wine industry: a mediocre vintage, over production, downward pressure on prices by big retailers and a global financial crisis being prime among them.
The country needs to take the hard lessons learned during 2008 and use them to its benefit rather than ignore them to its detriment.
One key issue that needs addressing is yields: the habitual over-cropping,
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Posted by peter | February 28th, 2010 (by susie)
Driving into the wine country of Martinborough there was a subtle, almost imperceptible shift in atmosphere.
We had entered another world – a laid-back milieu of boutique wineries and small, sleepy towns that seemed to belong to a bygone age.
Our first stop in the region was Greytown. We’d been told to try The French Bakery. A white, wood-board building with smart grey signage: it looked promising from the outset and we weren’t to be disappointed.
Pete took one bite of
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Posted by peter | February 22nd, 2010 (by susie)
Auckland: 3.38am.
We have arrived.
One of the many things I said shortly after we’d touched down into a steamy Auckland airport was: I need a large glass of Sauvignon Blanc. Twenty four hours of alcohol-free flying with a two-year-old followed by the welcoming New Zealand sunshine had left me rather parched.
I wasn’t to be disappointed, either. After a brief interlude, including picking up our shiny red yet spatially challenged Ford Focus hire car and duly getting lost in
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