Wineinsights

30/05/2026

30/05/2026

I touched on this a few weeks ago, but the new barrage of “no safe level” headlines demanded a closer look. I spend my days watching people explore wine as flavour, culture and curiosity — and then watch the public messaging reduce it to fear and absolutes.

Public messages about alcohol keep getting louder, flatter, and more absolutist. After weeks of headlines repeating “no safe level,” this piece takes a closer look at what those claims ignore — and…

29/05/2026

Wonderful to catch up with Simon & Zala, our wine living friends from Slovenia and to taste a selection of their favourites from wine travel and work in the South Island.

25/05/2026

I opened this beauty for my quiet birthday at home. Chateau Beychevelle 2015 St Julien. This was the first estate I ever visited in Bordeaux and I still remember it as a generous and informative visit. Decanted two hours before serving, it was still opening up further in the glass four hours later but enjoyable tight from the start. Lovely deep clear dark ruby in the glass with aromas of violets cassis and Doris plum, followed by hints of lavender and dark chocolate. Medium to full bodied, with soft silky tannins and perfectly balanced acidity framing a core of plum dark cherry and black currant fruit edged with cedar, graphite and a touch of spice with a long dark fruited finish.

24/05/2026

Tonight's wine to wash down the sausages and mash was truly satisfying. Squawking Magpie 2016 Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Merlot. Inky ruby purple in the glass with aromas of blackcurrant, Doris plum, herbs and old spice. On the late, rich lush and mouth filling with fine tannins slightly drying on the finish, ripe dark berry fruit, nutmeg spice, vanilla and mocha, nice freshness and lingering fruit on the long finish albeit with drying tannins. Great value!

23/05/2026

Just published a new article exploring how wine is now being grown in places once considered impossible — from tropical monsoon vineyards to frozen northern plateaus. What began with a moment of surprise in Thailand led me through China, India, England and Scandinavia, tracing how climate, ambition and adaptation are reshaping the edges of the wine world. If you’re curious about where the future of viticulture is really unfolding, this is a fascinating journey.

From tropical monsoon vineyards to frozen northern plateaus, wine is now being grown in places once thought impossible. This article explores how climate, ambition and adaptation are reshaping the …

21/05/2026

I expected more and was disappointed. Pegasus Bay Cabernet Franc 2018, the first bottled as single variety after a warm vintage. Ruby in the glass with complex aromas of red fruits, lavender, some florals and spice. On the palate still had that complexity, light soft tannins but I felt the acidity too bright and the wine lacked richness and generosity. To call it thin would be unfair but I expected more

19/05/2026

Old Pinot Noir Vine ready for pruning soon

19/05/2026

Happy tour customers! Taking their own Chardonnay barrel samples with the wine thief provides a deeper understanding of the stages and variable of wine making on my exclusive tours.