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New Zealand wine of the week - www.wineoftheweek.com
edited by Sue Courtney
Wine of the Week newsletter No. 49 - February 2008
5 February 2008
Dear Friends of www.wineoftheweek.com,
In this issue: -
Busby, Father of New Zealand Wine The Sustainable Buzz Wine Festivals Recent Wines of the Week Recent Blog EntriesBusby, Father of New Zealand Wine
Tomorrow, February 6th, is Waitangi Day. It is a pubic holiday in New Zealand, which for some people simply means a day off work - to sleep in, to go to the beach or a chance to go shopping, yet again, for bargains at the predictable sales at the malls. But for others it is a day on reflecting on the birth of New Zealand as a nation. Because on the 6th February, 1840, the Treaty of Waitangi, which placed the colony under British rule, was signed. On February 6th, at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands, the official commemorations - and unofficial protests - are held in the grounds of what is now known as the 'Treaty House'.However few people realise that this iconic 'Treaty House' was the home of New Zealand's first winemaker. It was the home of James Busby, the first 'official' British Resident to New Zealand. This is the same James Busby that is regarded as the Father of Australian and New Zealand wine. Busby built the house after arriving in Bay of Islands in northern New Zealand 1833 to take up his position. Using grapevine cuttings he had collected in France and Spain before arriving in New Zealand, he planted New Zealand's first vineyard (vinery) expressly for the purpose of making wine in New Zealand's first winery.
The Treaty of Waitangi was signed at Busby's residence - it was signed at the home of New Zealand's first winemaker. So February 6th is indeed an appropriate time (if indeed you need an excuse) to open a bottle of New Zealand wine. February 6th is the day to pour a glass of New Zealand wine and drink a toast to Busby, the Father of New Zealand wine.
This piece on Busby, written last year, delves further into Busby's career in wine, his books and some quotes.The Sustainable Buzz
The buzz word among New Zealand winegrowers today is sustainable, which not only pertains to growing grapes but also to making wine, packaging wine and transporting wine to markets locally and internationally.Yesterday New Zealand Winegrowers announced the launch of an initiative to give wineries and vineyards the ability to calculate their carbon footprint and to encourage sustainable winegrowing. It has been developed through a partnership between key international wine industry organisations in Australia, California, South Africa and New Zealand. The protocol includes an internationally-agreed standard of inclusions by participating countries and gives wineries and vineyards the ability to calculate their greenhouse gas emissions.
If you are interested in this type of thing, you can download the protocol and calculation tool from the New Zealand Winegrowers website at this link.
Wine Festivals
February is the high point on the Festival Calendar. Hawkes Bay was last weekend, but Wine Marlborough, the country's biggest wine festival, with 57 wineries participating this year, is on this Saturday, February 9th, at the famous Brancott Estate.Also coming up ...
Feb 9th: Kumeu Beer,Wine and Food Festival, Kumeu, Auckland
Feb 16th: Weta Wine and Food Festival, Waipukurau, Hawkes Bay
Feb 16/17th: Devonport Wine and Food Festival, Devonport, Auckland
Feb 17th: Brightwater Wine and Food Festival, Nelson
Feb 23rd: Whangarei Wine and Food Festival, Whangarei, Northland
Mar 2nd: Matakana Wine and Food Festival, Matakana, north of Auckland
Mar 15th: Wairarapa Wines Harvest Festival, between Masterton and Carterton, north of Wellington
Mar 15th: Te Awamutu Wine and Food Festival, south of Hamilton
Mar 15th: Gibbston Harvest Festival, Gibbston Valley, Central Otago
Mar 16th: Waipara Wine and Food Celebration, Waipara, north of Christchurch
Details and links for the above, plus other events, on my 'What's On' page
Wine of the Week - Hihi Sirius Chardonnay 2007
Week ending 10 Feb 2008: As much as Sauvignon Blanc is the number one grown and top selling varietal white wine in New Zealand and as much as Pinot Gris is still the trendy new white wine, there are still countless of us who are extremely satisfied with a glass of soft, comforting Chardonnay. [...]Wine of the Week - Te Mania Three Brothers Merlot Malbec Cabernet 2006
Week ending 3 Feb 2008: Have you ever noticed wines with just Cabernet on the label without the qualification of Sauvignon or Franc? There is often no indication, at a quick, glance, exactly which 'cabernet' it is. I'm sure most of us assume Cabernet Sauvignon, but it could as equally indicate Cabernet Franc [...]Wine of the Week - Pegasus Bay Dry Riesling 2007
Week ending 27 Jan 2008: We've made a new style of Riesling," said Matthew Donaldson of Pegasus Bay Wines, when we were talking on the phone the other day. [...]Industry News and Wine of the Week
4 Feb 2008: Ant McKenzie leaves Spy Valley; Unison Vineyard is sold; Hihi Sirius Chardonnay is this week's Wine of the Week [...]The Woodbox at Mystery Creek
3 Feb 2008: Headed down to Hamilton yesterday, about 80 miles south of Auckland - and I say miles because we were in a classic car which does not measure distance in kilometres. Hamilton is not really known as a wine tourism destination but there are some wineries close to the city so I thought I'd give my updated Waikato wine region touring guide a whirl [...]Outstanding NZ Syrahs
1 Feb 2008: New Zealand Syrah was on the tasting agenda at last Wednesday's Wine Spirit tasting and with some of the most awarded Syrahs on the Show circuit included, we were in for a real treat [...]237 Golden Wines
31 Jan 2008: When the results for the Sydney International Wine Competition were announced a couple of weeks ago, I looked at the spreadsheet that arrived with the Press Release to find that 361 wines had received a Blue-Gold medal or Highly Commended award with 121 of the Blue-Gold wines receiving a 'Top 1OO Blue-Gold' status [...]Pegasus Bay Maestro 2003 - a wine for three courses
29 Jan 2008: Made with estate fruit from the Pegasus Bay vineyard in the Waipara Valley, north of Christchurch in the South Island, the Pegasus Bay Maestro Merlot Malbec 2003 is a stunning find [...]Auckland Anniversary Day and Marlborough Vintage Update
28 Jan 2008: It's been a public holiday here in Auckland, New Zealand today as office and business workers in the top half of the North Island get a day off to sleep in, to check out the sales in the malls, to watch or take part in the world's largest regatta on Auckland Harbour or go for a drive, perhaps to one of the region's beautiful beaches. Or, for something completely different, to visit a vineyard [...]Drink an Australian wine today
26 Jan 2008: Today is Australia Day, so if you need an excuse to pop the cork or unscrew the screwcap on a bottle of Australian wine, today is the day to do it [...]Cloudy Bay sings an Aria and sends Shirvers up the spine
25 Jan 2008: A few stunning wines were poured at Wednesday night's Wine Spirit tasting with several wines putting on top performances. One of those was a wine with the name, a wine with the fame, the wine none other than Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2007 ($33) [...]The names behind the new labels and Ebbitt Oyster winners
24 Jan 2008: Thanks to Mike in Oregon and Pete in the UK for responding to the question in yesterday's entry. 'Chasing Venus' is a new wine brand from the Sacramento-based Crew Wine Company [...]Vaynerchuck reviews new labels from the locals
23 Jan 2008: Ever heard of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from Arona, New Harbor, Chasing Venus, Discovery, Tohu, Nobilo Icon and Kim Crawford. Well, you should have heard of the last three because they are firmly established New Zealand brand names. But what about the others? [...]RIP Sir Edmund Hillary
22 Jan 2008: We'll raise a glass in memory of you. We'll raise a glass to the greatest ever New Zealand adventurer. A quiet and humble achiever who was universally revered, you will live on in our hearts - and in the $5 notes in our wallets [...]Wine of the Week: Pegasus Bay Dry Rieslng 2007
21 Jan 2008: Why is it that some of us absolutely love Riesling but others detest it? I am a long time Riesling drinker and definitely part of the 'love it' camp, but I know others who are in the 'detest it' camp, so I have a few ideas. But to gain some more insight [...]Five Refreshing Roses
20 Jan 2008: It's summer. It's hot. And here in Auckland it's humid. It's the time of year when a chilled light wine is very refreshing , for a picnic lunch at the beach, maybe, or for a refreshing aperitif before dinner. So last evening, with this in mind I opened five recently arrived bottles of the pink stuff [...]A Quartet of Viogniers
18 Jan 2008: Way back in May last year I reviewed my first 2007 wines of the vintage and one of those wines was the already impressive Coopers Creek Gisborne Viognier 2007. The wine was fresh and clean and showed just how exciting the variety can be [...]Find older entries on my Blog Archive.
That's all for now.
Cheers,
Sue Courtney
Editor, wineoftheweek.com
mailto:wineoftheweek@clear.net.nz
www.wineoftheweek.com
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