Mark Henderson

It is clear from the sales of the Nolo (No or Low Alcohol) wines that more people are looking to moderate their intake of alcohol.

If you thought that I have written about Central Pinot only recently, you would be absolutely correct.

I’ve recently read a speech given by winery owner Nigel Greening at Pinot Noir NZ 2025, earlier this year in Christchurch.

While tasting this Pinot Gris lineup with my colleague Mr Collins, we had considerable discussion about one of the wines: he initially struggled with the style, whereas I was a fan.

In my view, one of the strengths of the Central Otago wine scene has been the longevity of involvement of so many of its winemakers.

I can’t but help feeling (after tasting these wines amidst a bigger grouping) that Chardonnay in New Zealand is going from strength to strength.

Today, a marvellous opportunity awaited in the guise of four sub-regional expressions of pinot noir by Valli and two newcomers from Domaine Thomson.

It's hard to believe 1994 was more than 30 years ago. That year I drove to Bannockburn to help my friends Steve and Barbara plant their Cairnmuir Road Vineyard that later became Carrick.

Back in late January, the family and I did a bit of a road trip around the South for our summer break, taking in not only some stretches of road that I’d never driven before, but also others that I...

I’m taking artistic licence with a biblical quote here when I say that ‘‘man cannot live on pinot noir alone’’!

I’m delighted to report that the winner of the 2025 Real Review New Zealand Winery of the Year is Felton Road Wines from Bannockburn in Central Otago.

When putting together tasting lineups, I may focus on a single vintage.

The elephant in the room as I tasted these wines was the likelihood of the United States imposing tariffs on all our agricultural products.

Ageing gracefully.

It seems that everywhere I turn recently, news about the wine industry is full of doom and gloom.