I’m back, Events & subscription renewal

I’m back

You can breathe a sigh of relief. The real Editor is back.

Mind you as I sit here preparing this newsletter it is 4.50 pm yet almost dark, the rain is lashing on the roof and pouring over the side of the spouting outside the door, and the temperature is a balmy 8°, and to top it all off the Golf course was closed because of flooding. Where are the deserts of the UAE when you need them.

Just to answer Wayne’s question from the last month, yes we did have the opportunity to sample a couple of wines while we travelled. The cruise ship did not have a particularly good selection. We had a Grant Burge early in the cruise but it quickly disappeared off the wine list as did a number of others, and the selection became quite limited. We were able to sample a couple of Maltese wines, and two from Spain when we stopped in Barcelona. These were OK without being special. After paying between 9 and 12 $US for a glass (and not a particularly generous one) on the ship, we were probably overwhelmed by the significantly lesser price for bottles purchased onshore.

Events & subscription renewal

It’s that time of year again when we have several issues to deal with associated with the two upcoming tastings and renewal of subscriptions. Attached to the June dinner event you will find an attached payment advice form and the menu from Trade Kitchen.

Please complete the form and bring it to the June tasting or send to Wayne. Note that we are asking that you complete details of your requirements for the July dinner. This will make it easier for the restaurant on the night. And please check out the survey question. Of course, we are also asking you to part with some of your hard earned money but that is sort of normal for us.

See you next week, with another great tasting in store.

Cheers Robin Semmens, Editor

Under Negotiation – 13 March 2019

We are negotiating with a very well known wine personality in NZ to present at this meeting. There are still a couple of matters to resolve and consequently, we will not make any announcement at this time. We have other options so you may be assured that whatever the result you will be treated to the usual high standard of tasting. Watch this spot.

Coming events, recipes, BBQ

It’s the start of another year with much to look forward to.

Coming events

Now it may seem like a strange thing to say if you glance ahead to the coming events section, but things are quite well advanced with planning for the year. Just a small issue with the March tasting which might affect April. Don’t worry, as they say, it will all be right on the night.

Recipes

Some interest has been expressed about recipes for the food matches which we occasionally prepare (or provide) for tastings. For those interested, the recipes for the matches we did back in November for the Portuguese tasting are available on the website. Also, Wayne is collating the 2017 Spanish recipes for inclusion on the website. We will look to include future recipes as tastings progress.

BBQ

There were a few dishes etc left at Derek’s after the BBQ and I think these have been returned to their owners. If you have an item that you might have left there, let me know and we can pursue through Derek.

Cheers
Robin Semmens
Editor

 

Hawke’s Bay Wine – Autumn/Winter edition

Click cover image to view the autumn & winter issue. Opens in a new tab
Click cover image to view the autumn & winter issue. Opens in a new tab.

Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers presents your digital issue of Hawke’s Bay Wine – Autumn/Winter edition

  • Studying Syrah berry size
  • Turning vision into reality – a business strategy for Hawke’s Bay Wine
  • Ngaruroro WCO – cautious optimism

In every issue we profile Hawke’s Bay Wine companies and personalities, wine from our region and associated sectors. We offer up a number of informed viewpoints, cover the news and present a range of wine-related feature stories.

Do you have news relating to Hawke’s Bay Wine Sector?
Email: hawkesbaywinemag@xtra.co.nz.

Advertising enquiries can be directed to Kite Communications

Still being arranged – April tasting 2018

Tim Gibson drew himself and his family on the Mount Victoria lookout in the Wondrous Wellington Advent Calendar.

Hopefully, the sun is going to keep shining on us here in Wellington. Unfortunately, our plans for the April meeting have simply not come together.

Your committee is now looking at some new options. We will let you know as soon as we can arrange an alternative. Fortunately, we do have some skills and we are sure that whatever happens, we will have an enjoyable event.

Women in Wine NZ launch

(New Zealand Winegrowers  Media Release – 28 August 2017)

The inaugural Women in Wine NZ launch event sold out.   The first New Zealand Winegrowers’ Women in Wine NZ event, sponsored by Plant and Food Research, drew a capacity crowd with all 165 tickets snapped up. The event took place last week at the ASB Theatre in Blenheim, and marks the official launch of the Women in Wine NZ initiative.

New Zealand Winegrowers is keen to support women in the industry and encourage more to take up roles of leadership and governance, said Jeffrey Clarke, Acting CEO of New Zealand Winegrowers. “This first event is a great way to kick-start Women in Wine NZ. Having such a strong turnout for the first event just goes to show how much our members value the initiative. ”

New Zealand Winegrowers teamed up with three speakers who shared personal accounts of their professional journeys to date:

  • Sandra Taylor, CEO, corporate sustainability expert and writer (US)
  • Jeni Port, Journalist (Australia)
  • Nadia Lim, NZ MasterChef Winner 2011, co-founder of My Food Bag (NZ)

The speakers discussed the challenges they have encountered along their careers and offered insights into how they overcame them. Women in Wine NZ is not just about networking, and is open to anyone involved in the industry – regardless of gender or role, said Mr Clarke.  “We are an innovative industry and it is proven that diversity – gender, experience, perspectives and backgrounds – contributes to the development of new ideas. If we want to continue moving forward, initiatives that foster a more diverse and engaged industry will only drive our success.”

Editor back in charge, Coming events – From the Editor

Hi Team, I am back, and I am not quite sure that we, Pat and I, have organised this properly. We didn’t generally have the kindest of summer weather while we were away and we have been well aware that it is still very much winter since our return. We will need to time things a little better if we do this sort of thing again.

Editor back in charge

So after Acting Editor, then Acting Acting Editor, it is back to plain old Editor again. Whilst travelling around southern England I did note there were a few vineyards and wineries advertised. After our last trivia evening where a question revolved around the demise of British wineries due to climate change, I was interested to see where the industry is at now. For the same reason it collapsed, ie climate change, there has been a significant resurgence in the last few decades. There are currently about 500 vineyards covering 4,500 acres in Southern England and Wales. They currently produce only about1% of the world’s wine but it is a start. Note that “In the News” I have included an item about their first national wine awards.

As for visiting wineries and sampling European wines our touring did not incorporate any established wine regions. When we went visiting we took New Zealand wines when we could source them. Far better to encourage the British relatives to think about purchasing NZ wines.

Coming events

Only one link of the chain of destiny can be handled at a time -Winston Churchi
Only one link of the chain of destiny can be handled at a time -Winston Churchill

You will note that in the ”Coming Events” section there is quite a bit of TBAing. We have had a few late changes to deal with over the last couple of years and your committee think that we might commit to events a little too far ahead. We are trying not to get too far ahead but fear not, we have lots of great opportunities to tap into.

Cheers
Robin Semmens, Editor

Hawke’s Bay Wine – Winter Issue

Click cover image to view the winter issue. Opens in a new tab
Click cover image to view the winter issue. Opens in a new tab.

Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers presents your digital issue of Hawke’s Bay Wine – Winter Issue.

  • Building brand stories in the cellar door
  • New hydrological model making waves
  • New partner in biosecurity

In every issue we profile Hawke’s Bay Wine companies and personalities, wine from our region and associated sectors. We offer up a number of informed viewpoints, cover the news and present a range of wine-related feature stories.

Do you have news relating to Hawke’s Bay Wine Sector?

Email: hawkesbaywinemag@xtra.co.nz
Advertising enquiries can be directed to Kite Communications
Digital subscription sign up directed to Elisha

Copyright © 2017 Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Inc, All rights reserved.

Mailing address is:
Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Inc
PO Box 1174
Hastings, Hawke’s Bay 4156
New Zealand

Year under control, Fair Go

Year under control

Things are progressing nicely and we have the majority of the planning for the year under control. We are looking forward to the schedule of tasting and events for the year and expect the usual high level of support from members. Please remember, we always welcome your feedback and ideas.

Fair Go

I am sure many of you will have watched the Fair Go episode on TV recently where New Zealand producers were using some Australian wines to bolster their cheaper lines. The warning is clear, read the label well if you want to be sure you are drinking NZ wines. The argument was that as 70% of NZ white wines are exported they cannot produce enough “economy” wines for the local market. Is the inference that NZ consumers don’t matter? In any event the label should clearly state that it is the “Wine of Australia”. Naturally, no one who is a member of the Cellar Club would be fooled by such rubbish and would immediately identify the taste as a standard Aussie whine.

Cheers
Robin Semmens, Editor

Hawke’s Bay Wine – Autumn Issue

Click cover image to view the autumn issue. Opens in a new tab.
Click cover image to view the autumn issue. Opens in a new tab.

Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers presents your digital issue of Hawke’s Bay Wine – Autumn Issue.

  • Ngaruroro low flow threat to our wine industry
  • Classic Reds resounding success for Hawke’s Bay

In every issue we profile Hawke’s Bay Wine companies and personalities, wine from our region and associated sectors. We offer up a number of informed viewpoints, cover the news and present a range of wine-related feature stories.

Do you have news relating to Hawke’s Bay Wine Sector?

Email: hawkesbaywinemag@xtra.co.nz
Advertising enquiries can be directed to Kite Communications
Digital subscription sign up directed to Elisha

Copyright © 2017 Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Inc, All rights reserved.

Mailing address is:
Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Inc
PO Box 1174
Hastings, Hawke’s Bay 4156
New Zealand