Sauvignon Blanc

Drawing on his background in heavy equipment, Yealands transformed the slopes that many had rejected as unsuitable for vines and developed 22 wetlands along the way.

Drawing on his background in heavy equipment, Yealands transformed the slopes that many had rejected as unsuitable for vines and developed 22 wetlands along the way. "Right from the start, our philosophy was to be as sustainable as possible," says the owner, who's also planting New Zealand flax to attract swans and towhees, and balance the monoculture of vines.

The winery saved almost a million kilowatt hours in its first year of operation, thanks to every conceivable bell and whistle of energy efficiency and conservation, from waste water treatment to rainwater catchment, solar panels and vertical access wind turbines, which Yealands builds himself.

Full Story: Sustainable wines worth a sip - The Province

Left to right ... PIERRO 2009 Semillon Sauvignon Blanc LTC ($31); PREVELI 2007 Cabernet Merlot   ($25); SMITH & HOOPER   2008 Merlot ($18).

FOLLOWING the sale of his landmark Clare Valley winery 15 years ago, Tim Knappstein was forced to become a winemaker with a masked identity.

With the sale of Tim Knappstein Wines to Lion Nathan went rights to use his moniker as part of his new cool-climate wine venture in the Adelaide Hills.

Full Story: Knappstein wine by another name - Daily Telegraph

Here's the latest jewel of an email that I received from a reader: "Hey Bill, I am still very much a novice and still a bit nervous about being around people who know a lot about wine. I have to tell you what happened to me last week when I was in New York. "We were out for dinner with some people, and I ordered a glass of chardonnay. This woman, I will refrain from calling her what I really want to write, chuckled and said that she 'neeeevver drinks chardonnay.' She said this in front of the whole table! "What's up? I hate being snobbed at. What do I not know that I should know? That scene set my wine appreciation back years.

I would have known how to respond to that.

Despite the fact that I abhor this type of behaviour, I can understand where it comes from. Wine is relatively new to our culture. Unlike parts of the world where people have a long tradition of drinking wine, in North America it has been popular for perhaps 20 years.

Full Story: The wine snob - Montreal Gazette

Deloitte partner Paul Munro said the number of wineries and vineyards for sale in Marlborough - home of New Zealand's signature style, sauvignon blanc - had soared from about 30 last Christmas to about 150.

He predicted that some winemakers who had invested their entire savings in the industry with high debt levels would struggle. Some would go under.

Bayleys Marlborough rural manager John Hoare said he normally had about a dozen properties on his books - today he has 50-plus, and few are selling.

Full Story: Downturn hitting local wine industry hard - New Zealand Herald

Sauvignon blanc accounted for 62 per cent of last year's grape harvest and 81 per cent of exports by volume with 91.5 million litres.

Wine writer Michael Cooper says the dominance of one variety is a huge risk.

Sauvignon blanc is a love-it-or-hate-it style, Cooper says.

Full Story: Sav Blanc dominance a concern - New Zealand Herald