Latest Tripadvisor Review

04 February 2012

We wanted to do a wine tour in Auckland and the concierge at our hotel suggested we do John's tour. Boy, are we glad we did!! We chose the afternoon tour which included the black sands beaches. John picked us up at our hotel and our adventure began. We visited 3 different wineries and had a wonderful lunch at one of them. The wineries were great - one of them was the home of my favorite sauvignon blanc (Kim Crawford), but the wineries were only a part of the experience. John took us to 2 lookout points that were breathtaking and drove to areas we never would have seen elsewhere. John's expertise about wine is impressive, but his knowledge (and love) of Auckland is even more. As I said in the title, if you go to Auckland you MUST take a tour with NZ Winepro. It was the highlight of our time in NZ.

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Cable Bay Vineyards 2011 Viognier stunning!

13 December 2011

I was on tour on Waiheke Island yesterday with clients, and was fortunate enough to try the newly released 2011

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NZWINEPRO - Auckland Wine Tours goes to number 1 in Tripadvisor

06 December 2011

Thanks to the amazing support and reviews written by our fantastic clients..It's truly an honour to be selected by Tripadvisor as the number one tour company in Auckland. The feedback from clients over the years has been amazing and humbling. My guests become my friends, and although I enjoy what I do with passion  and dedication, my clients write reviews and put comments on face book walls that  make me feel so lucky to share the experience with them. So thank you all to each and every one of you that helped us make it to Number One. You Rock! Cheers! - John McFarlane

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Villa Maria Estate Seddon Vineyard Pinot Noir

09 November 2011

 

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Tags: VillaMaria , Mudhouse

Tasting by Clos Marguerite

05 September 2011

I recently attended a tasting of Clos Marguerite wines at Millar & Co, a small fine wine retail store in the delightful St Heliers village. They have tastings from 5pm-8pm on Friday nights in-store. Clos Marguerite is the reward of patience and passion for co owners and husband and wife team Jean - Charles Van Hove and Marguerite Dubois, both originally from Belgium. Now happily re located to the world famous Sauvignnon Blanc region of the Awatere Valley in Marlborough New Zealand, they produce only two varieties from their 20 hectare property situated on a gravel terrace along the South bank of the Awatere River. The Sauvignon Blanc has a somewhat richer and weighty texture than many other Sauvgnon Blancs, making it reminiscent of the styles from Bordeaux. Excellent as an aperitif, the acidity is delicate and restrained and the flavours of ripe gooseberry, green capsicum and white asparagus make it an excellent accompaniment to seafood, shellfish or light summer foods.The flavours are fresh and clean carried by a fine acidity and delicate mineral character. It's a Sauvignon Blanc for food lovers.

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Matua Regional Series Central Otago Pinot Noir 2008

05 September 2011

I bought the last bottle of Central Otago Pinot Noir 2008 when I visited Matua Valley Wines yesterday. The new 2009 vintage has just been released. Given the price - around $25 at the cellar door I was impressed.

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Tags: PinotNoir , Matua