Never let a little thing like pronunciation get in the way of deliciousness. Verdicchio is a case in point.  Ver-deek-ee-oh is the correct pronunciation, for those concerned about such matters, but most Italians are just happy that you have chosen one of their wines and tried to say the word. It's worth taking the plunge in this case and as we have a new addition to our Verdicchio range at Regional, it seems worth diving a little into what makes this white wine taste so good.  The name refers to the grape, which comes from central Italy and specifically from the Marche region; o ..read more

We’ve been delving into the wild world of hops of late and trying to focus on individual strains through single hop beers. However, let’s face it, hops are typically served in a fruit salad style, layered on top of each other in an attempt to maximise complexity and balance bitterness versus flavour. In fact, there are a few key hops that basically come bundled together, and when they do, they drive styles and even offer a glimpse of the notion of terroir (oh no - I’ve gone and mentioned the T word again!). I’m thinking of the English ale hops, the noble hops of Bavarian/Bohemian lagers and ..read more

What’s the most important thing about the beer you drink? Is it the malt, the water or the hops? I’m guessing a fair few of you will be leaning towards the word hops because, at the end of the day, the world of beer is currently pretty damn hop obsessed. And perhaps rightly so. What’s nice about this current fascination, is that we are seeing more and more transparency surrounding the hops used in many of the beers we love. They pop up incorporated in beer names and are fully featured in tasting notes. We’re becoming well versed in what different hops mean for the beers we drink and this is a ..read more

Small is never a word to use when describing any wine made from the Nebbiolo grape but it does fit for a wine from Carema DOC, one of the smallest areas devoted to Nebbiolo in north west Italy. And the 2019 Cantina Produttori Nebbiolo di Carema is one of greatest wines to pass my lips so far this year. Not that it is small in taste or lacks for flavour (far from it) but the volumes made are minuscule compared to other regions. So much so that Italian writer Cesare Pillon once wrote "As a great Nebbiolo from northern Piedmont, Carema has only one fault: in good years only 55 thousand bottles ar ..read more

Tuscany is the best known wine region in Italy and one of the most beautiful in the world. Cypress trees line the rolling hillsides that lead up to fortress villages with vines tumbling down the gentle slopes. Those slopes is where the best Tuscan wines come from and of course their most famous expression is Chianti and Chianti Classico but not all Chiantis are created equal, as we have all discovered when ordering a glass at a pizzeria or even a great restaurant.  This month our wine team at Regional Wines & Spirits has been busy tasting through interesting new Tuscan reds ..read more

  Who did make the world's first chillable red wine? The answer probably goes back a lot longer than most of us have been alive but there is a new trend today among winemakers globally to make lighter bodied red wines that work a treat when served lightly chilled. It all began for Wairarapa winemaker Jannine Rickards when she first tasted Foradori Lezer, a chilled red from a town in Trentino, north east Italy, where winemaker Elisabetta Foradori met a difficult vintage by making a light bodied red from it. The rest is history. Rickards has launched her second chillable red ..read more

Buy it in store - we have 12 precious bottles. That's our allocation for 2024. Get in quick. To describe Domaine Tempier Rosé as one of the cult wines of the world is to make a slight understatement. It is one of the highest priced, most sought after rosés made in France today in the small and heat filled enclave of Bandol, an appellation in the to die for beauty of Provence where lavender lines the gardens and the chocolatey Mourvedré grape lines the barrels. This pink wine is made mostly from Mourvèdre ( 50%) with Grenache and Cinsault playing support roles, this wine is made with direc ..read more

Craggy Range is one of New Zealand's best known producers for both its highly sought after, small volume collectible wines known as the Prestige Collection (launched mid year, every year) and for its affordable, deliciously divine dry Rieslings, Pinot Noirs and staunch age worthy reds. But it may come as a surprise to discover where most of its wines come from or, rather where most of the grapes used in Craggy Range wines are grown. The winery is based in Hawke's Bay and began with high quality plantings on the Gimblett Gravels and other areas in that region. Today, however, the Bay ..read more

Affordable champagne? It sounds like an oxymoron right now but we have negotiated price and volume to bring you two top shelf grower champagnes that deliver on flavour (X factor) and price (not over the top). It is no secret that the cost of living crisis has made our eyes water with the rise in prices of some of our favourite things but these two bubblies are under $60 on special all through December - and they reveal two different sides of the champagne taste spectrum.  The first is Champagne Bergere, made mostly from Chardonnay (70%) of the blend with Pinots Noir and Meunier ..read more

This is the simple story of a whisky, a very good whisky… It begins in 1995 with a man eagerly perusing the whisky shelves at Regional Wines in Wellington. It’s not the first time he’s done this and he’s caught the eye of the store owner. Soon the two are chatting about all things whisky and have formulated a plan to start tastings in the small and unassuming room upstairs. Little do they know, this is the beginning of a long and fruitful endeavour. Meanwhile, on the other side of the planet, Robin Tucek and John Lamond are also concocting whisky plans. They purchase their first cask and bott ..read more