46 APRIL 2016 New Zealand wine critic and author Bob Campbell will host a ‘first-of-itskind one-day wine course’ at New Zealand House in Haymarket, London, later this month. Catered by Anna Hansen’s The Modern Pantry, the course will cover New Zealand’s wine-making history, sustainable viticulture and organic winemaking, screw caps and the country’s rapid growth in wine production. In conjunction with The New Zealand Cellar, the event – with just 45 guests – will offer knowledge and tasting ability. More than ten wineries will take part in the event. Deputy Prime Minister Bill English took part in a special 100-year celebration at family-owned Babich Wines, which marked its foundation in 1916 on 72 acres of West Auckland land this month. With vineyards in Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay, the Henderson winery is still where the business headquarters are based, and the Deputy Prime Minister met three family members – general manager David Babich, managing director Joe Babich and chairman Peter Babich – to tour the facility and learn how the business has evolved over a century. A complex planned for Cromwell has been proposed to relieve worker accommodation shortages in the wine and viticulture industries. The Central Otago District Council is planning to sell 7ha of industrially-zoned land for a multi-lot development which will include residential accommodation for at least 400 people, with communal dining, bathroom and laundry facilities. Mayor Tony Lepper says the development should address the lack of accommodation that’s the biggest threat to the continued growth within the area’s two main industries…and he’s asking developers with lateral thinking and innovative ideas to come and talk to him. “We would love to talk to people who are prepared to invest in different solutions to house young couples and families,” he says. WI N E G R A B S Well-known British merchant Laithwaite’s Wine has entered the New Zealand market, bringiwng its doorstep wine delivery service to kiwi wine drinkers. The world’s largest wine delivery merchant with more than a million customers promises New Zealanders access to 250 wines from more than 6500 wines tasted by its staff. The selection will include New Zealand wines, as well as international old-world, emerging, invitation only estate, special project and limited release wines. The company, established by Tony Laithwaite, has operated in Australia for 10 years.
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