blog

blog http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/ Northburn100 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn100/ The grueling Northburn100 is on this weekend at Northburn Station. Check out this link for more information - <a href="http://www.odt.co.nz/regions/central-otago/202352/runs-ultramarathons-just-fun">Northburn100</a> Fri, 23 Mar 2012 11:46:41 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn100/ Don't Panic! http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/don-t-panic/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage100148-Dont-panic.jpg" width="100" height="148" alt="" title=""/>“Don’t panic Captain Mainwaring” should be the catch cry at Northburn. Despite a record wet couple of months for Central and the stories going around about some grower’s block, the grapes at Northburn are in pristine condition with accumulating sugars, acids dropping and flavors developing along nicely. We anticipate picking the first of our grapes late next week in good condition so we will be able to make the best possible example of your favourite wines. In fact with the settled weather between bunch set and veraison, the critical time for flavour development, and with the early maturation of seeds and stalks, this may turn into a vintage year. But as always the truth is in the glass at the end. Thu, 22 Mar 2012 16:18:34 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/don-t-panic/ Field Mushroom Harvest http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/field-mushroom-harvest/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage100133-Field-Mushrooms.jpg" width="100" height="133" alt="" title=""/><img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage100133-Field-Mushroom-Relish.jpg" width="100" height="133" alt="" title=""/>With all the sun and the recent rain we have had there are plenty of delicious field mushrooms popping up all over the vineyard. While waiting for harvest our vineyard crew have been picking and preparing the mushrooms for our chef's to make our 'World Famous in Cromwell' Field Mushroom Relish which is now available in the farmgate shop. 
 Mon, 12 Mar 2012 15:10:05 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/field-mushroom-harvest/ Verse for Veraison http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/verse-for-veraison/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/Page/_resampled/resizedimage300225-vineyard-photos-133.jpg" width="300" alt="" title=""/>
 
The days are shortening,
the nights getting cooler
the berries are softening,
the bunches are getting fuller.
 
 
The birds are chirping,
the vineyard work is near done.
The colours are changing,
and the winery prepares for the fun,
 
Veraison is here, so raise your glasses
as last seasons wines are bottled
and we wait with anticipation
of what is to come. Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:17:49 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/verse-for-veraison/ We are still here! http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/we-are-still-here/ Sorry about our lack of info on the website over the last couple of months but as you can imagine we have been 'flat out' in the Cellar Door. Over Waitangi weekend Veraision has started to happen in the vineyard so we are on track for an Easter vintage for 2012 especially with the 35 degree days we have been having this week.
 Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:33:43 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/we-are-still-here/ From the Vineyard http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/from-the-vineyard/ <a href="http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/from-the-vineyard/" target="_blank"><img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage200149-flowering-young-plants-001.jpg" width="200" height="149" alt="" title=""/></a>Here in the Northburn vineyard we enjoy watching the movement of the plants which are dictated to by the seasons; winter spring summer and autumn, which in turn are dictated by the rhythms of the earth.
From the quiet dormant winter when we go about our business of grooming for the forth coming season as the vines sleep like an old ragged bear, to the mad chaos that is spring as the vines burst to life with energy and vigour and the vineyard crew work hard to tame the savage beast thru to now when we are enjoying the calmness of the vines flowering.
Beautiful warm flowering conditions are allowing the vines to push thru with great ease. Smelling the flowers in the vineyard at this time gives us a first glimpse of what the harvest is to be and I can tell you it's very floral with intense lovely primary fruits which promises much for the 2012 vintage.
 Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:25:18 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/from-the-vineyard/ Artist in Residence http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/artist-in-residence/ Northburn has had an Artist in Residence for the past 8 weeks. John Herbison has created over 80 pieces of art including painting and sculptures during his time at Northburn and these pieces are on display at The Shed until 20th December so come out and have a look. To read more about John <a href="http://www.odt.co.nz/entertainment/arts/190851/northburn-prolific-period-artist" target="_blank" title="John Herbison Article">click here</a>.
<a href="http://www.odt.co.nz/entertainment/arts/190851/northburn-prolific-period-artist" target="_blank" title="John Herbison Article"/> Thu, 15 Dec 2011 12:06:53 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/artist-in-residence/ Best Innovative Wine Tourism Experience http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/best-innovative-wine-tourism-experience/ Northburn was judged Best Innovative Wine Tourism Experience in the Best of Wine Tourism Awards for Great Wine Capitals Global Network for the Christchurch-South Island wine region. The award was for the wine and food match. "It is what we have been working for from the start," Jan said. "It shows that what we set out to do has achieved fabulous results for us. Being recognised like this shows we are doing something a little different and helping put Central Otago on the map." Global Wine Capitals awards chief judge Joanna Fountain said the standard of entries in the "coveted" awards had been extremely high this year, and Northburn Station was delivering an "exceptional" wine tourism experience. 
The Great Wine Capitals Global Network is an alliance of nine internationally renowned wine regions - Bordeaux, France; Cape Town, South Africa; Christchurch-South Island, New Zealand; Florence, Italy; Mainz-Rehinhessen, Germany; Mendoza, Argentina; Porto, Portugal; Bilbao-Rioja, Spain and San Francisco-Napa Valley, USA. The Best of Wine Tourism Awards serve as an industry benchmark for excellence and recognize leading wineries and wine-tourism related businesses within each Great Wine Capital that have distinguished themselves in areas such as innovation, service and sustainable practices Tue, 22 Nov 2011 14:35:10 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/best-innovative-wine-tourism-experience/ Planting the first Gewurztraminer Vines at Northburn http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/planting-the-first-gewurztraminer-vines-at-northburn/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage150112-2011-11-02-14.30.08.jpg" width="150" height="112" alt="" title=""/>
We were honoured to have Tom's Cousin Ann Pinckney (that's her in the red Jersey) over from Taramea (Her home in the Wakatipu where she planted some of the first grapes in the Central Otago region in the mid 1970's) to help us plant the first Gewurztraminer vines at Northburn. Below is Ann's Blog!
I spent an enjoyable afternoon at Northburn last Wednesday helping Tom and Shane and team plant the first of their Gewurztraminer. Well let's hope it is Gewurtz. I say that because in Europe the variety is TRAMINER and the wine is called GEWURTZTRAMINER only when the grapes develop the spice flavors so familiar to this variety. It was particularly auspicious day for me as it was through a cousin of Tom's Mother Ann that in 1975 I was able to work in a winery in Alsace. It was there I was introduced to this variety, a variety that was to become my passion and added to my motivation to plant vines in the Wakatipu in the following year. It is a variety that offers great complexity and intrigue. I will look forward to watching the progress of these vines. I hope in time it will add an interesting dimension to an already interesting selection of wines from Northburn.
Ann Pinckney
 
 Wed, 09 Nov 2011 12:27:09 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/planting-the-first-gewurztraminer-vines-at-northburn/ New Vintage http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/new-vintage-2/ <a href="http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/new-vintage-2/#Vintage"><img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage15099-Northburn-32.jpg" width="150" height="99" alt="" title=""/></a>2011 vintage has come and gone. The Pinot Noir was quietly sleeping in the cellar – but now the secondary (malolactic) fermentation has started slowly and gently as the cellar warms. Too early to give too much away on the final wine – but the fruit was beautiful and the fermentations text-book clean – so it all bodes well <a href="http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/new-vintage-2/#Vintage">...</a> 
Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and Rosé are all safely into bottle and almost ready for launching onto the market. The Riesling, as in previous years, is taking longer than the others to get through puberty and won’t be ready for prime time for a couple more years – but should be worth the wait.
The Pinot Gris is our best yet with intense nashi pear richness melded with the yeasty bready lees influence. Our Rosé maintains the vibrant colour we have become noted for and is drier than previous vintages which is more in keeping with the traditional styles from say Provence. The structure and weight of a red wine with the crisp freshness of a white – the best of both worlds in a single glass!
By all accounts it was an above average vintage for Northburn. The weather wasn’t always cooperative but the fruit came in lusciously ripe at lower sugar levels than normal which means that none of the wines are too high in alcohol. The fermentations were all clean without any intervention showing good nutrient balance in the grapes. This is a reflection of the developing maturity of the vines and, I believe, in the more natural, organic approach to vineyard management that has been applied over recent vintages. Thu, 22 Sep 2011 14:49:34 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/new-vintage-2/ Award winning photography http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/award-winning-photography/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage300200-Janyne-Harman-photo-of-Tom-in-yardssmall-.jpg" width="250" alt="" title=""/>Hi everyone, check out this great photograph of Tom in the yards at Northburn. Local photographer <a href="http://www.janyneharman.com">Janyne Harman</a> won a bronze medal in the National awards with this photograph. “I was at Northburn doing a commercial shoot for the CODC when we had about two minutes of beautiful golden light that lit up the scene and showed Central Otago at its absolute best but I had to be quick!” Congratulations to Janyne for this award.
 Mon, 05 Sep 2011 09:51:57 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/award-winning-photography/ Central Otago Tourism Award Winners http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/central-otago-tourism-award-winners/ The Shed at Northburn Station was named the Tourism Award winner at the 2011 Central Otago Awards held on Friday 12 August 2011.
The award recognises the significant contribution and commitment that The Shed makes to the tourism industry within the region. The Shed is a business that demonstrates key attributes of sustained success, innovation and high standards of service.
For The Shed, the award is all the more remarkable in that the venue was established only two and a half years ago when “Jan and Tom Pinckney realised a dream and indulged their passions for wine, food and hospitality.
Together with a fantastic team of committed personnel Tom and Jan produced “The Northburn Experience” that the judges said was “uniquely and unequivocally” Central Otago.
Tom and Jan say “It is through our commitment to the industry that we give visitors a reason to travel here and experience our product, explore our wonderful region and a reason to return, they are thrilled to win the award and are humbled considering the high calibre of finalists.”
 
 Mon, 15 Aug 2011 14:48:37 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/central-otago-tourism-award-winners/ Northburn Station Central Otago Tourism Awards Finalist http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn-station-central-otago-tourism-awards-finalist-2/ Northburn has been announced as one of the finalists in the 2011 Central Otago Tourism Awards.
"In two short years Jan and Tom have realised their dream. Indulging in their passions for wine, food and hospitality and combining it with excellent business planning and rigorous processes they have enjoyed immediate success. The judges were in 'awe' of the 'excellence and breadth of services' and the couple's commitment to 'best practice'. They have rapidly built an impressive brand, which the judges describe as being 'one of their most important successes'. Jan and Tom are true champions of Central Otago's 'World of Difference' brand values. Through finding a niche and making a special point of difference they have added real value and achieved a premium Central Otago experience."
The winners will be announced at an awards evening on 12 August.
 Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:27:10 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn-station-central-otago-tourism-awards-finalist-2/ “What was I thinking”…Paul Henry launches his book at Northburn. http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/what-was-i-thinking-paul-henry-launches-his-book-at-northburn/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage170113-Paul-Henry-2.jpg" width="170" height="113" alt="" title=""/>We wowed him with the scenery, venue, wine and food; he wowed us with his popularity (200 attended), his warmth, enthusiasm and an insight into his more personal life with wit enthralling the crowd.
In conjunction with Paper Plus we managed to raise $5,000 on the night for our charity of choice Cure Kids for the launch of Red Nose Day,
Both Mike from Paper Plus and Jose from Cure Kids spoke and thanked Northburn for the contribution the Pinckney family make to the charity and local community, which was very appreciated and well received.
The girls in the kitchen produced a wonderful array of canapés to guests before and after Pauls interview, many people stayed on into the evening enjoying great company and our award wining wines.
<img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage170113-Paul-Henry-and-Girls.jpg" width="170" height="113" alt="" title=""/>Guests had the opportunity to chat with Paul as he mingled amongst the crowd then back to signing his “best seller” books to the enthusiastic group gathered, all to soon off he went into the night with a favourite Northburn Pinot Noir 07 under his arm.
We have had many book launches at The Shed and will continue to do so but this particular one was a winner! Fri, 08 Jul 2011 11:35:41 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/what-was-i-thinking-paul-henry-launches-his-book-at-northburn/ They're drinking our wine here ....... http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/they-re-drinking-our-wine-here/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage150112-Andy-Kilsby.JPG" width="150" height="112" alt="" title=""/>We received this great email and photo from a customer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Thought we would share it - they're drinking our wine here too!
Hey guys
Thought I'd share this with you: Picture taken of your fine product (2010 Pinot Gris) post consumption whilst 'Tailgating' at a Milwaukee Brewers baseball game in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Enjoyed by all - keep up the good work! Cheers Andy Kilsby Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:12:47 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/they-re-drinking-our-wine-here/ Southern Rural Life Article http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/southern-rural-life-article/ Northburn featured in the latest edition of Southern Rural Life. <a href="http://digital.southernrurallife.co.nz/OLIVE/ODE/SRL_DAILY/Default.aspx?href=http://www.northburn.co.nz/SRL%2F2011%2F06%2F08&amp;pageno=1&amp;view=document ">Click here</a> to read the article on our first venture into the Asian market. Wed, 15 Jun 2011 16:08:55 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/southern-rural-life-article/ Northburn Station wins Best of Show at Hong Kong International Wine Challenge 2011 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn-station-wins-best-of-show-at-hong-kong-international-wine-challenge-2011/ <img class="left" src="http://www.northburn.co.nz/assets/_resampled/resizedimage150100-Tom-with-Trophy-HOFEX-2011.jpg" width="150" height="100" alt="" title=""/>Northburn Station won Gold and Silver medals, and also took the top award of Best of Show with the 2008 Riesling at the Hong Kong International Wine Challenge 2011.
 
The 2008 Riesling won a gold medal and the 2007 Pinot Noir a silver medal; the wines were awarded the medals for food and wine cuisine matching. The Riesling’s gold medal automatically enrolled it for the Best of Show award on the final day of judging, Friday 13th May.
 
Owner Tom Pinckney was in Hong Kong attending HOFEX where the Best of Show trophy was awarded and presented. HOFEX is Asia’s leading Food and Hospitality Trade Show and is praised as the premier meeting place to connect the world with China, and other countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
 
“To win gold and silver medals and then Best of Show is a great accolade for Northburn Station, Central Otago and New Zealand”, Tom Pinckney said.
 
Northburn Station entered the two wines and won on both, having the medal stickers now on these two winning wines will let the buyer know they are buying outstanding wines. Northburn Station winemaker, Richard Broadhead was thrilled that a Central Otago Riesling won Best of Show, as the area is recognized more as the Pinot Noir region of New Zealand.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?hl=en&amp;v=zWZjCHzT5Po&amp;gl=US">HOFEX 2011 on youtube</a>
 
 Mon, 16 May 2011 15:01:45 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/northburn-station-wins-best-of-show-at-hong-kong-international-wine-challenge-2011/ Father Time and Mother Nature http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/father-time-and-mother-nature/ Our tenth harvest is all in with beautiful ripe fruit in clean bunches, sent off to the winery for Richard and the winemaking team to babysit until they mature into the wine you will enjoy in the forth coming years. It’s been a year that has required a lot of hard work to get right. At the start of the season Father Time must have gone to the pub because Mother Nature was in a great mood and everything grew really well, but for us in the vineyard there was not a lot of time around to keep up with the work. The second half of the season Mother Nature got a little annoyed with Father Time spending so much time at the pub and her mood turned cold and teary which made our job even more fun in the vineyard. What does all this mean? The fruit was excellent! Plenty of character and flavour with good ripeness levels across the board. The ripe tannins and suppleness will lead to wines of more finesse and structure. Richard assures us that this is being reflected in the winery with even and clean ferments, hardly a hand being laid on the fermenting fruit, always an indication of a job well done in the vineyard! Thu, 28 Apr 2011 13:02:47 +1200 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/father-time-and-mother-nature/ 10th Harvest Begins http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/10th-harvest-begins/ ….. Under a crisp blue sky we celebrated the beginning of our land mark 10th harvest this morning with a few quiet reflective words. Before we started picking stunning golden bunches of Sauvignon Blanc, with intricate ripe flavors of gooseberries and honeysuckle and perfectly balanced acidity. This is shaping up to be a vintage of finesse and character a justifiable reward for the hard work the season has required to date….. Tue, 22 Mar 2011 10:56:28 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/10th-harvest-begins/ News from the vineyard http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/news-from-the-vineyard/ <div>.....The weather of the last month is finally starting to settle down to fine warm days and verasion has moved thru quickly . As we finish up the last of the thinning and the nets are on there is a distinct autumn feel to the mornings. Thankfully the season is about two weeks ahead and the grapes are looking fantastic as we wait for the flavours to come forth before harvest, and the completion of our seasons task in the vineyard............</div> Mon, 21 Feb 2011 11:49:26 +1300 http://www.northburn.co.nz/home/blog/news-from-the-vineyard/