OPINION: After years of virtual gatherings, remote tastings, and 'new normal' caution, New Zealand's wine industry has been making up for lost time.

OPINION: I am writing this the day after the opening game of the Rugby World Cup and the All Blacks' loss to France.

OPINION: People have been "pivotal" to Dr David Jordan's career in wine, from the generosity of those who shared their knowledge when he was starting out, to the insights he still gleans from those in the field.

When Philip Gregan began working at the Wine Institute of New Zealand in 1983, this country had 6,000 planted hectares and an abundance of potential.

OPINION: Growers and wineries are going to hear a lot from Government agencies about Freshwater Farm Plans over the next few months.

OPINION: Vintage 2023 saw a welcome return to melting pot wineries, as companies threw open their doors to global wine workers, with all the excitement, experience and insights they offer.

Summer 2023 will live long in the memories of growers and wineries in the North Island, with record rainfall in several regions making for a very challenging season.

Going, going, gone. It's perhaps an apt phrase for some of those amid the devastation of Cyclone Gabrielle in February, such as Philip Barber of Petane as he watched his steel tractor shed rip apart and its tractors float away.

For many growers and wineries, the past three years have all been about getting through the immediate challenges associated with the Covid-19 pandemic.

This long lean country, with its fringe of beaches, spine of mountains and korowai of cloud, is altogether unique.