KEY POINTS:
Robert Joseph has always pushed the boundaries of wine writing. And in his book, the Wine Travel Guide to the World, British-based Joseph is at his sassy best.
He visits the vast new vineyards of China, India, Thailand and Brazil, citing such places as firm evidence the wine world is growing.
But the point of the book is to link tourism dollars with wine sales. And Joseph has plenty of suggestions.
Only one third of all tourists to New Zealand visit a vineyard, according to Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive George Hickton, who reckons there is room to grow.
Here, wine visitors fall into two age groups: 25 to 34 years and 55-plus.
The older the traveller, the more likely they are to visit a wine region, according to Hickton.
It's hardly a news flash but, as Joseph's book spells out, it is a clear directive to wineries looking to increase their sales.
This country's biggest wine region is Marlborough, where white wines dominate. And while sauvignon blanc is being grown disproportionately to other grape varieties, riesling is one of the most stimulating and under-used grapes.
Many of this country's best rieslings have come from grapes grown at Framingham vineyards, which was planted in 1981 by the forward-thinking Greg Brooke-Taylor.
The early Stoneleigh, Grove Mill and Dry River rieslings were all made with grapes from Framingham vineyards.
When Framingham became a wine brand in 1994, winemaker Dave Pearce made rieslings that have remained among this country's top 10.
In 1997 Framingham finally got its own winery; in 2001 winemaker and riesling-lover Andrew Hedley was hired and since April 2004, the winery has been owned by this country's largest wine producer, Pernod Ricard New Zealand.
Hedley takes a cautious approach to his favourite white wine, explaining that when riesling grown at Framingham doesn't taste as good as it should he blends small quantities into non-riesling wines or sells it off. Good call.
