With holidays on the horizon, it’s time to fill your boots, chilly bins, baches, boats, whatever with convenient new Charlie’s Quencher cartons.

Cartons slide just nicely in to any chilly bin or fridge, they’re lightweight, almost indestructible, and don’t need to be stored in the fridge until opened. Perfect for your summer getaway.

If you think that good things only come in small packages then you haven’t discovered the ‘good stuff’ inside the two new big bottles of Rejuva Aloe drinks.

Since the launch of their 500ml bottles these refreshing and delicious Rejuva lifestyle drinks have gained a strong loyal following. They can now be purchased nationwide in a large economical family-friendly 1.5 litre bottle.

For many people, Christmas and New Year is a time for giving, relaxing and spending time with loved ones but for others it can be a time of loneliness...

It’s turned out to be a great year for Sacred Hill with a number of accolades, both locally and internationally, for its Special Selection range of wines.

Neil Martin, the NZ critic for Robert Parker, visited Sacred Hill earlier this year and his scores from this visit saw Special Selection varietals presenting results in the nineties. These wines are featured on eRobertparker.com, the internationally recognised consumer guide to fine wines.

The winner of the inaugural NZ Riesling Challenge has been announced with top honours going to Matt Donaldson from the Pegasus Bay winery.

The competition, launched by award-winning Mud House wines, saw 12 winemakers selected to handcraft a Riesling using fruit picked from the same vineyard at the same time in 2010.

In 2011, the Kiwi bloke is working smarter, not harder. He no longer stays up late to watch sport; that’s what TIVO is for. He doesn’t spend hours doing the gutters or weeding the garden; he just pays someone else to do it for him. He doesn’t need to feel hungover after a big night out; he just switches to mid-strength beer when he needs to.

“Anyone with new years’ resolutions in 2011 would be smart to switch to a mid-strength beer for certain occasions, as it really allows you to do more while still making the most of being social,” says Todd Gordon, premium beer marketing manager at Lion Nathan.

Top Kiwi winemakers from vineyards across the country have put their skills to the test as part of the inaugural NZ Riesling Challenge launched by an innovative local wine company.

The NZ Riesling Challenge is an initiative from Mud House Wines, an award-winning brand that has achieved significant success and recognition for its wines both locally and overseas.

North Port Events has won the position of New Zealand agent for the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show (NRA Show) in the USA – the largest restaurant, foodservice, and hospitality trade exhibition in the western hemisphere.

The NRA Show is co-located with the International Wine, Spirits & Beer Event (IWSB) in Chicago from May 21 to 24, 2011 and attracted more than 42,000 attendees from all 50 North American states and more than 100 countries in 2010.

After a successful 10^th anniversary, SIAL China is ready to raise the bar even higher for 2011! Mark the date: May 18-20, 2011

While Chinese economic growth can not be refuted, SIAL China consolidates and reinforces its position as the largest and leading food and beverage show in Greater China.

Understanding what innovation is in the culinary world is a complex and multi-dimensional task, according to SKYCITY Auckland director of kitchens Mar...

As part of an Oceania-wide initiative, staff at Nestlé New Zealand will forego a Christmas gift from their employer this year, with the company instea...

By KATHRYN STEANE

The adage ‘good things come in small packages’ is certainly true where tapas (little servings of Spanish-style food) and mezze (the Middle-Eastern equivalent) are concerned. These bite-sized snacks have been enjoyed by foreign cultures for centuries, and are finding their way onto the menu at a growing number of cafes and restaurants in New Zealand.

In the December issue of Food & Beverage Today we welcomed new contributor, Kelly Young. Her face will be familiar to many of you as the runner-up in the 2010 New Zealand MasterChef competition. From there Kelly headed off to the steamy kitchen of Euro, thanks to an offer from MasterChef judge and restaurateur, Simon Gault, to experience the ‘inside a real restaurant kitchen’ reality. While the experience was an inspiring, amazing, adrenalin buzz Kelly had more dreams to fulfil. So with a burning desire to get the message out about creating great-tasting food that is also good for the body, she set up Kel’s Kitchen, a business aimed at doing just that…

 

By MAVIS AIREY

When the Turks were defeated in the battle of Vienna in 1683, so the story goes, sacks of green coffee beans were among the booty left behind. They were given to one Jerzy Franciszek Kulczycki (known as Georg Franz Kolschitzky in German), who used them to open a coffee house in 1686. He experimented with adding sugar and milk to the brew, which became very popular, and so the Viennese coffee tradition was born. Vienna was so grateful it named a street after him and coffeehouses hung his portrait on their walls.

Glass Act is where you will find all the latest news briefs on the licensed beverage market relating to the food and beverage sector.

A ‘fresh young’ Auckland bakery has taken out the Bakery Category for Food Product Innovation at the New Zealand Food Awards.

Auckland’s Loaf Handcrafted Breads, less than seven years old, took out the Mitch Bakery Award for its Potato Nigella Rosemary Sourdough a ‘classic tasting sourdough with a twist’.

Faulty refrigeration units not only cost you time and money but they can make your customers ill. Fridges and chilled display cabinets that fail to keep food properly chilled help harmful bacteria to grow.

The general rule for public holidays is that they are taken on the day they fall. There are four public holidays that are treated differently. These...

In My Words gives industry representatives who are currently in the limelight, a chance to introduce themselves to Food & Beverage Today readers.

In June this year, Dion Ram, a trainee baker at Yarrows in Manaia won the title of Weston Milling Trainee of the Year and took home $19,000 in prizes. Half way through his reign as winner, Dion tells us what difference the win has made to his life.

Chip lovers around the country have been heading to their local chippie to celebrate the much loved takeaway’s milestone 150^th birthday in November.

According to the National Federation of Fish Friers in Britain, the chip can trace its origins back to 1860, when the Malin family of London first started frying chips…

By Kathryn Steane

It’s official – Wanaka is home to the country’s best sausage.

This is thanks to Mediterranean Wholesale Market, who’s Pork and Fennel creation earned the Supreme Award at the 2010 Great New Zealand Sausage Competition, held recently at the Auckland Seafood School and sponsored by Devro, Kerry Ingredients and Alto Packaging.

Cafés, takeaway outlets and restaurants in Auckland’s CBD are being urged to help keep the city clean and green in a new colourful campaign from Heart of the City and the Auckland Council.

The ‘Beautify Your City’ campaign, officially launched in November, runs in the 10 months leading up to the Rugby World Cup. There are three bursts of activity for the campaign – November 2010, March 2011 and June 2011.

Kiwi gourmands at Taste of Auckland lined up in droves at the event to sample signature Malaysian dishes courtesy of the newly-launched Malaysia Kitchen Programme (MKP). Taste of Auckland is an annual event that features a selection of Auckland’s finest restaurants…

Domino’s Pizza is dishing out dinner to deserving families in the lead up to Christmas. “The Christmas period can be a stressful time for people and ...

Purebread Organic and David Wright - Secretary of the BioDynamic Farming and Gardening Association - have been named by Organics Aotearoa New Zealand (OANZ) as the winners of 2010's Organic Awards.

With school and university study coming to an end for another year, more than 750,000 secondary and tertiary students will be looking to earn some extra cash over the summer holidays.

A successful partnership between Coca-Cola Amatil New Zealand and the organisers of the Karapiro 2010 World Rowing Championships has set a benchmark for what major sporting and entertainment events can achieve with recycling and reducing spectator and competitor waste to landfill.

New Zealanders are unique for many things, but being prolific consumers of gourmet burgers is possibly not what first springs to mind. When researchi...

By Robyn Yousef

The variety of flours we use here in New Zealand has changed as markedly as our evolving cuisine over the last two to three decades.

Domino’s Pizza’s 79 New Zealand stores have joined forces to raise more than $11,600 for the Pike River Miners’ Relief Fund Trust during its December 6 Doughraiser.

 

Makers of Vogel’s Breakfast Cereal have donated a record number of cereal packs to The Salvation Army food banks.  

A boutique Martinborough olive oil described as being ‘infused with love’ has been awarded a gold medal at the prestigious Olives New Zealand 2010 Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) Awards.

DB Export is dishing out Christmas cheer in recognition of its brewing founder, Morton Coutts.

Morton was a co-founder of DB Breweries and master brewer of DB Export Beer, which is currently back on shelves for a limited period as part of a 50^th anniversary celebration.

After a tough year, who could blame you for a bit of indulgence over the silly season. But there’s such a thing as over-indulgence, and the last place you want to be making a fool of yourself is in front of your colleagues. To make the most of the party, as well as the next day, plan your work Christmas party like you would your career: