TWO RECENT BOOKS ON MARLBOROUGH -
NEW ZEALAND’S PREMIER WINE REGION

Two handsome books on the home of New Zealand’s internationally famed Sauvignon Blanc crossed my desk recently and both made me long to visit the region again.

MARLBOROUGH ON THE MENU
Jan Bilton & Belinda Jackson
Irvine Holt $20

Veteran cookery writer Jan Bilton, editor of The Foodtown Magazine for 16 years, author of 26 cookbooks, now lives in Marlborough, and in this bargain-priced book she has collaborated with wine industry consultant and wine writer Belinda Jackson to create a most appealing selection of easy, tasty recipes - food and wine matches that capture the taste of Marlborough – world-class Sauvignon Blanc and award-winning Chardonnay along with Pinot Gris, Reisling, Gewurtztraminer, Methode Traditionelle and Pinot Noir.
Featured in the recipes are fresh and smoked salmon, stone fruit, scallops, garlic and shallots, cheese, mussels, walnuts, gourmet vinegars and olive oils, whitebait, figs and a lot more.
Also featured is a Marlborough wine trail guide and a directory of Marlborough food and wine producers.
With 40 full page colour food photographs and 70 recipes with wine matches this attractive handbook is a steal at $20.
I made the mussel fritters which along with the Tohu Sauvignon Blanc made for a superb late Saturday lunch.

MARLBOROUGH WINE
Stories from New Zealand’s Premier Wine Region
Photography by Frank Gasteiger
Oriel Design & Publishing with Wine Marlborough $39.99

This most appealing book takes the reader behind the scenes of the wine companies, many of them now household names - Allan Scott, Hunters Wines, Saint Clair, Cloudy Bay, Vavasour, Lawson’s Dry Hills, Spy Valley, Isabel Estate, Stoneleigh, Framingham, Villa Maria, The Ned to name but a few.
It is a great read, including a brief history of wine growing in the region, and will be invaluable to visitors to Marlborough and to wine buffs everywhere.
The photographs, all taken especially for the book by Frank Gasteiger, are bold and fresh and a real feature of the book.
And a special mention to Lisa Noble for an impressive piece of book design.