Join us as Simon and Will from Maison Vauron talk us through an evening of delicious rose, paired with Chef Eunice’s France versus New Zealand inspired tasting menu. Which rose will be your summer favourite?

A truly unique journey which created outstanding wines!

Next Tuesday, we are welcoming for the very first time, Kirsten Searle, Owner and passionate Vintner of Matawhero Wines, Gisborne.

Matawhero is the oldest winery cellar door in the region and has the very first vines in the world to see the sun and greet the new day! Something truly poetic about it!

The Matawhero journey started with two NZ wine pioneers from the 1960s.
Bill was a visionary who defied the conventional thinking of the time. He pioneered the introduction of new varieties and clones to the country, and in doing so changed the face of Kiwi winemaking. In the 1970s Bill’s son, Denis, launched the Matawhero brand, using his father’s grapes and imparting his own colourful style to a selection of excellent and distinctive wines. His Gewürztraminer won international acclaim, and even ending up in Buckingham Palace. If it's good enough for the Queen...!

Today the story continues around the drive and determination of Kirsten and Richard Searle, who purchased the Matawhero vineyard and winery in 2008. They are the trusted Kaitiaki (guardians) of Matawhero and continue to develop the iconic winery and share the distinctive wine styles of the Tairawhiti-Gisborne region. They produce famous and highky awarded NZ Chardonnay and other wines including aromatics like the Royal approved Gewürztraminer and some utterly delicious and distinctive Reds, like their bold and juicy Malbec.

When, in 2008, Denis decided to sell Matawhero, local winegrowers Richard and Kirsten Searle grabbed the opportunity and purchased the iconic winery. The Searles have revitalised the operation. The home vineyard has been replanted with new clones, along with a number of exciting new varieties, and the production facilities were upgraded, all in the mere aspiration to produce individual wines that are shining examples of their Gisborne terroir and carry on the Irwins' legacy.

Their vineyards are 100% naturally dry farmed and they only grow their grapes using natural rainfall and no irrigation, hence saving a precious resource like water and reaching for superior fruit flavours with lovely weight and texture! The high sunshine hours and warm climate of Gisborne ripens the fruit perfectly and creates distinctive wines with real fruit intensity. It is like capturing the sun in a glass of wine!

In an exceptional vintage, we hand craft this limited release barrel fermented style of Chardonnay, Irwin. This flagship wine is a tribute to the late Bill Irwin and son Denis, the founders of Matawhero Wines, Gisborne, New Zealand. A wine that scored an impressive score of 96 Points from Wine Orbit and ranked 4th in a line-up of 123 Chardonnays! A very special wine indeed that you will have the pleasure to try on the night. We have also secured the very last stock of the 2018 vintage for you!

We will be showing 8 wines on the night, with canapes served throughout the evening, as always.

This tasting promises to be very special indeed! Take part in the rebirth of a legendary vineyard!

Next Thursday we are welcoming James Millton from Millton Vineyards in Gisborne, for a tasting that promises to be no less than awe-inspiring!

Millton Vineyards is New Zealand's First Organic & Biodynamic Wine Estate!

Originally started by James’ wife's father in the 1960's, James and Annie (his wife) returned to Gisborne after having gained extensive wine experience through Europe including at the Champagne House Bollinger and prestigious Bordeaux Estates!
They established Millton in 1984 and 5 years later, no rest for the wicked, it became the first certified organic commercial wine producer in the country. 

Keeping the ball rolling, in 2009, Millton Vineyards became one of the first biodynamic Demeter-certified wine producers in NZ and is today one of the oldest biodynamic wine estates in the Southern Hemisphere!

James Millton is the father of organic wine production in NZ and he has been an inspiration to many other grape growers and winemakers, driving the growth of organic and biodynamic practices in this country. James was actually instrumental in writing the certified organic standards for grape growing and wine production in NZ.

Rather than resting on his accomplishments, he has always been keen to share his ideas, experiments and successes with others, for the benefit of the land, the people working on it, and the wine industry.
That is why he is also a member of the wine collective The Family of Twelve, a fraternity of 12 of New Zealand’s most prestigious family-owned wineries. The emphasis is on education and the promotion of New Zealand wine to export markets. To give you an idea of the pedigree, Craggy Range, Kumeu River, Felton Road and Pegasus Bay are all members of this fraternity. Only la crème de la crème!

James has also served as a wine judge, is the past chair of Organic Winegrowers NZ, has sat on the council of the Bio Dynamic Farming Society of NZ, received the Jon Manhire Award for outstanding contribution, was made a Member of the NZ Order of Merit in the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours, was elected Personality of the Year in 2013 and in 2019 inducted to become Fellows of New Zealand Winegrowers.

Now, I could go on about James' accomplishments but, as you can see, this could take a while. You get the idea; he is a pioneer, an inspiration, a mentor, a legend!

Now, let's talk about his wines. Well, let's just say that you are in for a treat! 

James does not believe in disguising nor dressing up the unique character with outside influences or winemaking manipulations. He sees himself as merely the caretakers of the fruits of his labours. His wines are pure varietal expressions shaped by the terroir. 
His wines are benchmark examples, beautiful classics perfectly executed. It is like drinking Four Seasons by Vivaldi!

Millton Chenin Blanc has led a revival of the variety in New Zealand and is still to this day considered the best. His Viognier is the absolute finest, worth of a Condrieu, and his Syrah is rivaling with French Crozes-Hermitage.

We will be showing 8 wines on the night including their flagship Clos de St Anne new releases!

This tasting promises to be very special indeed! Get ready to meet the legendary Gisborne producer, James Millton.

As always, canapes will be served throughout the evening.

Join us and Maison Vauron for an interactive and educational French Rose Tasting!

Join us and our favourite wine critic, Michael Cooper, at Point Wines to discover Michael’s picks of the year!

Join us and Jen Parr, Winemaker of the Year 2020, for an incredible Central Otago Tasting!

Join us and Zoe Ladyman at Point Wines to celebrate Akarua’s 20th Vintage with a Pinot Noir Vertical Tasting!

Join us for a night of gorgeous bubbles and canapes

Join us and Steve Bennett Master of Wine for a delicious Wine Tour of Europe

Join us and Winemaker David Clouston at Point Wines for an interesting Marlborough Tasting

Join us and Winemaker Nadine Cross for our Peregrine Tasting at Point Wines

Join us and the coolest Auckland Brewery at Point Wines for a fun evening!

Join us and this biodynamic superstar at Point Wines for a very special evening!

Hop on your bicycle and join us for a fantastic Tour of France Tasting. Well, close enough... less tiring for sure. We will be pouring 8 wines from different French regions with our favourite French host, Will from Maison Vauron. 

Some timeless classics like Champagne and Bordeaux, but also some gorgeous less known wines added to the mix to give you a full picture of what France has to offer. Hopefully you will learn a thing or two (if you do our job right...).

The canapes served on the night will have a strong french influence. Yum!

Join us and Marco Nordio at Point Wines for an exciting Tour of Italy Tasting

Join us at Point Wines for an exciting Tasting putting Burgundy to the test.

Join us at Point Wines to learn a bit more about our favourite Spanish wine region, Rioja.

Join us and Jason Stent from Paritua for a real treat of a tasting!

Paritua is a Hawke’s Bay label that is making its mark on the fine wine scene. Established in 2001, it was acquired by a group of New Zealand Chinese business people in 2011 who have enabled the further growth of the wine in market reach and quality. With 53 ha of vines and a modern winery (and a cellar door to be opened soon) on Maraekakaho Road in the Bridge Pa district, the focus is on Bordeaux-varietal reds. However, Syrah and Chardonnay are also performing very well for chief winemaker Jason Stent, since 2010. 

Next Wednesday at Point Wines, we welcome back Ben Glover, winemaker at Zephyr wines.

Zephyr is the brand of Glover Family Vineyards, the wine venture of Ben's parents, Owen and Wendy Glover who established the vineyards in the Dillons Point sub-region in Marlborough in 1985. 

Up until 2007 all the grapes were going into some of Marlborough's top labels but Ben had always dreamed of making his own wine, and so in 2007 the Zephyr wines were born with a focus on delicious and vibrant aromatics (perfect on a hot summer day! Yum!).

You may not have heard of Zephyr before, or only in the mechanic sense (great little car the Ford Zephyr, am I right?), however Ben Glover has quite an impressive wine CV.

He is one of the most talented and respected winemakers in the country with a deep love and understanding of Marlborough, where he was born and bred.

Ben until recently was Group Winemaker for Accolade New Zealand, prior to that Chief Winemaker and Director of Winemaking for internationally acclaimed brands such as Mud House, Wither Hills, Lindauer, Huntaway and Corbans.  He also held the prestigious role of Chairman for world renown Wellington Pinot Noir 2017 conference, the world's largest and most prestigious Pinot Noir event held every four years. He is also a national and international wine judge with a ridiculous amount of awards under his belt. He spent several years following the harvests around the world always coming back home where his heart has always been. He believes in the 'sense of place', terroir or 'turangawaewae' as he likes to call it. 

His wines are pure elegance, with great purity and texture. A class act! And you wouldn't expect less from someone with such pedigree and over 25 years of experience. They are also on the verge on being certified organic!

He is also as the French say a 'bon vivant' who loves sharing not only his wines but also knowledge and stories. A perfect combination for an entertaining and educational tasting.