NEW ZEALAND has been following in the footsteps of its bigger Antipodean cousin producing a solid base from which to market the relatively new leisure sector known as food and wine tourism.
New World dining can be found in abundance from Pacific Rim, to Asian and Polynesian cuisine, with a wide range of fruits and wines also on offer.
It is evident not only in the top restaurants of city hotels but also in the seafront cafes, bistros and remote but luxurious rural resort lodges in the interior – all of which have contributed to a growing demand for food and wine tours.
Wineries that were initially reluctant to open their doors to visitors, now offer sampling tours, wine lectures and bottle shops. Some have even built small boutique-style hotels within their estates, complete with restaurants and recreational facilities.
The country has come a long way in the development of the grape from humble beginnings 180 years ago.
International acclaim for New Zealand wines has led to the production of more than 2,000 different labels from 16 wine-producing regions. Some of the most notable include New Zealand chardonnay, sauvignon, cabernet sauvignon and pinot noir varieties – noted for their intense fruit flavours – as well as rieslings and sparkling wines.
Major wine-producing areas in the South Island include Marlborough, Nelson, Waipara and Otago, which boast the world’s most-southerly vineyards, and Martinborough, Hawkes Bay, Napier, Gisborne and the Bay of Plenty in the North Island.
This has encouraged some UK operators to feature wine-trail itineraries and accommodation in areas noted for their food and wine.
Specialist operator Bridge The World has a New Zealand Wine and Wilderness section in its main Australasia brochure. Among six separately featured properties is the Hotel du Vin, south of Auckland, with its vineyards, beamed De Redcliffe Winery and well-stocked wine shop.
The cuisine and estate wine served in the restaurant is excellent and a one-night package including a gourmet five-course dinner and country-style breakfast costs from £110 per person twinshare.
The brochure also offers The Martinborough Hotel, built in 1892, in the heart of the wine village of the same name. There are 17 vineyards, all within walking distance of the hotel. A two-night break costs about £108 per person including breakfast and a three-course dinner.
There are other overnights at Blenheim and Hawkes Bay as well as wilderness lodges noted for their high-class cuisine and superb locations in the Southern Alps, Queenstown and the Coromandel Peninsula.
Meanwhile, Travel 2 offers self-drive and short, independent coach tours into New Zealand’s wine country, as well as a two-day rail package from Wellington to Hawkes Bay to sample the wines.
Product manager Andrea Robinson said: “Most of our clients take the opportunity to visit one or more of the wine-producing areas as part of a diverse self-drive touring itinerary.
“The North Island Northern Wonders route lets clients spend a night in the Hawkes Bay wine region or the Meander In Style itinerary takes in the De Redcliffe Estate Winery near Auckland. I recommend that clients stay at Timara Lodge which provides a fantastic choice of Marlborough wines and gourmet dining and is also the perfect base from which to explore the vineyards.”