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Harvest Hawke’s Bay ~ Golden Harvest
Sunday Star Times ~ 15th January 2006
Fine wine, gastronomic delights, live music to suit all tastes and, of course, East Coast sunshine.
These are the ingredients for a memorable celebration of wine and food – Harvest Hawke’s Bay.
The 10th anniversary of this popular event is designed to thrill the senses of both wine and food enthusiasts, says event manager Carol-Ann Stubbs.
“It’s an opportunity to visit some of New Zealand’s most stunning and friendly wineries and savour the delights of award winning wines together with a number of New Zealand’s top winery restaurants.”
“The backdrop to this iconic event is Hawke’s Bay’s unrivalled landscape – panoramic views stretching from mountains to coast. For wine tourists this provides an unsurpassable tasting menu in a compact area.”
The festival has blossomed to include 27 wineries, with more than six vineyard concerts, upbeat bands and live entertainment over the weekend.
Hawke’s Bay’s wines feature on gold medal line-ups at competitions from London to Sydney, and the region’s wines take centre stage on the weekend.
Visitors will be spoilt for choice with award-winning Bordeaux blends, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Many of the wineries will open their library wines, with a number of workshops being hosted by owners and winemakers.
Visitors can also sample wines from small parcels of new varieties to New Zealand.
Mission Estate Winery, New Zealand’s oldest winery, offers more than an elegantly restored seminary building with sweeping views of Napier.
The estate delivers the complete wine experience: visit the Cellar Door for tastings and tours of this historic complex, and enjoy fine cuisine in the luxurious dining area of the Mission Restaurant, or outdoors in manicured gardens.
Mission Estate’s cellar now produces 15 wine styles, representing the full diversity of the region’s wine territory, from the alluvial land around Greenmeadows, to the Gimblett Gravels and sun-baked inland river terraces.
2005 alone brought the vineyard four gold awards from four reputable wine shows.
Family-owned with a 100-year winemaking heritage, Ngatarawa Wines is an acknowledged pioneer of viticulture and winemaking in the Bridge Pa Triangle, west of Hastings.
Housed in the fully restored historic Ngatarawa Racing Stables, and set in spacious grounds with the sweeping lawns and water lily pond, vineyard is rich in history of those who owned, lived and worked out of Ngatarawa since the arrival of Europeans in the mid nineteenth century.
Families can spread themselves out for picnics in the grounds, and children can kick a ball.
Visitors can also enjoy workshops, live music, a gourmet BBQ, giant mural painting, petanque, chess and wine tasting.
For a convenient base to explore the region, Driftwood Cottages is boutique accommodation at its most affordable.
Tucked away near the beach in the small semi-rural settlement of East Clive, the purpose-built cottages are a mere 10 minutes’ drive to Napier, Hastings and Havelock North.
Husband and wife team John Robertson and Rachel Blackmore have worked together to realise their dream of creating Driftwood Cottages.
Food is largely sourced from local producers and artisans, with the accent on fresh seasonal produce.
Guests can dine out or choose from two in-house dining options – Ready-to-Cook Gourmet Meals and Dine with your Hosts.
“This allows guests to enjoy a superb four-course home cooked gourmet dinner featuring local seasonal produce matched with local wines,” says Blackmore.
“We see this as the perfect way to showcase Hawke’s Bay food and wine”.
Harvest Hawkes Bay
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February 4th-6th .
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27 wineries.
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6 vineyard concerts.
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Shuttle buses on 6 routes.