Waiheke top wineries and vineyards
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
Are you a wine lover? Waiheke wineries are one of the island's main treasures. When looking forward to a great gastronomical experience, visiting at least one of the vineyards is a must!
The island is especially known for elegant Bordeaux Blend wines that are made from a mixture of two grape varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Chardonnay and Syrah can also be found.
Of course, you could order a bottle but, before that, consider joining a wine-tasting event. The experience allows you to know different grapes and wines, learn about the making process and understand better which label goes better with a certain food or occasion!
3 amazing Waiheke wineries and vineyards
Visiting Waiheke vineyards is pretty much always a great idea, actually, is one of the best things to do in Waiheke, especially on occasions that call for a good celebration such as an engagement, a honeymoon or an anniversary.
Regardless of the reason, here are the top 3 wineries you should go check out:
- Batch Winery
Batch Winery has two vineyards: the Thomas Vineyard, established in 1988, and the Margaret Reeve Lane Vineyard, established in 2006.
Thomas Vineyard is planted with Chardonnay and small parcels of Syrah and Pinot gris grapes to create wines with intensity and complexity. On the other hand, Margaret Reeve Lane has plantings of Syrah and Bordeaux.
With all these different grape varieties, this Waiheke winery is quite interesting because it offers the visitors the opportunity of tasting different flavours and enjoy a very rich experience.
After the tasting, you can head to their restaurant for a full gastronomic experience savouring dishes made from fresh local ingredients.
- Tantalus Estate
Tantalus is an award-winning Estate and a family-owned vineyard in Waiheke. They are proud of their location which allows a long growing season that is particularly interesting for the full development of red wine grapes.
The variety is good. There are Cabernet sauvignon, Cabernet franc and Merlot, Syrah, Merlot, Malbec, Chardonnay and Pinot gris. Tantalus also produces a small quantity of Bordeaux and Rhone-style reds, completely focused on quality.
To make the visit even more special, you can also attend their restaurant to eat refined-tasting dishes made from the seasonal ingredients of the island.
- Stonyridge Vineyard
The Stonyridge Vineyard is known for its world-class Bordeaux-style red wine, and other high-quality wines, and is "one of the Top Ten wineries to visit in the world", according to a review in the Guardian UK.
Their wine tasting will allow you to understand a bit of the mind of the owner, Stephen White, a man who spent three years working at wineries in France, California and Italy before heading back to New Zealand and beginning his journey as a winemaker.
Besides the tasting, this Waikahe winery has its own restaurant and a sunset café.
Good to know: you can visit the Stonyridge Vineyard by air once they have a helipad! You can come to Waiheke by helicopter and enjoy a unique view of the island.
How to get to Waiheke wineries
As not all of the Waiheke wineries have a helipad, you’d be glad to know that there are other ways to get to them. One good option is to hire a private driver and, for that, know that Omana we share with our guests the recommended private drivers and taxi services.
And for getting around the island, you also have options such as taking the bus and enjoying a hop-on hop-off tour, riding a bike, or getting a scooter or Segway. All of which will allow you a different experience during your stay.
Other beverage-tasting options on the island
And if you don't want your visit to be all about Waiheke wineries, notice that there are other options like gin, whisky and beer tastings on the island. Check this out:
- The Heke: open for beer tasting, spirit tasting and whisky tastings, and you can choose one or more, relax and enjoy;
- Waiheke Distilling: open for a distillery tour and gin experience enjoying one of the most popular beverages in the world lately.
Come and enjoy Waiheke wineries and more
The island is quite close to Auckland, being only a 35-minute ferry away. You can get here even faster if you come by air, as we previously pointed out as an option.
This means that you can come for a very quick stay, like a day trip from Auckland just to visit some of the best Waiheke wineries or that you can stay a bit longer to enjoy a whole weekend or your holiday time.
When in need of accommodation in Waiheke, we suggest you consider a private villa such as Omana – which, let’s not forget, is located in a land adjacent to the wonderful Destiny Bay vineyard.
Therefore, you can stay in a luxurious place that will allow you full relaxation and the opportunity to enjoy more of what the island has to offer!
