Fruit of the gods: Ataahua Wines

Amongst the many quatrains found in the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, these words, written in the 11th century, have achieved immortality: “A loaf of bread, a jug of wine and thou beside me, singing in the wilderness…”

Omar certainly had the perfect recipe for a contented life sussed – food, wine and your significant other. How fortunate for us, then, that we’ve vineyards like the stunning Ataahua Wines, at 83 Church Road, Waipara, producing wines so quaffable that not only Omar, but Bacchus himself would surely applaud with a standing ovation. Ataahua grows grapes for their merlot, pinot noir (from which they also craft their rosé), and gewurtztraminer (from which they also craft a dessert wine) varietals, while their chardonnay, riesling and sauvignon blanc grapes are sourced from local vineyards within the Waipara valley.

Launched in 2008 by Andrew Grant and Stephanie Henderson-Grant, Ataahua (meaning beautiful, picturesque – a place of beauty) creates boutique, artisan style wines, which, as Stephanie proudly explains, are “Hand-crafted from point of fruit growth and maintenance of vines right through to point of ready for bottling (only the bottling is done offsite), using NZ made bottles. They’re fashioned with love and very tender care!”
The current wine vintages available are 2016 and 2017 Riesling, 2016 Gewurztraminer, 2017 Rosé, 2018 Rosé, 2016 Chardonnay, 2017 Sauvignon Blanc, 2015 Pinot Noir, 2015 Merlot, 2014 Late Harvest Gewurztraminer.

For more information, phone 03 314 6961, or visit www.ataahuawine.co.nz.