At Herzog, a small boutique vineyard in the Marlborough region of New Zealand, you will find some of the best wines and foods in the country. Melanie Lee goes south to take a look and has a taste for herself.

Photos by Darren Soh

There are over 60 wineries in Marlborough, but a human has only one stomach and liver and as such, it is essential, when visiting this lush wine-producing area famous for its Sauvignon Blanc, to select the vineyards you visit discerningly. I did some research before doing my little tour, asking past visitors and Blenheim locals for their take on which wineries are worth visiting. The name “Herzog” was mentioned repeatedly.

Herzog Winery and Restaurant is a small 11-hectare boutique vineyard that also houses a restaurant in a charming colonial-styled building. Despite its rather humble scale and the fact that the Swiss owners, Hans and Therese Herzog, do not enter their wines for competitions, Herzog has won the hearts of wine and food connoisseurs around the world for its top quality wines and gourmet restaurant, which some food reviewers believe is the top in New Zealand.

As I met the various staff and Herzog’s owners, Hans and Therese, it is apparent that their success comes about because of this vineyard’s persistence in producing only top quality wine and food. In fact, it is this very quest for excellence that brought this couple, who already had a successful vineyard and Michelin-starred restaurant in Zurich, to pack everything and move to Marlborough in 1994. “With 2,500 hours of sunshine a year and ideal dark brown earth, Hans found this to be the perfect area to make the wines he’s always wanted to make,” says Therese. The range of wines he produces includes Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Montepulciano, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Viognier.

Hans Herzog has a long family tradition of winemaking that dates all the way back to the 15th century, but he admits, “I make wine because it is my individual passion to do so.” Even during the photo shoot at the vineyard, this charismatic and sun-bronzed gentleman is quietly plucking out any straying leaves he sees along the way. As Therese and his staff attest, Hans is still very much out there in the fields with the workers and ensuring that his preservative-free wines that are bottled in-house are never compromised in terms of quality. “In short, we produce very serious wines and in very small quantities. Sometimes, we simply can’t meet the distributors’ demands in terms of quantity. But you see, we are very content with what we are doing, and are very careful with how we use natural resources,” explains Therese.

This same kind of perfection extends to their 60-seater restaurant, where German Head Chef Michael Wiebbeke continually concocts new Mediterranean-styled dishes using fresh seasonal New Zealand produce. “Food is symbiotic with wine and the main reason why we set up this restaurant is to show how well they go together,” says Therese. In particular, their Degustation Dinners (starting from NZ$129), where each course is paired with a different Herzog wine, are very popular with wine aficionados and require bookings well in advance.

I enjoyed a light dinner in a distinctly European setting overlooking the beautiful vineyards, and beyond that, the grand mountains of the Richmond Range. My rich Tomato Ravioli with parmesan fondue and black olive oil was accompanied by Herzog Pinot Noir 2001, whose woody taste brought out the flavours of the tomato and cheese perfectly. The pan seared Alfonsino with squid, kohlrabi and Chardonnay Beurre Blanc seemed to come straight from the sea, and its light, fluffy sauce added a rich texture to the tender squid and fish. Dessert was a unique sherry lime mousse with walnut and caramel ice cream and red wine macerated cherries. To top it off, service and presentation was impeccable and all in all, it was a classic “life does not get any better than this” moment. I’ve always believed the best things come in small sizes, and I admire the Herzogs for having perfected this philosophy with their vineyard and restaurant.

Herzog Winery and Restaurant
81 Jeffries Road
Blenheim, New Zealand
+64 (0)3 5728770
info@herzog.co.nz
www.herzog.co.nz

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