The Middle Ages is the guiding thread of German wine tourism

 

On 1 and 2 March, FINE #WineTourismExpo #Marketplace will be held at Feria de Valladolid for tour operators to get to know the wine tourism offerings of different national and international locations. The international nature of wine tourism is such that it reaches the ends of the earth, literally. In the antipodes of our country we can find a land such as New Zealand.

Eurocentrism makes wine lovers forget that in other regions of the world grapes can be treated and cultivated with at least the same care as in the wineries of countries such as Spain, France or Italy. New Zealanders are fortunate to have a landscape with an ideal climate in which to enjoy vineyards.

New Zealand: Wine tourism country

It could be the slogan of a campaign by the oceanic country’s tourism ministry. And they would be right. This type of tourism in New Zealand has the highest average spend, thanks to its reputation as a wine tourism destination. Fame achieved through the fact that two of its vineyards, the Craggy Range and Rippon, are among the 25 best vineyards in the world, according to the World’s Best Vineyards ranking.

According to one of the most prestigious travel search engines, Bounce, it carried out a study on which are the best countries in the world for wine tourism. The first four places were occupied by the countries that are on everyone’s mind and that you can travel from one to another on foot if you want: Italy, Portugal, Spain and France, in that order. But New Zealand slipped into the top 5 as the only non-European country with this status.

Beauty and wine meet at Hawke’s bay

This area of the North Island of the New Zealand produces one in five bottles of New Zealand grapes. Being the sunniest place in the country is favourable for vine cultivation, especially for the development of Bordeaux vines. The climate could not be more perfect: dry, sunny and with excellent plains to produce long crops of vines. This means that the fruit is ripe and has a high alcohol content.

For wine and cycling lovers (paradoxical as it may sound, there are two-wheeled enthusiasts who like to practice their favourite sport along the wine tourism routes), this part of the country is incredible. Tradition finds its place in this backwater of the world because Hawke’s Bay is home to the country’s oldest winery: Mission Estate.

Product care at an economical price

Visitors to New Zealand wineries need a product that is sufficiently interesting for a trans-oceanic journey. That is why the New Zealand wine producers take care of every detail. Or at least that’s what the workers say.

Luis Villar, an employee of a winery located in the city of Blenheim, told in an interview with Cadena Cope’s ‘Agropopular’ programme how “marked” the wine culture is in that area. One of the examples he gave was the work of dissemination and promotion carried out by the sector with the network of wineries.

Villar also commented that the network of wineries in Blenheim, a town of 20,000 inhabitants, is characterised by the enormous offer of restaurants and wineries for wine tastings at an economic price: “From five euros you can enjoy five or six high quality wines“. However, wine tourism in New Zealand stands out, according to the Spanish worker, because “many wineries differentiate the production area from the marketing area”.

The wide range of wine tourism on offer and the excellent local wine make New Zealand a perfect destination for discovering the local drink. These two aspects, plus all the good work being done on exports, mean it competes very well with the typical wine-producing countries. Especially in the Asian markets.