With countless gold medals and trophies for his internationally recognised wine creations, Grant Taylor had the world at his fingertips, so what is it about the Waitaki region that drew him to set up his wine bar in the quaint town of Kurow?
"Home is home, there’s no question about it. For me, Kurow is authentic New Zealand, the old buildings, the sense of community, it’s just magic,” Grant says.
It’s fair to say Grant has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to winemaking, a trade that has seen him working in the USA, France, Australia and Aotearoa. He even won the trophy for ‘Best Pinot Noir’ at an International Wine Competition in London four times - a feat achieved by no other winemaker in the world.
Growing up in Otago, Grant experimented with brewing apple cider vinegar during his school years, and it wasn’t long before his skills grew to viticulture and took him across the globe.
Grant set off to America where he helped establish Pine Ridge Vineyards, a winery in Napa, California and stayed for seven years before helping set up a second winery in Oregon.
He continued to broaden his winemaking experience in France and Australia but felt a tug to return home.
“When I was in America people would keep asking me when I'm going to get my citizenship, I kept saying I don’t want to become an American, I couldn’t see myself living there permanently,” Grant says.
“I think at that time I had soaked up all the world had to teach me, it was just time for me to come home.”
Waitaki appealed to Grant for its cool climate and limestone soils, a great combination for winemaking, leading him to deem it the country’s newest and most exciting winegrowing region.
“Because of the cool climate, the wines here are naturally lower in sugar and alcohol but naturally higher in acidity. You don’t get the same frosts that you do in Otago so you can often leave picking the grapes until May,” Grant says.
“This means you get a long growing season, the grapes get a long ‘hangtime’ on the vine which allows for a great ripeness in flavour with the lower alcohol and better acidity. I just really love the styles of the wines here.”
Grant was drawn to Kurow for its unique sense of community, authenticity and heritage.
“It still has the same sense of community and values that a lot of New Zealand had 60 to 80 years ago but we seem to have lost in many places. There are some people living here that go back four or five generations. It’s just got such a rich sense of history that the town is working hard to preserve.”
Grant and his wife Nicole opened the Valli Wine Bar in 2023, operating out of the old Kurow Post Office, built in 1934 from Ōamaru stone, much like the rest of the town.
The post office had been painted over but Grant had the paint stripped away to return it to its original state.
“From the outset, it was our goal to honour the heritage of the historic Kurow Post Office building,” Grant says.
“The stone is actually quite stunning, I think everyone who comes to New Zealand should spend at least one day in Ōamaru to see the buildings. It’s a very important part of our history.
He owes much of the wine bar’s success to the Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail, Grant says.
“Without the Alps 2 Ocean trail, the wine bar just wouldn’t work, the number of visitors it brings in is great. Every single person that does that trail comes right past our front door, and more often than not, they’re happy to make a pit stop for a beverage,” he laughs.
Grant and Nicole live in the Hakataramea Valley, with neighbours about 4km away. The wine bar is their social life, Grant says.
“There’s always someone really interesting in there, and we meet a lot of people who are great fun to talk to. I think that’s half the reason we set it up.”
The wine bar closes over winter from June to August, operating on the last weekend of each month for those eager to pop in for a visit and “taste the region” through wine, as Grant puts it. The wine bar is open fulltime again from September.
Thirsty for a taste of Waitaki? Whether you’re cycling the Alps 2 Ocean, winding through on a road trip or simply chasing the quiet magic of the region’s heritage sites, the Waitaki Valley welcomes you with open arms.
Find out more about VALLI Wines at www.valliwine.com
