Sanne Witteveen and a guest try some sparkling wine at the NZ Methode Traditionelle sparkling wine bottling facility/winery officially opening held on Thursday at 23 James Rochfort Place. Photo / Paul Taylor
Sanne Witteveen and a guest try some sparkling wine at the NZ Methode Traditionelle sparkling wine bottling facility/winery officially opening held on Thursday at 23 James Rochfort Place. Photo / Paul Taylor
Imagine being surrounded by bubbles. The bubbles you can drink that is.
That’s exactly what happens to Jascha Oldham-Selak and Sanne Witteveen when they turn up to work at their newly opened NZ Methode Traditionnelle sparkling wine bottling facility/winery at 23 James Rochfort Place, Hastings.
The couple, who are both winemakers and meet at EIT, say they feel as if they belong in Hawkes’ Bay.
“You can generally trust the air, and the weather, and there are fantastic business opportunities here. It’s also a great place to make wine,” Jascha said.
They have spent almost a decade working in the wine industry building foundations.
“Methos is the most technical wine style and it attracts the most celebration. Everyone is happy when they have a glass of bubbles in their hand,” he said.
Sanne said it was an exciting market to grow. “It requires knowledge, experience, dedication and it takes time but it’s well worth waiting for.”
Jascha Oldham-Selak and Sanne Witteveen at the official opening of their NZ Methode Traditionelle sparkling wine bottling facility/winery in Hastings . Photo / Paul Taylor
In 2021, Jascha received a business grant to produce New Zealand’s first mobile methode traditionelle bottling service.
“We did that and now it has evolved to building a site here. We are affiliated with WineWorks Hawke’s Bay, which is so supportive of our service. They have state-of-the-art machinery and facilities, which means our clients reap the benefits.
Jascha says methode traditionelle is a wine style using exactly the same techniques that the winemakers use to produce champagne.
Guests mingle with bottles of bubbles at the official opening of NZ Methode Traditionelle sparking wine bottling facility/ winery. Photo / Paul Taylor
“The sparkling wine that is fermented in the same bottle that you purchase. We add a small amount of yeast and sugar to a base wine before we bottle it under a crown cap seal for the secondary fermentation to occur that generates the bubbles. That same bottle is then disgorged (yeast sediment carefully removed from the bottle) and then a cork, wire cage, hood and label is applied ready for sale.
“Depending on the style and price point, the wine is stored from one to three years.”
Clients include Village Vineyard, Abbey Cellars Oak Estate and their own new brand Vilaura.
The couple says their mission is to provide a service to help grow the sparkling wine industry.
“We work closely with our clients from the vineyard to the bottle and are really excited about the future of our business.”
