Waiheke Island: The good oil

The good oil Tironui, 

A rustic home set in an olive grove on Waiheke Island offers a dream lifestyle, writes Catherine Smith. 

8 Browns Road, Waiheke Island. Retreating to Waiheke Island to grow olive trees is a fantasy for many Aucklanders. Long harvest lunches with friends and family, vats of premium olive oil maturing gently in the cellars, the odd bit of marketing over the internet and research trips to Italy to figure it all out. 

"Well, we did manage to get to those bits, eventually," says Barry Hastings. "But when Kate and I turned up 12 years ago, we had to stand on the bonnet of the Land Rover to see anything; the gorse was taller than I was." 

It helped that the hilltop 3.5ha property was beside the renowned vineyards of the Onetangi Valley, and over the gorse were sweeping views across Onetangi Bay to the Coromandel Peninsula, Great Barrier and Little Barrier islands. 

Barry and Kate knew nothing about olives, but noticed the small trees planted at Stoney Ridge so began their research. Kate's horticulture experience and two years of hard digging and staking created an olive grove of 780 trees, which have been producing oil for some years. 

The Mediterranean-style house was built 10 years ago from solid concrete block and plaster, but the traditional roof tiles, heavy beams and the polished concrete floor make it seem like it's been on its hill site forever. 

Vintage light fittings, mismatched and distressed kitchen cabinets, stone-like concrete benches and an enormous fireplace help create the look of an old farm that has grown over the years. And the modern touches are discreet: a walk-in scullery for the coffee machine and washer-dryer, a barn style door that slides away to reveal an office (which is fully wired - Barry did head an IT company for years). Bathing is a particular luxury in this house: be it in the guest and master bathrooms which each have windows and doors to step right outside, or the outdoor bathtub by the guest cottage, The Loft, built last year. 

Boundaries between indoors and out are blurred: the house hugs the land in a series of stepped rooms, culminating in a sheltered outdoor dining room with a fireplace and built-in seats to take in the view. A dreamy middle-eastern style courtyard greets visitors with a bubbling water fountain as they step off the gravel driveway. 

"We designed the house to have shelter, sun and views all around, so it doesn't matter where the wind is coming from, there's always somewhere to sit," explains Kate. Like many islanders, they have turned their holiday home into a business. Barry, finally wearying of work in the city, has been marketing their olive oil and bed and breakfast to a growing database of satisfied customers. 

But Kate and Barry have new projects in mind, such as restoring a 1930s cottage on the beach and exploring the Central Otago region. So Tironui,which means grand view, is for sale. 

Vital Statistics: 

BEDROOMS: 3 

BATHROOMS: 3 

GARAGE: 2+ 

SIZE: Land 3.5ha, house 250sq m, cottage 145sq m. 

PRICE INDICATION: $3.3 million + GST if any. Expressions of interest close on April 28 (unless sold prior). 

INSPECT: By appointment. 

CONTACT: Clive Lonergan or Cathy Cameron, Bayleys, ph 372 0005 bus, 274 993 278 (Clive) or 274 813 937 (Cathy). 

FEATURES: Mediterranean-style solid plaster home on a 3.5ha olive grove. Immaculately detailed living room with fireplace. Entertainers' kitchen. Home office. Outdoor dining terrace and beautifully landscaped gardens. Self-contained guest cottage, currently run as a four star B&B.