The winter wine experiences at QT Wellington often include lesser-known or hard to find drops. Photo / Getty Images
The winter wine experiences at QT Wellington often include lesser-known or hard to find drops. Photo / Getty Images
It's been nearly three years, but QT Hotel's wine experiences are back for winter. Jacqui Gibson checks out a recent sell-out event.
Every week Florent Souche takes a dozen visitors to a new destination on the globe without leaving the sumptuous surroundings of Wellington's QT Hotel.
France and Lebanon were recent overseas destinations. Marlborough and Martinborough are coming up.
The night I arrive, the award-winning sommelier-turned-tour-guide is training the focus of a much larger crowd on Waiheke Island, or more precisely a winery called Tantalus from Onetangi Valley.
"Oh my god, tonight's wines are magnificent," Florent beams, as we sit down for a quick chat on plush embossed couches.
Master sommelier, Florent Souche, is on hand to guide curious wine tasters through the selection. Photo / supplied
Tonight's event, he explains, is the second sell-out event in as many days, following the launch of a winter wine series at QT Hotel's Hippopotamus restaurant.
"Were we nervous launching the series? Of course. It's been almost three years since we hosted an event like this. We felt a bit rusty last night. But we've had such wonderful feedback from people. It's great to be back."
The wine series is a mix of evening events, exploring a range of old and new world wines from around the globe.
The sumptuous Hippopotamus restaurant at QT Hotel Wellington. Photo / supplied
"Always, it will be a surprise," Florent says. "We will do wine that is very difficult to get hold of or too expensive to have by the glass and wine from somewhere that is wonderful but perhaps not so well known. It's $39 per person for three or four glasses and a little something delicious to pair with one of the wines. Seats are limited to give us time to really sit down together and talk."
The series also features winemaker dinners like tonight's, where Hippopotamus' executive chef Jiwon Do's presents a six-course degustation menu to go with wine from a specific winemaker's private collection.
And there are one-off special events too, like the Royal New Zealand Ballet fundraiser for Wellington on A Plate in August.
Ultimately, though, the aim of the wine series is to open up Florent's cellar, one of the country's rarest and most extensive wine collections, to make room for more wine and to give wine lovers (and the wine curious) a chance to quaff the good stuff.
Tantalus winemaker dinner
And there's plenty of good stuff at Hippopotamus' Tantalus winemaker dinner.
Walking in, I'm handed a glass of the winery's first vintage (the 2014 Ecluse) and shown to a table near the window.
At 7pm sharp, Florent takes the floor to introduce himself, the wine and the Tantalus team before disappearing on to the floor to pour wine continuously for the next three hours.
To start, we're served a tartare of wild venison caught locally by Scott McNeil of Awatoru. Two glasses of reserve chardonnay follow, served with Ōra King Salmon.
By the time I'm making my way through the reserve syrah and devouring the juicy Greenstone Creek beef in front of me, the Tantalus team have wrapped up their speeches and are making their way around tables answering questions and sharing stories.
Chef Jiwon Do joins the talking circuit about 9pm. At my table, he explains how a sweet macaron has turned up on the plate next to a couple of succulent lamb chops. We toast the two delicious reds it has been inspired by and he moves on to another table.
To finish, I'm served a sheep pecorino dessert and an ample pour of Prophet's Rock pinot gris (a surprise from Florent's collection). The combo is a treat and I want to let pastry chef Blair Son know as she too starts to mix with diners.
"I'm not really used to this," she says shyly. Me neither, I confess. But we both agree it's definitely something we could get used to.
Book your spot
To find out more about QT Wellington's winter wine series at Hippopotamus, go to: qthotels.com/wellington
