Smith and Sheth Oenothèque: Former Milk and Honey owner Sean Burns has eaten his cake, now he’s having a wine

There might not be any milk and honey in Sean Burns’ life anymore but he’s fine with that because now he’s buzzing over wine.

The owner of the well-known Ahuriri cafe Milk and Honey, Sean decided that 15 years of coffee and food was enough and it was time to get his “brain moving in a different direction”.

“I wanted to shake my own tree up. So when an opportunity arose with Smith and Sheth Oenothèque I went for it,” Sean said.

In French, “oenothèque” roughly translates to wine library.

Sean is no stranger to the wine industry, having worked at several of Hawke’s Bay’s top wineries including Craggy Range. It was there he met Steve Smith (Master of Wines) who owns the business in partnership with Brian Sheth.

“It’s been about a month since I started and it’s been cool. When I first moved to Hawke’s Bay from Wellington I lived in Havelock North, moving to Napier when I started the cafe,” Sean said.

“The first night I started here about half a dozen people I knew came in. It’s fun to be back in Havelock North and fun to be talking wine.”

He said owning a business meant making every decision, so it was nice to change his focus to learning new skills and be part of a team.

“I’m learning more about marketing, branding, the people involved in the industry, the vineyards and wineries. These are the people that make it happen. It was the perfect time to start with the vintage coming in. It’s a buzz.”

Sean started thinking about a change of direction back in 2019.

“I was feeling really positive and thinking maybe it was time for a chance the following year. Things did change, of course. The next four years were weird.

“It was challenging but at the same time rewarding to handle it all while keeping staff and making a profit. Not as much as I would have liked but we made it.”

He says his worst experience at Milk and Honey happened in the first couple of weeks.

“A woman came in and ordered three courses. She ate the lot. Then she started yelling that the food was disgusting and walked out.

“I was shell-shocked. It was a scam of course. She caught me off guard and was making so much noise. I was new, I didn’t want to offend anyone.”

Sean loved being a part of the Ahuriri community. “I got slightly woven into the lives of customers, attending weddings and funerals. We would swap things from their garden for coffee.

“That’s the thing about people in hospitality - we love hanging out with people, with music playing. It just floats my boat.

“That hasn’t changed for me. Now I hang out with people and talk about wine and I love it.”

When Sean is not working he likes to cook and drink some wine at home.

“I used to love making cocktails but don’t do that now we have an 11-month-old in the house.

“A good evening for me is listening to some vinyl, eating and chilling.”

You will find Smith and Sheth Oenothèque in the heart of Havelock North. The unique space offers a “cellar door” where patrons can learn all about their exceptional wines made from hand-selected grapes from the best vineyards.

The cellar door transforms into a wine bar later in the day - a place to meet with friends and enjoy a selection of small plates and platters from Malo.

But that’s not all. Their Heretaunga Studio is a one-of-a-kind wine-tasting experience. It’s a place of stories that takes you through a sensory journey with your own sommelier and storyteller to guide you. You can explore three New Zealand wine regions tasting wines from Smith & Sheth CRU, Pyramid Valley and Lowburn Ferry.

It’s a pretty cool experience.

Linda Hall is a Hastings-based assistant editor for Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 30 years of experience in newsrooms. She writes regularly on arts and entertainment, lifestyle and hospitality, and pens a weekly column.