EDUCATE
Tourism Reset Smarter cellar door offerings SOPHIE PREECE
Marlborough Tour Company has a wine of the month on its cruises, with customers eager to try the local wines while cruising the Marlborough Sounds. Photo Jim Tannock
MARLBOROUGH CELLAR doors have adapted to postpandemic wine tourism in an array of ways, including limiting hours, limiting numbers, and growing a more personalised experience. “Wine tourism is still evolving and what Covid did, especially for Marlborough cellar doors, was make them rethink how they wanted to present themselves,” says Tracey Green, acting general manager at Destination Marlborough, calling this the second season of recovery. “We’re not exactly at perfect yet, but we’re definitely at a place where the balance is a lot better than before Covid.” Meanwhile, greater engagement with tourism operators is aligning the sector far better, ensuring cellar doors know when there’ll be tourism pressure from the likes of tour groups or cruise ships. The Marlborough Cellar Door Steering Group forged between Destination Marlborough, Wine Marlborough, cellar doors and tourism operators is one of the “gold nuggets” of a Destination Management Plan (DMP) funded by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment during Covid restrictions, she adds. “Before that neither had a voice; they just worked commercially together. The DMP allowed that facilitation of an open conversation.” The group also developed a standard of conduct, outlining expectations of behaviour. “How do we treat each other with respect? I think the big key is being able to talk.” The pandemic restrictions offered an opportunity, “ to actually step up a little bit and to take some perspective”, says Cloudy Bay Vineyards brand experience manager Julie Delmas. “The crisis around Covid in the tourism industry has been a good time for us to question the way we were were hosting our guests and to review where we were positioning ourselves." Tastings are now seated in small groups with a single host, while an expanded offering includes limited edition tastings and visits to the Founders’ Cellar, which was renovated during Covid and opened to cellar door visitors from December 2022. “That was also a great way to elevate the customer experience to give visitors access behind the scenes,” Julie says. “All in all, with the changes I think the cellar door is very different to what it was in 2019 and for the best. Everyone in the team feels a 14 / Winepress Feb 2024
greater sense of achievement by spending quality time with customers." There’s a similar take from Deni Macdonald, who calls Covid-19 a vital “reset” for the small family-run winery Bladen, which is running three set tasting times a day for the second year running. Before Covid-19 the cellar door was so busy that it was hard to maintain the consistent high standard of tasting experience they required, Deni says. They used Covid to “take control back”, and the result is a far better experience for visitors, who get a full tasting in the cellar and vineyard, led by one of the family. “We get to share our story alongside our wines, intertwining family history with sentimentality of each of the wines. People are leaving so much more content and satisfied with the experience, even though they might have to work around our tasting times.” There was some pushback in the first year, with the family having to manage the “discomfort” of visitors disappointed by the limitation. “But this year it has been amazing,” she says. “The word really seems to have settled in and visitors are showing up knowing what’s going on.” Communication with tour operators has helped smooth the process, but independent travellers also seem to be more likely to do their research, perhaps due to more cellar doors limiting their offering, Deni says. Nanette Kirk, Customer Experience Manager at Whitehaven Wines, says it’s been a really good season, with plenty of international visitors, as well as Kiwis over the summer holiday period. And many of them, particularly visitors from the United States, have made a beeline for Whitehaven. “They really are seeking it out,” she says. “It really is lovely. It’s a bit of a like a pilgrimage for them actually.” The cellar door introduced seated tastings and platters during Covid restrictions, and have adopted both as full-time measures in the years since. That makes things more challenging, but it is an experience visitors “love and appreciate”, Nanette says. They also like being introduced to more than the Sauvignon Blanc they know from Marlborough. “They are absolutely blown away by some of our other varietals, and particularly the Pinot Noir.” Nanette is part of the Cellar Door Steering Group and
