96 | REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Stanmore Farm T T Ange Davidson Viticulture, horticulture and tourismmix Kokomea PurePod is high-end, off the grid luxury accommodation with many an Instagrammable sunset. Ph. 06 367 9900 | accountants@ ukerdenton.co.nz | www. ukerdenton.co.nz Proud to support Stanmore Farm Chartered Accountants • Taxation, GST, FBT & Wage Calc/Advice • Accounting • Family Trusts/Financial Planning/Investments • Business Developments/Strategic Planning • Computerisation/System Review • Business Sale & Purchase - Advice • Bank Loan Proposals • Business Valuation Services Provided Hydraulic, Mechanical & Structural Engineering Specialists Agents for Hydraulink Fluid Connectors Distributor Agent for BOC Gases 46 Riverbank Rd, Otaki, Kapiti Coast 06 3647444 info@riverbankeng.com www.riverbankeng.com Kāpiti Coast’s favourable climate, spectacular scenery and proximity to Wellington’s International airport is fertile ground for a variety of diverse enterprises. Case in point is Stanmore Farm, a 40-hectare coastal block just south of Te Horo where viticulture, horticulture and tourism enterprises are thriving. Owners and directors, Kate and Tim Gibbs, and now son Harry, have grown certified grafted grapevines for New Zealand’s wine industry since 1989. The sheltered nursery at the Tararua foothills grows vines to order from 100,000 vines to a single bundle of 25. The scionwood for varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay is grafted onto Phylloxera free rootstock, planted outdoors in early summer and nurtured until lifted the following winter. The vines are checked for quality control and shipped out around the country. “Our climate is temperate and frost free, and our deep and fertile soils provide perfect growing conditions. The soil is the powerhouse and essential for growing big healthy fertile vines with strong roots and top growth. We grow our own rootstock and have exclusive propagation rights to two newly released drought tolerant rootstocks,” says Kate, a nationally recognised viticulturist. At any one time, 50 % of the nursery will be in fallow land, growing crops such as mustard and oats to recondition and improve the soil. The nursery employs 12 permanent staff and around seasonal staff over the busy months. The team is very hands-on and one of the most experienced in New Zealand. Overlooking the grapevine nursery and taking full advantage of spectacular views over the coast and Kāpiti Island is Kokomea PurePod, Kate and Tim’s successful diversification into tourism and the first Purepod established in New Zealand. Kokomea PurePod is highend, off the grid luxury accommodation with many an Instagrammable sunset. “Once you’re there, it feels like you’re in the wilderness even though it’s just an hour’s drive from Wellington airport.” “It is a beautiful 10-minute walk through a gully of regenerating natives to reach our PurePod. Once you’re there, it feels like you’re in the wilderness even though it’s just an hour’s drive from Wellington airport. It’s incredibly private and guests can enjoy an outstanding sunset over Kāpiti Island, star gaze at night, and wake to the sound of birdsong,” enthuses Kate. “Kāpiti Coast is now on tourists’ itinerary as the scenery is magnificent and there’s plenty to do such as visit Kāpiti Island for a day where endangered New Zealand birds like Takahe, Kaka, Tieke, and Kakariki are in residence.” To ensure there’s plenty to keep Kate and Tim’s staff busy when the vines are in the ground over the summer, Stanmore Farm has five hectares of thornless blackberries for the fresh and frozen market. Punnets are sold fresh to markets in Auckland, Wellington and Palmerston North, and in the weekends, people come from all over to pick their own berries. “Blackberries are a superfood like blackcurrants and have more antioxidants than blueberries. People are getting really creative with blackberries, and we now sell berries to a local brewery for a berry beer and we have blackberry liqueur being distilled on the farm. We make and sell a dehydrated powder that can be added to muesli or smoothies,” says Kate. A small shop on site sells fresh and freeflow frozen blackberries, the blackberry powder, plus free-range eggs, organic vegetables and flowers. The shop compliments an extraordinary collection of enterprises that showcase the best of what the Kāpiti Coast and Stanmore Farm can produce.
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