New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay has just been crowned a Great Wine Capital of the World – one of only 12 globally.

The accolade has been awarded by a prestigious global network called ‘Great Wine Capitals’ which aims to encourage travel, education and business exchanges between the world’s best wine regions.

Hamish Saxton, chief executive of Hawke’s Bay Tourism / Hawke’s Bay Business Events, told MEETINGS 2023 that the Hawke’s Bay region would now sit alongside Adelaide, Cape Town, Mendoza, Valparaiso, Bilbao, Lusanne, Porto, Verona, Bordeaux, Mainz-Rheinhessen and the Napa Valley.

Hawke’s Bay trails. Cycling Elephant Hill driveway

The appointment will allow Hawke’s Bay to leverage international expertise, connections, resources and support from the best global wine industry as it recovers from Cyclone Gabrielle. The region was hammered by the cyclone in mid-February but is now on the way to recovery. Sexton said the area’s roads were open six weeks after Gabrielle’s onslaught.

The Wine Capital accolade is big news for Hawke’s Bay and the whole New Zealand industry.

Despite the challenges presented by Cyclone Gabrielle, Hawke’s Bay’s wine industry is still the gold standard. Its addition as the 12th Great Wine Capital of the World will be crucial in the economic recovery of the wine industry and the wider region.

A Global Wine Capital must possess something genuinely great. It must be excellent in a global context. Hawke’s Bay Business Events will leverage the achievement to demonstrate how that commitment to ‘excellence’ translates for Business Events visiting the region.

As Saxton commented, Hawke’s Bay is New Zealand’s second-largest wine-growing region “and New Zealand’s premium wine-growing region”. Apart from grapes, the area also grows squash, exported primarily to Japan. Nectarines, peaches, and cherries also flourish.

Saxton once took a job at the Dunedin Visitor Centre to assist with paying University tuition fees, leading to a tourism career.  He has worked for wholesale travel companies, led two other regional tourism organisations and run his own tourism businesses.

Edited by: Peter Needham in Wellington, New Zealand

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