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A guided tour of the historic, 100-year-old Church Road Winery and museum - with a wine tasting included - costs a modest $10. The tour encompasses the working winery (where you may see our winemakers in action), the Cuve Cellar where some of the red wines are fermented, the imposing Tom Mc Donald Cellar and the fascinating winery museum.
The only wine museum in New Zealand, the Church Road winery museum is housed underground in old, disused wine vats whose adjoining walls have been opened up.The oldest winemaking relics in the country lie entombed here, some dating back to the 3000-year-old Iron Age.
Local sculptor Owen Yeoman's mannequins (each bearing an uncanny resemblance to one of the winery's present-day workers) bring the scene alive.
The museum's walls are encrusted with sparkling, gem-like tartrate crystals, formed from the tartaric acid in the wine once stored within these concrete walls.
Winery and museum tours take place at 10 am, 11 am, 2 pm and 3 pm daily.
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