Tohu and Kono wines The Kono range of brands includes:

Serves 3

Tohu and Kono wines come from grapes harvested in Te Tauihu region. Its Whenua Matua vineyard is located on land significant to the whānau of the Wakatū in the Moutere Hills and its Whenua Awa vineyard is located in Marlborough’s Upper Awatere Valley. The wines showcase the distinctive, fresh, crisp flavours of this world renowned wine region. Tohu Wines, the world’s first Māori owned and operated wine company, makes awardwinning wine from grapes harvested in Marlborough. It ranges Manaaki, the Whenua Series single vineyard wines, Kaumātua, a tribute to revered elders from the Wakatū whānau, and Rewa, a méthode traditionelle range. Tohu Wines were selected to be served at former US President Barack Obama’s invitation-only dinner in Auckland in 2018. Kono Wines is a boutique range of five premium wines that includes a sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, chardonnay, pinot rosé and pinot noir that showcase the best of Te Tauihu in terms of flavour profile. A native plant seed and cutting project on Whenua Awa is sustainable practice in action. Seeds and cuttings are collected from Aotearoa natives kānuka, mānuka, Marlborough rock daisy and heliohebe hulkeana, the New Zealand lilac. They’re then grown in a local nursery for 9 to 24 months and returned to the vineyard to be planted in specific locations, including a native-only planting area.

Annies fruit bars

For 33 years, Annies has been making fruit bars from nothing but real fruit. It recently updated its packaging and introduced a new fruit snacks range to fit today’s on the go lifestyles. This includes a New Zealand first, the Fruit Jerky. Annies are wholesome, healthy and easy snacks made from summer sun-ripened fruit, not concentrate and packed with natural energy.

Tutū cider

Tutū, colloquially meaning cheeky, is a refreshing, crisp, tasty cider with a mischievous twist. It is crafted from sun-ripened Fuji apples, grown on Kono ancestral lands in Nelson.

Yellow Brick Road

As a producer of premium wines and foods, it made sense for Kono to acquire multi-award winning food distribution company Yellow Brick Road, which caters to New Zealand’s top restaurants. Yellow Brick Road adheres to traditional, responsible fishing practices which honour and support seafood management and ocean sustainability focussing on line-caught fish and hand harvested seafood.

Kiwa Oysters

The underwater thermal springs of Northland’s Oronga Bay create a flourishing home for Kiwa Oysters. Grown from wild spat, this gift from the sea thrives in the isolated, gentle tidal waters of the Bay of Islands where they are hand-reared using industry best practice that manages and protects the natural environment.

Greenshell™ Mussels

New Zealand greenshell mussels are popular locally and globally. Feeding whānau and manuhiri, guests, has always been part of Māori cultural heritage, and kaimoana has been a traditional source of food for coastal dwelling Iwi. Isolation of New Zealand’s Marlborough Sounds and pristine waters make ideal growing conditions for seafood. The majority of Kono Greenshell™ Mussels are hand raised in the cool, remote and unpopulated waters of the Marlborough Sounds where they are grown in long-line suspended ropes.

Base layer

1 cup coconut cream 2 ripe bananas, peeled 1 cup ice cubes

Green layer

3 kiwi fruit (skin removed, cut into chunks and put in the freezer 30 mins prior) handful of spinach

1 ripe banana, peeled

Yellow layer

1 cup pawpaw (skin removed, cut into chunks and put in the freezer 30 mins prior)

Pink layer

½ cup ripe strawberries or 1 small cooked beetroot, peeled

Base layer Place all the base layer ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Divide the mixture evenly among 3 jugs or cups. Set aside.

Green layer Blend together the green layer ingredients and 1 jug of the reserved base layer.

Yellow layer Blend together the yellow layer ingredients and 1 jug of the reserved base layer.

Pink layer Blend together the pink layer ingredients and the remaining jug of the reserved base layer.

Once you have the three separate colours, pour one layer at a time into a single glass per serve. g

Rachel is a wellness expert and the author of Balance: Food, Health + Happiness.