On the wagon Travelling wine bar success
A restored 1950s van stocked with your favourite tipple is sure to keep wine lovers happy. Chloe Winter checks out the latest in Kiwi innovation.
An old VW Kombi van turned travelling wine bar is revving up to go on tour. The Winedub is an original 1958, split-screen VW single cab pickup, that was restored and refurbished to become a new and innovative way to showcase New Zealand wines.
The van, which was fully restored as part of a 15-month project, has been fitted out with a wine serving system that allows people to taste up to 46 wines at any one time.
Maryann Bailey, store manager at Queenstown drinks store, The Winery, which owns the van, believed The Winedub was the first of its kind in New Zealand.
Store owner and The Winedub founder Rick Nelson, found the van on a website, Bailey said.
‘‘She was in a bit of a poor state and Rick actually bought her pretty much as is, sight unseen, he just said, ‘Right, ok, I’ll take it,’ then went to pick it up and then when he got it to his mechanic, they said, ‘Ooo’.
‘‘These sort of projects always take a little bit more time, effort and money.
‘‘It was a bit of labour of love, but the guys did a really, really good job in restoring it.’’
Following the restoration, it was fitted out with machines called an Enomatic Wine Serving System.
They work when the customer inserts a card, similar to an eftpos card, into a slot above the wines and chooses a serve – either a tasting, half glass, or full glass.
Customers then put the glass under the nozzle of the wine they want and tap a button. Wine is dispensed, and argon gas is pumped into the bottle as the wine level goes down to preserve the leftover wine.
The system acts like a bar tab, in that it records what people choose and is paid for at the end.
The cost to hire the van was done on a case-by-case basis, depending on the length of the event, the number of wines featured, and the number of people attending, Bailey said.
The Winedub attended a couple of events in Dunedin during the past six months, but Bailey hoped it could go on tour this summer.
There was quite a long process for getting the licence for the van, she said.
‘‘A lot of people have never seen the wine serving systems before, let alone on the back of VW van, so that does create a little bit of a talking point.
‘‘People like being able to enjoy a bunch of different wines … There will be wines that you wouldn’t find by the glass on a restaurant wine list,’’ Bailey said.
‘‘It’s a good opportunity for people to try something that might be a bit out of their budget, or they’ve never tried before.’’
When the van was not attending an event, the machines could be taken off and it turned into The Winery’s delivery vehicle, she said.
‘‘I think she’s great, and great to drive as well. The first time I drove her, I felt like I was on holiday. She doesn’t go particularly fast, but she does get to about 100 on the straight road.
‘‘When you are driving around, everyone is waving at you, everyone is pointing,’’ Bailey said.
‘‘We can’t wait to get to more events and spread the word.’’