Babich Wines, one of New Zealand’s oldest family-owned wine brands, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
To mark the milestone, the Babich family has dusted off the archives and is sharing 100 never-before-heard stories from its history. 26 stories were posted on babichwines.co.nz/100stories before Christmas. 30 more stories will be added soon. The remainder will be added throughout the year.
“We are throwing the doors open and sharing the most intimate parts of our history,” said Babich Wines Managing Director and second-generation winemaker Joe Babich. “These stories touch on every emotion. A few will have you laughing out loud, some give an interesting glimpse at what winemaking was like in New Zealand in the 1900s, and others are simply hard to believe!
“They really demonstrate that deep personal connection we have had with the vines, the land and the wine since that first bottle was produced by my father, Josip Babich, in 1916 – when he was just 20 years old.”
Babich has also unveiled a centennial Cabernet Sauvignon, the most exclusive wine in its history, using a small parcel of grapes from its 2013 Hawke’s Bay Gimblett Gravels harvest. Only 100 magnums and 330 bottles of special edition wine are available.
In addition, a tribute book, titled The Next Vintage, has been released. It traces Josip’s journey and the 100 years since 1916, when he made his first wine from his own grapes, to the large West Auckland family winery that is now a well-known international brand.
The Babich Wines cellar door – at the family’s very first vineyard in West Auckland – will be given a complete makeover this year, and is expected to be very popular with tourism operators and media. The launch date will be announced later on in the year.
Philip Gregan, CEO of New Zealand Winegrowers, agrees that the centenary is an important milestone, not just for Babich but also for the New Zealand wine industry as a whole.
“Babich Wines and generations of the Babich family are exemplars of all that has made New Zealand wine such an inspiring international success story,” says Philip. “From humble beginnings, with hard work, with enormous dedication and with great vision they have built a highly successful wine business. Their individual enterprise has always been coupled with unwavering service to the wider New Zealand wine industry, for which they are applauded and recognised by their peers.”