Description
About Hans Herzog Wines
Hans Herzog, a man so passionate about wine he left 500 years of winemaking lineage to move to the other side of the world to create wines which compete with the world’s best. Join us on our journey from Switzerland to New Zealand.
Hans’ ancestor Heinrich Herzog wears a ring bearing the Herzog crest when he presses it into wax, sealing an agreement to purchase a hillside vineyard towering over Switzerland’s Rhine Valley. The Herzog’s have lived in this region for generations. First mentioned in the church almanac of 1482, they are farmers, tending their animals and modest vineyards clustered around the villages of Thal and Rheineck in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. Growing vines, even then flows deep in the blood of Hans Herzog.
Hans was born on the same land, fell in love with Therese and together established their own vineyard and winery further down the Rhine river in the Zurich wine country.
From humble beginnings in the couple’s garage, they became one of the foremost estates in the country. Therese, a committed epicure, ended her marketing career in 1992 to open a restaurant on the estate. She is a naturally vivacious host and people were soon queuing up to experience the combination of fine food, impeccable service, ambience and of course Hans’ wines- serious, handcrafted wines for food. The restaurant won high praise and a prestigious Michelin Star.
Despite their success in Switzerland, Hans still sought the ideal place to produce great Bordeaux grapes and other varieties not possible to grow in the challenging Swiss climate. In pursuit of his dream to find the ideal land to grow the wines he loved, his search led him to New Zealand.
He found the perfect conditions in Marlborough and bought a precious plot of land, originally been an apple orchard, in 1994. He planted the first vines in 1996 and the winery was built in 1998, right in time for the first vintage to commence.
