The Vintner’s Table – stories, wines & recipes from Pegasus Winery

The Vintner’s Table – stories, wines & recipes from Pegasus Winery – by the Donaldson Family and Adrienne Rewi  with photography by Aaron McLean – Random House – Hardback - $65.00

This handsome book is the tale of a pioneering winemaking family, it includes 82 delicious recipes from its award-winning winery restaurant, as well as the story behind its superbly crafted wines; it is a book that transports you to Canterbury’s Waipara Valley.

This family is of course the Donaldsons who operate Pegasus Bay Wines established in 1986 by eminent neurologist Ivan Donaldson and his wife Chris, a stalwart of Canterbury’s opera community. There are now three Donaldson sons in the business. Matt is the winemaker, Paul is the general manager and Ed, is their marketing manager. Ed’s wife Belinda is the Pegasus Bay winery restaurant manager.

They are regarded as pioneers of local wine growing and making in Canterbury’s Waipara Valley – now New Zealand’s fifth largest growing region. Back then people said they were crazy. There was a massive wine glut, and North Canterbury was largely unproven as a place to grow quality wine. Thirty years on, and still family-owned and run they have built an enviable reputation for producing some of the country’s finest, high-quality wines; especially for me their Riesling and Pinot Noir both of which I notice Michael Cooper rated as super classics in his 2014 Buyers Guide to New Zealand Wines. Accolades don’t come much better than that!.

The Vintner’s Table is their inspiring story of a long-standing love affair with wine and the hard graft behind becoming such hugely successful wine-makers.

The story starts with the young Ivan and Chris’s modest beginnings as amateur winemakers, making wine from surplus fruit and their subsequent European travels, where they immersed themselves in the business of wine-making, and moves on to the creation of a thriving, award-winning boutique winery, exporting to 27 countries around the world.

And while wine is at the heart of the Donaldson’s story, it is not their only endeavour. Cuisine has also played a significant part in their journey, and the creation of their restaurant winery has attracted top international and local chefs.Today, the restaurant has an established reputation as a top dining destination, having been judged top of category in the Cuisine magazine restaurant of the year awards six times and in 2014, being awarded a Cuisine Good Food coveted ‘Chefs hat.’

This is an impressive book filled with gorgeous photographs about an impressive family. It is a book for both foodies and wine lovers, and also for the many who enjoy visiting the beautiful Waipara Valley an easy forty minute drive north of Christchurch.