‘Kiwi’ sets wine standard

Press, 5 December 1986, Page 6

‘Kiwi’ sets wine standard

By

ROBIN CHARTERIS

in London

"... and the Kiwi scored again” said the headline in London’s “Standard” newspaper, recording the second win of a New Zealander, Don Hewitson, in the “Standard’s” Wine Bar of the Year contest. In 1984 his first London Wine Bar, the Cork and Bottle won the title. This year he has won the prestigious contest again with the flagship of three wine bars he now owns, Methuselah’s, in Victoria Street, near the Houses of Parliament.

A self-proclaimed failed trumpeter brought up in Levin, Hewitson who is 41, came to London from Wellington in 1972 expecting to find wine bars at every corner. The standard of those few he did come across astonished him.

Appointed manager of The Cork and Bottle soon after arriving, he transformed its fortune by taking over its ownership. By 1977, Hewitson opened his second wine

bar and, three years later, a third. He gave the third, Bubbles, to his wife on their separation, but has since taken over Methuselah’s and turned it into London’s best The “Standard” competition judges describe the wine list at Methuselah’s as “remarkable.” It contains more than 180 labels. The cellar has wine worth £150,000 ($420,000) “and all paid for,” according to the owner.

Hewitson, now an acknowledged expert and international author on wine, stocks a large number of New Zealand wines.

“New Zealand’s wines used to be a joke,” he said. “We used to say try it but don’t get it on your hands.

“If they had told me 14 years ago that we were going to make the best Sauvignon blanc in the world, I wouldn’t have believed them.” Attitudes towards Australian and New Zealand wine have changed greatly, he says.

“It Used to be ‘drink some Aussie or Kiwi wine, you bastards.’ Now it’s ‘you may find this a more refined Chardonnay.’ ”

One of the “Standard” wine bar contest judges, the humourist, Willie Rushton, claimed it was “a buttock-numbing, roaring New Zealand red wine” that finally decided him in favour of Methuselah’s.

He had been “swayed” by the friendly atmosphere, persuaded by the “fascinating food” and finally pushed over the edge by the New Zealand red.

‘lt has got to be the best wine bar I’ve been in by a long street,” he told the judging panel.

Ruston commented he had found the seats hard and uncomfortable in most of the other wine bars the panel had tried.

“It was a lot easier at Methuselah’s after a few sips of that buttocknumbing red,” he said. Hewitson, shouting his customers with champagne, was “absolutely delighted” with his win.

He is the only wine bar owner to have won the title twice in the seven years of the contest. He has plans to open a further two Cork and Bottle wine bars in London in the next three years.

“Then I’m going to make sure I win this title every year with one or other of my bars.” he laughed.