The history of Glengarry Wines goes back to its original site at 54 Jervois Road.
The license, however, was very restrictive: retailers were only permitted to sell New Zealand wine, they had to stock 12 wines besides their own and they were not permitted to sell less than two gallons to a customer (the equivalent of 12 750ml bottles). During this period the New Zealand wine industry was dominated by sherry, port and any number of fancifully named concoctions.
So much has changed. Now the original site on Jervois Road, where Josef established the family business, is home to three thriving operations, with Glengarry Wines located between two Dida’s sites opened in 2005, ‘Dida’ being Croatian for ‘grandfather’. Glengarry Jervois Road is one of the flagship stores for the company, housing an extensive range of international and local wines. The store has a cellar built under the shop housing an array of top wines, and it plays host to fortnightly tastings. Glengarry Jervois Road boasts a team with excellent wine knowledge, and offers a delivery service, glass hire and function advice. The team can even organise the food via its associates next door at Dida’s.
Located to the left of the Glengarry wine shop, the Dida’s Food Store offers an extensive and impressive cafe offering (the Spanish Scrambled Eggs are a signature dish). The store provides a catering service, able to prepare a platter of cheese, antipasto, sandwiches for the office, cakes or canapés; the options are many and varied.
On the other side of Glengarry, Dida’s Wine Lounge is 11 years old and still going strong. April sees a little change there: The Wine Lounge team has been busy over the last few months preparing a new menu. The style has not changed: it’s still all about tapas and food that matches well with the vast array of wines they cover. A complete refresh sees some of the most innovative tapas we’ve seen to date. Alongside this, the wine list has also had a makeover, extensive as ever with an excellent range by the glass. Speaking of glassware, all wines at Dida’s are served in the excellent German crystal glasses by Eisch. One visit and you’ll quickly notice how nice it is to drink from top-quality glasses.
The biggest change though, is the opening of our cellar doors. The beautiful cellar under the wine store has had a makeover, courtesy of Jak and his son Tani. We’ve filled it with a careful selection from our extensive range and pulled out a collection of wines that are ready to drink. Rather than charge you exorbitant prices for this pleasure, browse the cellar, choose your wine and for $25 on top of the retail price, you can enjoy that served in Eisch glassware at Dida’s.
Pop on in during April, we’d love to see you.
www.glengarry.co.nz; www.didas.co.nz