Villa Maria Estate

Villa Maria's story begins not in 1961 but in 1940, when Andrew (Andrija) Fistonich and his wife Mandica, immigrants from the Dalmatian coast of Croatia, planted vines on five acres of land they had purchased near Mangere Mountain in South Auckland. Like many Dalmatian families who had come to New Zealand to work the kauri gum fields and then turned to viticulture, the Fistonichs built a modest family winemaking operation; Andrew Fistonich was licensed as a winemaker in 1949. The pivotal moment came in 1961, when their son George, aged 21, left a career in carpentry, leased two of the family's five acres from his father, and began making wine under the name Villa Maria. The inaugural vintage was harvested in 1962 from one acre of grapes planted that first year on the Kirkbride Road site. Across the 1960s and 1970s George Fistonich expanded relentlessly, relocating the winery to a larger site on Montgomerie Road in Mangere as Villa Maria outgrew its founding paddock. In 1976 he acquired Vidal Estate in Hawke's Bay, opening New Zealand's first licensed winery restaurant there in 1979; in 1987 the company added Esk Valley, and from the late 1980s onwards Villa Maria established its dominant Marlborough presence as that region emerged as New Zealand's Sauvignon Blanc heartland. By the mid-2000s Villa Maria was New Zealand's largest privately-owned wine company, exporting to more than 50 countries and consistently topping domestic and international wine award tallies. In the 2009 Queen's Birthday Honours George Fistonich was made a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the wine industry, the first such recognition for any New Zealand wine figure.

• Family vineyard origins 1940 with Andrew and Mandica Fistonich planting vines on five acres near Mangere Mountain; Andrew licensed as winemaker 1949
• George Fistonich leased two acres from his father in 1961 at age 21, founded Villa Maria, and released the inaugural 1962 vintage from a single acre of grapes
• Acquisitions built a multi-brand group: Vidal Estate 1976, Esk Valley 1987, Te Awa later; first licensed winery restaurant in New Zealand opened at Vidal in 1979
• Knighted in 2009 for services to the New Zealand wine industry, the first wine industry knighthood in the country; remained chairman through the 2010s

Villa Maria operates a six-tier portfolio architecture that runs from the rare flagship Ngakirikiri Cabernet Sauvignon at the apex down to the volume-driving Private Bin range. At the top sits Ngakirikiri (the Maori word for the stony soils of the Gimblett Gravels), a Hawke's Bay Cabernet Sauvignon released only when vintages produce truly exceptional fruit from mature, low-yielding Gimblett Gravels vines; the inaugural release was the 2013 vintage, made to celebrate 25 years since Villa Maria's 1988 purchase of the Ngakirikiri vineyard, and the wine has been released only a small handful of times since. The Reserve tier represents the next step down and is made only in the best vintages, anchored by the Hawke's Bay Reserve Cabernet Merlot and Reserve Gimblett Gravels Syrah, the Marlborough Reserve Sauvignon Blanc and Reserve Pinot Noir, and Reserve Chardonnay. Single Vineyard wines isolate the character of specific sites, including the Keltern Vineyard Chardonnay from a 1999 planting on silt loams over red metals east of Maraekakaho in Hawke's Bay, the Taylors Pass Sauvignon Blanc on the alluvial gravel terraces of the Awatere Valley's north bank, the Seddon Pinot Noir in Marlborough's Southern Valleys, and the Ihumatao Chardonnay from the former Auckland volcanic crater site. Platinum Selection and Cellar Selection occupy the middle tiers, with Cellar Selection wines drawn from lower-yielding parcels and aged in premium oak for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Bordeaux blends. The Private Bin range at the entry level is the volume engine, with fruit-driven, approachable expressions of New Zealand's main wine styles distributed in supermarkets and retailers across the country and abroad.

• Six tiers from apex to entry: Ngakirikiri, Reserve, Single Vineyard, Platinum Selection, Cellar Selection, Private Bin
• Ngakirikiri Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Sauvignon first released 2013 to mark 25 years at the vineyard purchased 1988; produced only in exceptional vintages
• Single Vineyard sites include Keltern (Hawke's Bay, planted 1999, Chardonnay), Taylors Pass (Awatere Valley, Sauvignon Blanc), Seddon (Marlborough Southern Valleys, Pinot Noir) and Ihumatao (Auckland volcanic, Chardonnay)
• Reserve range built around Hawke's Bay Reserve Cabernet Merlot and Gimblett Gravels Syrah plus Marlborough Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay

Villa Maria's vineyard footprint spans four of New Zealand's most important wine regions and underpins the company's claim to a true national portfolio. In Auckland the historical heart of the business is the Mangere headquarters at 118 Montgomerie Road, opened on a quarried volcanic site Fistonich purchased in 2000; the cellar door and winery sit in a wind-protected basin beside the Manukau Harbour. The associated Ihumatao Vineyard, a 10-hectare planting of Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Verdelho and Pinot Noir established on the rim of a 30,000 to 40,000 year old volcanic crater, supplied a Single Vineyard Chardonnay for two decades; under the Indevin era the surrounding land has been transitioned to Goodman Property for logistics development, marking the end of commercial viticulture on the founding Mangere block. Marlborough holds the largest share of Villa Maria's planted area, spread across the Wairau Valley around Renwick and the cooler, more saline Awatere Valley, with key Single Vineyard sites at Taylors Pass (Awatere) and Seddon (Southern Valleys). In Hawke's Bay the company is the dominant force in the Gimblett Gravels, owning approximately one third of the official Winegrowing District after acquiring the Ngakirikiri block in 1988, and Bridge Pa Triangle parcels including Keltern. Hawke's Bay operations consolidated at 2375 SH50 in the Gimblett Gravels/Bridge Pa belt, a shared facility that processes fruit for Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Vidal Estate and Te Awa under one roof. Gisborne supplies aromatic white varietals and rounds out the geographic spread that gives Villa Maria its multi-regional palette.

• Auckland: Mangere headquarters at 118 Montgomerie Road on a wind-protected volcanic basin near Manukau Harbour; founding Kirkbride Road plot remains symbolic
• Marlborough: largest planted area, Wairau Valley around Renwick plus Awatere Valley sites at Taylors Pass and Seddon
• Hawke's Bay: dominant Gimblett Gravels landholder (~one third of the district) plus Bridge Pa Triangle (Keltern); consolidated facility at 2375 SH50 with Esk Valley, Vidal and Te Awa
• Gisborne: aromatic white varietal sourcing; Ihumatao Vineyard at Mangere phased out as the surrounding land transitioned to Goodman Property logistics development

The transition that ended six decades of Fistonich family ownership unfolded over four months in 2021. In May 2021 Fistonich Family Wines Limited (FFWL), the holding company over Villa Maria Estate Limited, was placed into receivership by Calibre Partners after creditors including ANZ and Rabobank moved against accumulated debts on land assets. Villa Maria Estate Limited, the operating company that produced and sold the wine, continued trading normally throughout the receivership; the brand and customer base were never the financial problem. In August 2021 Indevin Group, then New Zealand's largest contract winemaker, entered into a conditional agreement with the receivers to acquire 100 percent of Villa Maria Estate Limited, and on 31 August 2021 the transaction settled at a reported $190 million, with total valuation of the wider Villa Maria assets including land separately put at around $265 million. Indevin's acquisition rolled the Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Vidal Estate, Te Awa, Leftfield and Thornbury brands into one portfolio, alongside Marlborough, Hawke's Bay and Auckland wineries, vineyards and supplier agreements. Sir George Fistonich subsequently filed legal claims against the receivers, contesting aspects of the sale process. Under Indevin ownership Villa Maria remains New Zealand-owned and New Zealand-operated; David Roper was appointed Group Winemaker, the consolidated Hawke's Bay site at 2375 SH50 now handles Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Vidal Estate and Te Awa under one roof, and Indevin's existing supply network from more than 3,000 hectares of contracted Marlborough, Gisborne and Hawke's Bay vineyards expanded the buying power and reach of the Villa Maria portfolio without changing the underlying tier architecture.

• Parent FFWL placed into receivership May 2021 by Calibre Partners after ANZ and Rabobank creditor action on land debts; operating company Villa Maria Estate Limited continued trading throughout
• Indevin Group conditional agreement August 2021; deal settled 31 August 2021 for $190 million (operating business and brands)
• Acquired brands: Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Vidal Estate, Te Awa, Leftfield and Thornbury, plus Marlborough, Hawke's Bay and Auckland wineries and supplier agreements
• Indevin Group remains New Zealand-owned and operates more than 3,000 hectares of contracted vineyards in Marlborough, Gisborne and Hawke's Bay; David Roper named Group Winemaker

Villa Maria's track record as New Zealand's most-awarded wine company is built on consistency rather than a single signature wine. Across the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s the company dominated New Zealand domestic wine competitions, was a regular feature in Bob Campbell MW's Top NZ wines lists, and was named the most-awarded New Zealand wine producer at the International Wine Challenge multiple times. Decanter, Wine Enthusiast and James Suckling have repeatedly scored Villa Maria's Reserve and Single Vineyard wines in the 92 to 97 point range, with the Ngakirikiri Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 receiving 97 points and the Keltern Chardonnay consistently rated among New Zealand's finest Chardonnays. On sustainability Villa Maria was the first major New Zealand winery to achieve full BioGro organic certification spanning vineyard, winery, bottling line and export warehouse, earning that distinction in 1995, and was a founding member of Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand the same year. Toitu carbonreduce certification (the New Zealand carbon emissions reduction scheme that succeeded the carboNZero programme) followed in 2010, and the company has since reduced its emissions per bottle by approximately 25 percent while growing total production; Villa Maria also led the industry shift toward lighter glass, working with suppliers to bring standard bottle weight to 417 grams. Wine education and tourism have been part of the brand identity since the 1979 opening of New Zealand's first winery restaurant at Vidal; the Mangere cellar door welcomes visitors year-round and Villa Maria has long supported wine education through scholarships, the New Zealand International Wine Show, and Sir George's 2019 tenure as President of the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC).

• Most-awarded New Zealand wine producer at the International Wine Challenge over multiple years; consistent 92-97 point scores from Decanter, Wine Enthusiast and James Suckling for Reserve and Single Vineyard wines
• First major New Zealand winery to achieve BioGro organic certification across the full supply chain (1995); founding Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand member
• Toitu carbonreduce certified since 2010; ~25% reduction in emissions per bottle alongside production growth; industry leader on lightweight 417-gram bottles
• Wine education legacy: New Zealand's first winery restaurant at Vidal (1979); year-round Mangere cellar door; Sir George Fistonich served as IWSC President in 2019