The Wine Clubs of Pacific Coast & Pacific Lakes Village
Pacific Lakes News
There is a cheeky Italian saying that goes, “Age and glasses of wine should never be counted.” This playful phrase could be the unofficial motto for the ever-increasing groups of wine lovers at the Pacific Coast and Pacific Lakes Villages in sun-drenched Pāpāmoa.
These two lifestyle-focused villages are home to various resident-led wine clubs and wine groups. While different people may run them, they all share a common passion for celebrating the finer things in life: good food, good wine, and, most importantly, good company.
“It’s the comradeship of village life,” smiles Margaret Giles, who runs the Pacific Coast Village’s Wine Club. “We're quite social within the village. I've made a lot of friends through this particular group.”
This sentiment is shared by Ross McHugh, organiser of a wine group in the Pacific Lakes Village, who says one of the aims of the group is to forge friendships within the village.
“People get to enjoy each other's company because we force them,” Ross jokes. “When we're doing the seating plans for the evening, we rotate people around as much as possible. That’s an important thing.”
Since starting up a few years ago, the popularity of these monthly events has only increased, with numbers hovering around 40 people per-event, climbing as high as 60 for the Pacific Lakes Village Wine Club’s annual Christmas do.
“We get a little fancier stuff in December, maybe an extra bottle for the tables,” Terry Eade of the Pacific Lakes Wine Club grins. “At the end of the night, you'll find one part up dancing, the other part swinging their arms around in the air and singing. We invited four new residents to come to Wine Club, and one of them said to me, ‘This is the best party we've been to for the last few years!’”
Of course, it’s not just the social aspect that’s pulling the crowds; wine education and enjoyment are also extremely important for all three groups. They each have their own style but follow similar formats for their evenings.
All curate a selection of usually four wines for their members to discover, learn about, and enjoy. Sometimes these are themed, like Pacific Lakes’ Wine Club’s recent Italian evening, which included Italian-style nibbles and a swinging soundtrack of Dean Martin singing in his native tongue.
Speakers from within the group and occasional experts from wineries lead the evening, discussing the wine’s history, explaining its characteristics, and leading group discussions once everyone’s tasted the feature wine. Being responsible hosts nibbles are also provided.
Rest assured, you do not have to be a wine snob to enjoy the company.
“Definitely not,” Terry confirms. “That's not what we're doing. People stopped coming because their husbands didn't drink wine, so we said, ‘That's fine, we'll do beer as well!’”
Now he makes sure to include a few craft beers for those whose tastes run toward the hops rather than the grape to taste-test throughout the evening.
The groups operate individually, but the common thread running between all three is the sense of community and camaraderie that flows as freely as the wine being tasted. All are extremely welcoming and encourage new residents to join them for a fun evening out.
It reminds us of another timeless saying that goes, “The best wines are the ones we drink with friends,” and that’s certainly true at the Pacific Coast and Pacific Lakes Villages.
It's a matter of putting yourself out there in a village,” smiles Margaret. “You can never be lonely in village life.”
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