There’s love and then there’s love.
Ten years ago, a Chicago-based American (who, not surprisingly, prefers to remain anonymous) fell in love with, and bought, a stunning ocean-front estate in the remote Kenepuru Sound, in the heart of the Marlborough Sounds.
Without telling his wife.
For the past 10 years he has tried to woo her over to his love affair with the Waitaria Estate in a stunningly scenic valley, where they grow and bottle their own organic wines, run sheep, cattle, deer and goats and host guests.
Start your property search
There’s a huge 1000 sq m lodge, built by previous owners, also American, in the style of the south, complete with Gone With the Wind-style grand covered porches and generous formal rooms. The 427 hectares include a barn and proper stabling and loose boxes for horses (along with riding trails), deep water mooring and an additional house for guests or farm manager.
As well as the five hectares of eight grape varieties, there are pockets of native forest, streams and natural waterfalls, and abundant wild life.
But, sadly, after ten years, the wife remains un-convinced and the property is up for sale.
“He tried to make her like it,” says NZ Sotheby’s International agent Mike Barnett, who after 40 years in the real estate industry in the area, knows the property well. “It is set in an idyllic location in one of the most beautiful settings in New Zealand.”
“It’s quite a special property, it covers the whole of the valley. The previous owner set it up as a deer farm in the early 2000s, so it’s fully deer fenced. These owners are actually converting it back to deer, as there’s a pretty good market for breeding trophy stags for hunters, plus the venison and deer velvet market is still very strong in China.”
Barnett says the main house is very American in style, with a fancy kitchen and very good facilities. It is reached by a magnificent tree lined driveway and has been extravagantly renovated.
There’s an in-ground pool, and air conditioning for summer, a wood burner and gas fire and central heating for winter. When the owners are not in residence, it has been let as an AirBnB. As well as four luxurious bedrooms and three bathrooms, the main homestead has a separate lounge and family room, an office/study and finished attic and basement.
The property has its own large tank and irrigation, and septic tank for sewage.
“With substantial beach frontage, a large are of mature forest, crystal clear streams, waterfalls, native forest, abundant wildlife and breath-taking views, this idyllic environment provides owners with unique lifestyle attributes that are second to none,” says Barnett.
It does have an air-strip, and visitors can fly into the property by helicopter (Wellington is about 25 minutes by air) or take a water taxi from across the sounds (thirty minutes), but Barnett says he loves to drive people in the 70 km from Havelock, the nearest town, so they get a sense of the breathtaking scenery and location. The property is about two hours from Picton, or two and a half hours from Blenheim.
But there is potential to do more with the property, he says, to make more of the established farm and vineyard operations, the outstanding views and self-sustainable attributes.
“The Estate will provide a new owner with an outstanding opportunity to secure a unique lifestyle in an unspoilt environment.”
Although, this time, potential owners would do well to check in first with their other half before plunking down the asking $7.9 million (that’s just over US$5 million).
Check out the listing below:
