The Hunting Lodge is a working winery, restaurant, lawn bar and events venue on Waikoukou Valley Road in Waimauku, just outside Kumeū in West Auckland wine country. The site is steeped in history: it is home to New Zealand's original commercial Sauvignon Blanc vines, and before its life in wine it was a real hunting lodge for the Kerr-Taylor family. That story lives on through generations, and the property's most recent chapter revives its culinary past, with the Restaurant sitting at the beating heart of the estate.
The wine is organised into four collections, each with its own character: the small-batch, seasonal Seasonal Collection; the boundary-pushing Project X range; the Expressions Range of classic New Zealand crowd-pleasers; and the Homeblock Series, very small batch parcels hand-picked from the home vineyard with minimal winemaker intervention. Everything can be tasted at the cellar door or ordered through the online wine shop, with gift cards available.
A visit here is as much about the setting as the glass. The Lawn Bar & Cellar Door operates on seasonal hours with the kitchen serving until a last call before close, and closing times can be subject to weather for outdoor seating. The Restaurant runs Thursday to Saturday for lunch and dinner and opens for Sunday lunch, with earlier sittings for group bookings available on request. The venue also hosts weddings and events with the help of an in-house planner.
The location makes an easy day out: roughly 30 minutes from Auckland CBD, around 40 minutes from the airport and just 15 minutes from Muriwai Beach. Woodhill Forest is minutes away with horse riding, mountain biking, tree climbing, paintball and off-road adventures, and nearby Parakai's hot pools round out a classic west Auckland itinerary.
The sign at the gate says it all: "The hunt is over." The Hunting Lodge sits on Waikoukou Valley Road in Waimauku, just outside Kumeū in West Auckland wine country, and it is one of those rare places where the setting, the history and the glass in your hand all belong to the same story.
That story goes back a long way. The site is home to New Zealand's original commercial Sauvignon Blanc vines — the variety that would go on to define New Zealand wine — and long before the vines made it famous, the property served as a real hunting lodge for the Kerr-Taylor family. Generations of stories have played out here, and the current chapter leans back into the land's culinary roots: a working winery with a restaurant at its beating heart, built around what the team sums up as food, wine, friends and family.
The Hunting Lodge pours and sells its wines in four distinct collections, and part of the fun is working out which one matches your mood.
The Seasonal Collection is the handcrafted, boutique end of the range — small batch releases that evolve with the seasons, so there is genuinely something different to discover each time you visit. Terroir and winemaking craft are the headline acts here.
Project X is where the winemakers get to play. Never bound by tradition, this range pushes the boundaries of textbook winemaking and represents the innovative spirit of New Zealand wine — with, as they admit, a little fun along the way.
The Expressions Range is the everyday crowd-pleaser: classic expressions of New Zealand's most celebrated iconic wines, loaded with interest and character. If you are new to the estate, this is an easy place to start.
Finally, the Homeblock Series pays homage to the property's own patch of Waimauku soil. These very small batch parcels are hand-picked from the home vineyard and made with minimal winemaker intervention, so each wine speaks directly to the site's history and provenance.
All of these can be enjoyed at the cellar door or ordered through the online wine shop — and gift cards are available if you would rather let someone else choose.
The Lawn Bar & Cellar Door is the more relaxed side of The Hunting Lodge, and it runs on seasonal hours. Under the current spring schedule it is closed Monday to Wednesday, open Thursday from 11:45am to 4:30pm, Friday and Saturday from 11:45am to 8pm, and Sunday from 11:45am to 5:30pm. Keep an eye on the kitchen: last calls are 4pm on Thursday, 7pm on Friday and Saturday, and 5pm on Sunday. Because much of the seating is outdoors, closing hours are subject to weather.
The Restaurant keeps its own rhythm, open Thursday to Saturday for lunch and dinner from 11:45am until late, with Sunday lunch service starting at 11:45am. If you are planning something outside those windows, it is worth contacting the team — earlier sittings for group bookings can be arranged on request. Reservations go through [email protected] or +64 9 655 024, while the lawn bar can be reached on +64 9 964 0565.
One of the best things about The Hunting Lodge is how easily it anchors a West Auckland day out. You are about 30 minutes from the Auckland CBD and around 40 minutes from the airport, but it feels a world away. Muriwai Beach is just 15 minutes down the road, Woodhill Forest is only minutes away with horse riding, mountain biking, tree climbing, paintball and off-road adventures, and Parakai's well-known hot pools make an easy family detour on the way home.
The venue also plays host, quite literally. An in-house events and weddings planner helps bring celebrations to life on the property, with enquiries going to [email protected]. And if you want to stay in the loop for wine deals and upcoming events, the estate runs a mailing list worth joining.
Between the vines, the lawn, the kitchen and four very different wine collections, The Hunting Lodge has quietly become one of West Auckland's most complete winery days out. The hunt, as promised, is over.