Jon Dunbar is a copy editor at The Korea Times, as well as editor of the Foreign Community page and curator of the Korea Times Archive. If you have suggestions for possible articles, or wish to contribute articles yourself, contact jdunbar@koreatimes.co.kr.
Kiwi Chamber offers wine, Maori 'hangi' feast
Maori performers at the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea (Kiwi Chamber) wine festival last year in Seoul / Courtesy of Kiwi Chamber
By Jon Dunbar
By Jon Dunbar
The New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea (Kiwi Chamber) is hosting a set of wine festivals in Seoul and Busan under the theme “Flavors of New Zealand.”
The
will be at the Grand Hyatt Seoul's picturesque waterfall garden on Saturday, May 25, and the
is two Saturdays later on June 8 at Ananti Cove Resort just north of Haeundae Beach. This is the 11th such event in Seoul, and its seventh time in Busan.
“Guests will be able to discover the unique diversity of New Zealand's wine regions, varieties and styles,” said Kiwi Chamber Chairman Dr. Tony Garrett, a professor of marketing at the Korea University Business School. “Oenophiles will be able to experience an array of quality reds and whites from over 25 of the nation's top vineyards.”
Participants at the Kiwi Chamber's Busan 2018 Wine Festival / Courtesy of Martina Kim
Both events will also offer food to go along with the wine. The Seoul event will feature a hangi, a traditional Maori feast. Laying a hangi involves digging a pit and placing in it stones heated with a large fire. Food is then placed in baskets on top of the stones and covered with earth for several hours.
The Seoul event also features a “grape treading photo zone,” where guests can experience traditional winemaking firsthand ― or, first-foot. Both events will offer lucky draws featuring prizes including hotel packages, gift sets and the grand prize of one economy return ticket to New Zealand from sponsor Singapore Airlines.
New Zealand wine has experienced strong growth in the Korean market, with sales up 39.6 percent year-on-year to NZ$5.2 million in 2018, nearly double the NZ$2.7 million figure of 2015 before the Korea-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) came into effect, according to the Kiwi Chamber.
“There are some exciting niche export areas where New Zealand has a strong brand presence in Korea, and wine is one of them,” New Zealand Ambassador to South Korea Philip Turner said. “The Korea-New Zealand FTA reduced tariffs on New Zealand wine from 15 percent to zero in 2015, and there has been strong growth since then. Events such as the annual Kiwi Chamber wine festivals in Seoul and Busan have done a lot to increase the profile of New Zealand's products.”
Tickets for the individual events are 120,000 won for Kiwi Chamber members, 140,000 won for non-members and 150,000 won for at-the-door purchases. Group discounts are also available at 120,000 won per ticket for groups of eight or larger. Contact events@kiwichamber.com or visit
for more information or to register.