Conferences, daytime workshops, board meetings, gala dinners, cocktail functions and weddings can be held at Mission Estate Winery, on a hillside in Taradale above the vineyards of Hawke's Bay, about ten minutes from central Napier and from Napier airport. The estate offers four indoor rooms, a terrace and a lawn that can take a marquee, with food from its own restaurant and wine from its own cellar. The site does not publish capacities, so guest numbers are confirmed with the functions team.
Seminars and company events
For business groups, the most useful rooms are the Library, laid out for daytime workshops and meetings and able to turn into an evening function space, and the Boardroom, a private room for smaller meetings. The Chapel works for presentations in theatre layout as well as for seated dinners, so a conference day can end with dinner in the same building. The functions team helps with the layout and liaises with suppliers, and the estate provides AV and technical support and free Wi-Fi. Parking is ample and buses or minivans can reach the venue easily, which matters for groups transferring from Napier hotels. Wine tastings and cellar door experiences can be added to a program.
Weddings and receptions
The estate says it has more than 25 years of experience with weddings. Ceremonies can take place at a gazebo, at a hilltop lookout, on a vine-covered terrace or in the Chapel under its vaulted ceiling. Receptions run indoors or outdoors, including a marquee on the lawn and dinner on the terrace. Separate wedding and elopement packages are available.
Rooms and capacities
The Chapel, rebuilt after the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, is the main room for seated dinners and theatre-style presentations. The Chanel Room has good natural light and suits smaller gatherings. The Library and the Boardroom cover meetings. Outside, the terrace and the lawn look over the vineyards toward the coast and suit ceremonies, cocktail functions and networking, and the lawn can host a marquee for larger events. Capacities for each space are given on request.
Catering
Catering is in-house, by Mission Estate Restaurant, with menus curated by executive chef Ricky Littleton from local ingredients. Formats include working lunches and light refreshments for meetings, canapés and roving canapé menus, plated multi-course dinners, shared feasts and outdoor dining. Bar service runs on site and dietary requirements are handled.
History and setting
Mission Estate dates its winemaking to 1851, when French missionaries planted vines in Hawke's Bay as part of a self-sufficient mission. Brother Cyprien Huchet, who arrived in 1871, expanded the vineyards and changed the pruning methods. In 1910 the main house was moved from flood-prone land to its present site in Taradale: it was cut into eleven sections and hauled nearly five kilometers by traction engine. That building, the Grande Maison, a restored former seminary, now houses the cellar door. The 1931 earthquake destroyed parts of the estate. In 1963 the winery made the first traditional-method sparkling wine in New Zealand.
Getting there
The estate is about ten minutes by road from Napier city center and from Hawke's Bay Airport in Napier. Coaches and minivans can drive up and park on site.
