Sips & Scrums II: The Week Before Kick-off

Day jobs by day. Itineraries by night. Here’s what Ofa and I have been building for the Hunter.

Mālō e lelei and bonjour, fellow wine explorers.

It’s 10.30pm on a Tuesday night. Ofa is on the phone, I’ve got three tabs open (hotels, suppliers, and a spreadsheet that keeps growing), and we both finished our day jobs hours ago.

Neither of us is tired. Not really.

Because next week, Sips & Scrums Part II heads to the Hunter Valley.

Where it started

Last year we ran our first Sips & Scrums I, built around the All Blacks v France in Hamilton. We took about ten people out to a few wineries here in Auckland, shared some great bottles, then headed to the game. Good wine. Good people. Good rugby.

It was something new, and nobody else was really doing it. The feedback told us one thing loud and clear: do it again, and do it bigger.

The work behind the welcome

Here’s the part nobody sees on Instagram. A great wine experience doesn’t just happen. Someone builds it, piece by piece. For the last few weeks, that’s been Ofa and me:

• Building the itinerary. Which cellar doors, in which order, with enough time to actually talk rather than rush.
• Taking meetings. Lots of them. Coffee, calls, emails and follow-ups.
• Putting together gift bags. Proper merchandise from suppliers we trust, something guests keep long after the last glass.
• Booking the right hotels. Not just somewhere to sleep, but somewhere you sleep well. After a big day of tasting and a big night of rugby, that matters.
• Hunting for the extras. The small touches that lift a day from nice to unforgettable.

None of it is glamorous, but all of it matters. The guest never sees the spreadsheet. They only feel whether we did the work.

What’s coming next week

On the first night, I’ll host a tasting for a small group of people who are interested in what Ofa and I are creating. No pressure, bien sûr.

Then it’s up to the Hunter Valley, where I’ll be meeting Pierre Durand, a French winemaker who has made the Hunter his home. A Frenchman, rugby and wine at the same table. You know I’m going to enjoy that. We’re also connecting with other winemakers in the region, but I won’t say too much yet. Some stories are better told after the first pour.

And on Sunday, it’s Tonga v Samoa. I don’t need to tell you who I’m cheering for.

From church choir boys to cellar doors

People often ask me why rugby and wine. The honest answer starts in church.

Ofa and I were choir boys at five years old, standing in our Tongan church attire (tupenu & taovala), singing hymns, learning to show up on time and serve. That’s our Tongan way. We call it fakatōkilalo: humility. You don’t walk into a room thinking you’re the main event. You walk in to serve the people in it, and we carry that into everything we build.

Then rugby took us places we never dreamed of. New countries, new friends, new tables. We had good times, no doubt, but the good times came with experiences, and those experiences shaped us. We don’t take any of it for granted. We’re blessed. Truly.

For me, rugby led to France. Near the end of my playing days, I was playing amateur rugby in Nuits-Saint-Georges and studying wine at the Burgundy School of Business, training under lights, then heading out among the vines around Côte de Nuits. Wine wasn’t a hobby I fell into. I chose it, and I went and studied it.

And in Burgundy, rugby and wine sat at the same table. After the game, someone always opened a local bottle with a story. Teammates, families and winemakers, all in one room.

We’re not building a wine tour. We’re rebuilding that table.

With the Rugby World Cup in Australia next year, a lot of fans will be travelling, and many of them love wine too. They just haven’t had a way to bring the two together. That’s what Sips & Scrums is for.

What I’ve learned so far

Planning a wine trip of your own, even just a day out with friends? Here’s what this build has taught me:

1. Fewer stops, longer stays. Three cellar doors done well beat six done in a hurry.
2. Book where you’ll rest. A good bed is part of the experience.
3. Ask for the story. Who planted the vines? What happened this year? The answers make the wine taste better.
4. Take something home. A bottle, a photo, a name. Keep the connection going.

Final Pour: The best experiences feel effortless. That’s because someone put in the effort first.

Next week, I’ll be writing to you from the Hunter. Hit reply if there’s anything you want me to ask the winemakers. Until then, pour something good and share it with your people.

Mālō ’aupito,

Semisi Telefoni — The Wine Chief