Inn good spirits for 175 years

A rest stop for horseback travellers, farewell parties for WWI and II soldiers, a courthouse, a booze barn in the 50s, and the loosening of liquor licensing rules.

Aotearoa’s oldest watering hole, the Moutere Inn, has been, and seen, many changes, and said tchin tchin to its 175 years of “luck in isolation” over Labour Weekend (its adopted birth date).

Established in 1850 by German soldier Cordt Bensemann, the wooden building has aged like a fine wine whilst retaining its existing bones on the Moutere Highway.

Its first recorded photo was in 1880, and in a framed document adorned in the pub, there is feedback from German geologist Sir Julius von Haast’s visit in 1860.

He said the establishment had a “cheerful, typical German guest room” with clouds of blue smoke from pipes and cigars in the air, and was served a “true German dish” of ham pancakes.

Haast later discovered gold and coal in Nelson and gave Haast on the West Coast its name.

David Watson and Andrew Cole haven’t called the shots at the piece of history for quite 175 years, instead since 2008, and have given it another round of gusto.

The craft beer industry was hopping at the time they took charge, and they thought having their own venue for the brews was a pathway to bring their expertise to this customer base.

“The contract was with [DB Breweries] and it was kind of on its last legs, and that’s sort of related to the changing culture around drinking,” he says.“We had to create a destination for people to go to, and it’s kind of become that tourist attraction.”

David says, for hospitality venues like the Moutere Inn to keep chugging away, its owners need to experiment, which he and Andrew have done with quizzes, raffles, live music and international food nights.

“The reality of hospitality is that you have to keep moving and changing. You have to accept the fact that things change and go with that and embrace it,” David says.

“Don’t spend a bunch of money on stupid shit, try and get good stuff, treat people with respect and demand respect in return.

“One of the big things was in the beginning when we said we’re going to get rid of the TVs, and we’re not going to have Sky Sport because it just completely changes the atmosphere once a TV is turned on, your head tends to kind of go, and there’s less conversation. That definitely would be significant, but that’s important for customers; they want to have that social interaction.”

The Moutere Inn has been on the market since 2023, awaiting its new custodians.