Local Alexandra vineyard inspires love story setting

Fiction according to the dictionary is ‘literature in the form of prose, especially novels, that describes imaginary events and people’. While fiction is the result of imagination, it is often inspired by real places, real events, and real people along with the writer’s personal experiences.

In Loving Lila, the Rosa d’Aosta vineyard is loosely based on a real vineyard close to Alexandra, Como Villa Estate.

Established by Thomas Oliver in the 1860s, Como Villa is now owned by John and Pam Chapman. In 2018, John showed us around the original stone house, now the cellar door, and the old underground wine cellar they discovered behind the house.

Rosa d'Aosta's vineyard setting was inspired by a visit to Como Villa Estate near Alexandra.

When the property was advertised for auction in 1874, it included a ‘substantial six-roomed stone house, dairy, storeroom, stable, coach-house, stockyard, smithy and piggeries’ along with ‘a splendid orchard and vineyard’.

The wine cellar discovered by John and Pam Chapman.

According to the Tuapeka Times in 1875, ‘The grapes, grown at Como Villa, Alexandra this season, stamp that locality as one eminently adapted for the growth of the vine.’ Little did the writer know back then how grapes would become the region’s gold of the future.

Como Villa’s Italian link is said to have been winemaker Luigi Valli from Como, Italy. Luigi was also a gold miner and is buried in the Clyde Cemetery.

Govenor's Bay Taunton House inspired Rosa d'Aosta's cottage

In Loving Lila, the vineyard runs over the hill to take in views across the valley. The Rosa d’Aosta restaurant is based on Como Villa’s original stone house and the main cottage in the story is loosely based on Taunton Gardens’ stone cottage in Governor's Bay.

Today Como Villa Estate is a boutique vineyard selling from the cellar door. You can check out their award-winning wines at https://www.comovilla.co.nz/

To find out more about Loving Lila, click here...