- Andrew Cole and Dave Watson are selling the 175-year-old Moutere Inn for $1.2m.
- They revitalised the pub into a craft beer venue after purchasing it in 2008.
- The inn, built in 1850, is New Zealand's oldest pub still operating from its original building.
Two beer-loving blokes are selling New Zealand’s oldest pub for $1.2 million after saving it from ruin.
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Andrew Cole and Dave Watson told OneRoof they couldn’t find decent craft beer in New Zealand after returning from their OE, so they bought the Moutere Inn with two other friends to solve the problem.
The 175-year-old icon was on “its last legs” when they took over in 2008. Over the years the group brought it back to life and turned it into a craft beer pub, Cole told OneRoof.
Luckily, the craft beer industry exploded around the time they bought the pub, so they were able to bring their expertise to a growing customer base.
The pair gave the pub a modern makeover when they bought it in 2008 with two other friends. Photo / Supplied
The Moutere Inn is still in the original building, which dates back to the early 1850s. Photo / Supplied
The pair is keen to highlight they have two taps with mainstream beer and sell wine that is grown within a 10km radius of the inn.
“It does cause some confusion sometimes, but we have wonderful wines here, so it should be a feature. I don’t know of any other pub or bar with a similar policy, and is part of what makes us unique,” Cole said.
The Moutere Inn, which is between Nelson and Motueka, was first listed for sale in 2023, but Cole and Watson are still looking for a new custodian for their business.
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“Most houses around here are over $1.2m, so for the size of the building and the amount of land and everything, it seems like a bargain,” he said.
The inn comes with accommodation, which Cole said made it a perfect home and income opportunity. “We’ve had some interest, [but] it just hasn’t got over the line. I’m not quite sure why.”
Cole said while there were several other pubs around the same age, Moutere Inn was the only one that was still being run from its original building, adding to its charm.
Buyers from around the world have expressed an interest in the Cardrona Hotel, in Queenstown-Lakes. Photo / Getty Images
The historic Hurunui Hotel shut its doors more than a year ago. It is for sale for $995,000, but the owner is also looking for someone to lease the property. Photo / Supplied
The pub was built in 1850 by German soldier Cordt Bensemann, who was one of the earliest settlers in the region.
It originally served workers in the horticultural industry. “Because it has had that sort of clientele, there was never any pressure to update or rebuild,” Cole said.
“It’s got all the original bones. Over the years, it has been updated, but fortunately things have been added rather than taken away. It’s still the same as it was in 1850.”
But as well as loyal locals, the pub now gets a good stream of tourists, many of whom are there to soak in the atmosphere and have a drink in the country’s oldest original pub.
“We get a lot busier over the six months of summer. You just have to do a search online, and it pops up.”
The Whangamomona Hotel is also up for grabs. A lot of visitors turn up at the village eager to have their passports stamped. Photo / Supplied
The Urenui Hotel, about 30 minutes from New Plymouth, has just hit the market. Photo / Supplied
Cole said he had loved owning the pub and getting to know the community, adding that about half the locals had family members who had owned the property at some point in the last 175 years.
Descendants of the original owners still lived in the area and drank at the pub, he said.
“It’s a fascinating building – it’s wonderful to be a part of the history of the building and the area.
“It is one of the first places in New Zealand to be developed. A lot of people think Central Otago has the oldest pubs, but they were only developed during the Gold Rush in the 1860s.”
The town itself still had a lot of heritage buildings, including three old homes built in the 1850s, which were only several hundred metres away from the pub.
The Moutere Inn is one of several historic pubs in the South Island looking for new owners, but the sale of arguably the most famous has much of the country on tenterhooks.
The deadline for offers for the Cardrona Hotel, near Wanaka, has passed, but the owners are keeping mum about any developments.
They had told media in the lead-up to last week’s cut-off date that they were dealing with buyers from New Zealand, Australia, the US, and Singapore.
Meanwhile, the Hurunui Hotel, in Canterbury, is also looking for someone to either buy the pub for $995,000 or take over the lease and run the business.
In the North Island, the country’s most remote pub and accommodation business, the Whangamomona Hotel, is for sale. The 115-year-old hotel attracts visitors from all around the world wanting to get their passports stamped in the smallest republic.
Macdonald Real Estate listing agent Russell Atkinson said there were a couple of serious buyers still sniffing around, but he expected interest to pick up over the summer.
Atkinson has also just listed the Urenui Hotel, about 30 minutes from New Plymouth. Locals bought the pub, which has four motel units and manager’s accommodation, about 18 months ago. They carried out a full renovation, and it has been up and running for a year.
“They’ve done what they wanted to do – get it back up and running, make it run smoothly and be presentable and a nice place for the locals.”
- 1406 Moutere Highway, in Upper Moutere, Tasman, is for sale for $1.2 million plus GST (if any)
