Blue Door

Address: 18 Buckingham Street, Queenstown and Arrowtown, New Zealand
Tel: +64 (0)3 442 0415
Website: view Blue Door’s website
Door: Open door
Style: Wine bar

Review

Arrowtown is right in the heart of Otego wine country and this picturesque cowboy town looks like a scene straight out of the Wild West - after all, this is old gold mining country. Old saloon-style shops line the high street and it's off the high street, down a small secluded alleyway where the town realy comes alive.

As the name suggests, the entrance to the bar is by a blue door - in this case, a dilapidated blue door with a rusting pad look hanging from one side. It's this character that grabs you from the get-go and the place is incredibly atmospheric. You take three steps back in time to enter this warm, buzzing bar room. Grab a cozy leather seat by the blazing fire. Behind you is a dark brown wooden bar with a decent-sized back-bar. The cocktails are good but the focus is more on a large range of local wines, which are reasonably priced and displayed around the place.