A lot of bottle in new gourmet store

Vom Fass has more than 100 different-sized, plain and themed bottles. Picture / Greg Bowker

High St has long been the place to head for fashion, but it is now a destination for gourmets too.

With the opening of Vom Fass, food and drink lovers will find more than 130 boutique products - from culinary and wellness oils to vinegars, liqueurs, spirits, whiskeys and wines.

Go with your tastebuds primed - customers are encouraged to taste a variety of products from wooden casks, clay jugs and glass balloons before they buy.

What makes Vom Fass unique is that you choose as little or as much as you want as well as the type of bottle you want it in.

There are more than 100 different sized, plain and themed bottles including ones shaped as stiletto shoes or Adam and Eve figures. Bottles can be inscribed with special messages or simply with details of the contents and then gift wrapped.

This is the second Vom Fass store in New Zealand (Christchurch's opened just before Christmas) and there is a third planned for Wellington in the next few months. There are more than 200 outlets worldwide.

Todd Voice, the master licence holder for Vom Fass in New Zealand and Australia, says being able to choose the amount of liqueur, oil, vinegar, spirits or wine you want is the great thing about the store.

Prices range from $2 per 100ml (a red wine vinegar) to $49 per 100ml for a rosehip oil made from wild roses.

"You can buy to fit your budget and you can experiment by buying small amounts of things - different oils for cooking or a variety of single malt whiskeys," says Voice.

Being able to taste before you buy is a bonus. "We encourage people to taste four or five products before they buy," says Voice. It allows customers to taste something they might not otherwise try.

If you're after flavoured oil for drizzling over pasta or vegetables, for example, staff might recommend you taste the pistachio, thistle or walnut oils. Or if you're after liqueurs, they'll encourage you to try the gingerbread nougat cream or nut chocolate.

There is also a range of grappas. And if you're after something special to serve at your next party, don't go past one of Vom Fass' specialties, Strawberry Limes - a strawberry pulp liqueur from Europe, one of the store's best sellers.

Vom Fass is on the corner of High St and Vulcan Lane, Auckland Central.