A Far North winemaker says he’s had a frustrating summer owning “the winery that can’t sell wine” after the council seemingly “forgot” to process his application for an onsite liquor licence. Sovrano Estate owner Andrea Loggia has been having to do wine tastings for free while he waits for the result of the application he made back in September. “Customers think it's very nice, but it's frustrating for our business,” Loggia said. He’s had countless conversations with customers ringing to book a table at the restaurant but pulling out after learning they could not purchase a wine with lunch. Loggia applied for the licence on September 29. On November 8 the council asked for more information which Loggia’s wife sent the very next day. Loggia said he had to follow up three times over a month before he heard anything back from council staff. In December, Loggia was told the council had made a mistake and had not notified his application. A spokesperson for the Far North District Council acknowledged it had received Sovrano Estate’s information, and that the vetting process had “taken longer than expected”. “Council, for their part, acknowledges the vetting delay in this instance was not acceptable and is reviewing the associated processes as a result,” they said. Loggia is no stranger to applying for a licence. He estimates he has applied for around 500 licences in 15 years across the country for his limoncello business. “Our company has a clean reputation. We’ve never made a mistake, and we’ve never had a problem like this before.” Due to a crossover of council Christmas hours and public notification requirements, Sovrano Estate will now have to wait until the end of January, following a notification period, to find out if it will get its licence. Not having had a licence over the hay-making summer holiday period has had a financial impact. Loggia estimates he has lost around $3500 day not being able to sell wine in his restaurant. “We’ve put all our money into this project after taking over in October. The business is still financially sound, but we can’t go on this way.” Loggia has listed the business on the market to hedge his bets in case he cannot get a licence, or if for some reason his off-licence to sell bottles to take away should be revoked. “I can’t trust the council any more. I was so upset, I’d just had enough, so I put it up for sale.” Selling the winery would be the end of his family’s dream, and would mean leaving the country and returning to Italy after more than a decade, Loggia said. “I would love to see my daughter grow up in New Zealand, but if my business is destroyed, I won’t have a choice.” ---DECRYPTED---