Bannockburn, Central Otago.

Our summer days are long, hot, and tinder dry. In autumn the nights are cold. In winter they are bitter. The soils of Bannockburn are unforgiving. Windblown. Stony. The first grapes were planted here in the 1860s by a French goldminer. The land has never made it easy. Our vineyards are named Swansong, Black Rabbit, and Inlet. Swansong is steep — the vines clawing their way along terraces of eroded gravel and clay. Black Rabbit sits on ancient bedrock, vines nestled into windblown soil. Inlet’s vines drape over a terrace of deep river gravel. We coax the best out of these reluctant soils by striving for balance. We grow Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Gamay.