TWO DEGREES

Richard & Di needed an excuse to escape the rigours of Sydney and return to where their hearts always lay - Central Otago. So in 2003 we planted 15000 vines into the free draining wind-blown loess soils at this stunning site half way between Wanaka and Cromwell on SH6, with the spectacular St Bathans Range forming an impressive backdrop. Four years later in 2007 we produced our first vintage. As the vines mature and all of us involved in the vineyard become more familiar with what the terroir is capable of, our pinot noir has gone from strength to strength, to date culminating in a trophy for our 2009 vintage - the champion pinot noir at the Royal Easter Show 2012. Why TWO DEGREES? It's that gentle slope of two degrees which encourages the frosts to roll away to the Clutha River! It reminds us of the chilly nights of autumn which coupled with warm sunny days give us that wonderful diurnal range so important to the production of pinot noir. It recognises the close relationships of people in New Zealand where six degrees seems to shrink to two degrees. It commemorates our daughter Anna and her friends Andrew and Lisa who died together on the Treble Cone access road in 2004 and wanted us to choose a "quirky" name for the vineyard.