** Bookings open on
Monday 22 February **
Twenty
five years ago, few people took Central Otago
seriously as a wine producing region.
“It’s too cold; grapes won’t ripen; the wines will be too acidic; it’s
too far from the wine drinking public” were warning words. Nowadays, with over 1,500 hectares of vines, Central Otago is the fifth largest vignoble in the
country, with around 5% of the total plantings.
There are just on 100 licensed wine producers and three quarters that
number of registered grape growers. The
region makes some of the most exciting Pinot Noirs in the country, with
Riesling, Pinot Gris and the other aromatics performing exceptionally well too. Distinctive sub-regions are emerging and one
can certainly taste the difference between wines from Alexandra, Bannockburn, Bendigo,
Gibbston, Lowburn and Wanaka. The wines
of Central Otago are unique and different from
anywhere else, and pleasingly so.
Twenty
Central Otago producers are coming to Wellington
for their annual showcase. Among them
are some of the most-established and well-known, along with exciting, brand new
labels. Over 80 wines can be tasted from
Archangel, Black Quail Estate, Carrick, Chard Farm, Coal Pit, Desert Heart,
Domain Road, George Town, Grasshopper Rock, Greylands Ridge, Locharburn, Mt
Difficulty, Nevis Bluff, Northburn Station, Olssens, Prophet’s Rock, Surveyor
Thomson, Three Miners, Two Paddocks, Wild Earth and Wooing Tree.
This
will be a fabulous opportunity of tasting a marvellous array of Central Otago wines and meet many of the leading wine
producers from the ‘deep South’. With
this large number of wines available for tasting, we recommend you obtain your
tickets from Ticketek as soon as possible and arrive early to give yourself the
fullest time to look at the wines. Otherwise
you’ll need to be very selective in what you want to taste!