Technical Data

Climate & Topography

Location, Climate & Topography
RegionCentral Otago, New ZealandSub region: Bendigo
ClimateSemi-continentalRainfall: Average of 300-450mm p.a.
Growing SeasonOctober – AprilAv Growing Degree Days – ~1150(2009/2015)
Vineyard size57 hectares(140 acres)Planted area: 26 hectares(64 acres)
Latitude/longitude44° 57’ 50.00’’ S169°17’ 01.17” E (The tractor shed)
Altitude210 -350 metres above sea level
TopographyModerate to steep slopes, gently undulating fans and remnant terraces comprising wind-eroded and water dissected minor ridges and associated areas of loess accumulations.
SoilsSoils range from outcrops of schist to very fine dusty sands; from extremely hard red boulders to pockets of sticky red clay; and from river gravels to coarse sands – even a small pocket of rich loam. These soils are very complex as they are essentially a combination of glacial outwash and river gravels but generally fit under the classification of Clyde sandy loam.

Management

Vineyard Management
Farming methodologySustainable (Member of Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand)
Water sourceLake Dunstan – irrigation scheme pumps from the glacial-fed lake
Vines per hectare2500 vines per hectare
Row spacingSpacing of 2.5 metres between rows; vines 1.6 metres apart
TrellisVSP trellis system (Vertical Shoot Positioning)
Foliage/fruiting wiresA single fruiting wire is at a height of 1 m; 3 pairs of foliage wires
PruningVines are mainly spur pruned at 2 buds per spur (200mm intervals)
CroppingPinot Noir yields are managed to a maximum of 5 T/ha and white varieties up to 7 T/ha
Weather stationAn on-line weather station on the vineyard records temperature, humidity, rain and wind www.harvestnz.com/w.cgi?hsn=3390. Tinytag Ultra Internal temperature loggers also record temperature ranges at different points on the vineyard
Water monitoringAquaflex soil monitors provide information on soil moisture to manage the optimal irrigation to the vines

Planting

Varieties, Clones & Rootstocks
VarietyCloneAreaVarietyCloneArea
2004 planting

(10 hectares)

Pinot NoirUCD55.0 haPinot NoirB6671.25 ha
Pinot NoirB1152.5 haPinot NoirB7771.25 ha
2005 planting

(12 hectares)

Pinot NoirB7771.3 haPinot NoirB6671.0 ha
Pinot NoirUCD61.75 haPinot NoirAbel.5 ha
RieslingGM 239.8 haGewürztraminer4561.0 ha
Pinot GrisBarrie1.0 haPinot GrisGM 2-152.3 ha
Sauvignon BlancMS2.0 ha
2007 planting (4 hectares)Pinot NoirB1141.3 haPinot NoirUCD4.8 ha
RieslingGM 198-19.7 haRieslingGM 1101.2 ha
Variety Mix65% of the vineyard (or almost 17 hectares) is planted in Pinot Noir.
RootstockAll vines are planted on phylloxera-resistant American rootstock. These include: Riparia Gloire, 3309 GM9.2, 101.14 BDX and Schwarzmann PN.
Annual full production~11,000 cases (132,000 bottles) inc. 7,000+ cases of Pinot Noir