Central Otago

There is a long history of winemaking with the region’s industry pioneered in Clyde in 1895 by French immigrant Jean Desire Feraud. His Monte Christo wines won wide recognition. The Alexandra Basin, with over 20 producers, lies below the southern 45th parallel and to the south of all other Central Otago sub-regions. This unique spot on the globe creates New Zealand's only continentally influenced wine growing region, providing a challenging, yet very rewarding, grape growing environment. Start at Clyde (numerous options for cycle hire available) and enjoy a day of cycling, wine tasting and a picnic somewhere along the way – a great way to experience the region and its wines. Pick up an Alexandra Basin Wine Map to see the location of all of our vineyards and producers, together with notes on the region. We can assist with arranging.

Within 30 minutes of Clyde we have a number of other well-known sub-regions. Take a guided tour or an independent drive through these areas visiting the vineyards and tasting Central Otago’s distinctive wines. We have wine maps and can assist with arranging a guided wine tour. Bannockburn on the southern banks of the Kawarau near Cromwell is a very warm, dry district where grapes ripen early on sandy, silty loam soils. The altitude here ranges from 220 to 370 meters in an area known by miners as “the Heart of the Desert”. The Cromwell Basin contains the largest concentration of vines in an area bounded by the Kawarau River, Lake Dunstan and the Pisa mountain range. It is a warm, early ripening district dominated by semi-arid, flat to undulating high terraces and moraines and gently sloping fans.