Sub Regions
The Central Otago wine region is broken into multiple sub regions, each with its own climate and characteristics.
- Bannockburn, is located on the southern banks of the Kawarau River near Cromwell and is a very warm area that was known by gold miners as “the Heart of the Desert”. Grapes ripen early on sandy, silty loam soils. The elevation ranges from 220 to 370 metres.
- Bendigo, lies east of the Clutha River and Lake Dunstan and has both medium (220 metres) and high elevation terraces (330 to 350) planted in grapes. This warm area has semi arid soils at variable depths free draining soils at the lower levels and shallower soils at higher elevations.
- Gibbston is a tight valley enclosed by mountainous terrain. About 250 hectares of vines are planted on sloping land on the southern bank of the Kawarau River. Gibbston is the coolest and highest of the sub-regions with vineyards between 320 and 420 metres altitude.
- Wanaka, the smallest of the sub-regions, has vineyards planted between the banks of Lake Wanaka and the town of Luggate to the east. Ranging between 290 to 320 metres above sea level, the vineyards have a similar but slightly warmer climate than those at Gibbston.
- The Alexandra Basin is surrounded by the Clutha and Manuherikia rivers and regularly records New Zealand’s hottest summer temperatures. Schist outcrops dominate the arid landscape and a wide diurnal shift moderates the high temperatures.
- The Cromwell Basin contains the highest concentration of vines in an area bounded by the Kawarau River, Lake Dunstan and the Pisa mountain range. It is a warm district characterized by semi arid, high terraces and moraines and gently sloping fans.
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