The Aurora Vineyard was first planted in 1998. It was developed with a singular focus ­ to make wines of uncompromised quality which reflect the unique “terroir” of Bendigo ­ a place of history, promise, celestial skies and bands of shimmering earth.

The Aurora Vineyard is located near the historic mining township of Bendigo. The name was brought to New Zealand by miners from the Bendigo gold diggings in Victoria, Australia. They sought their fortune in the promise of Otago and believed the name would bring them luck.

We named our vineyard after the ‘Aurora’ quartz reef in the hills above our property, and also in homage to the Aurora Australis whose southern lights on special nights play symphonies in the night sky above us. The ‘five vines’ on our label represent both the five founding partners and our firm anchor in the Bendigo soil.

Our wines are crafted solely from grapes grown in The Aurora Vineyard. A growing and winemaking philosophy of low crop yields, sympathetic vineyard management, hand picking and as little intervention in the winery as possible is reflected in the wines we produce. The vast majority of the vineyard is planted in Pinot Noir; the remainder is made up of Riesling, Pinot Gris and Syrah.

We plan to release our maiden vintage in April 2007. This consists of our 2006 Bendigo Pinot Noir, Syrah and Riesling also our 2005 Bendigo Syrah. Each of our wines has been produced in small volumes. To discover our wines for yourself or to find out more about us, please email us on info@auroravineyard.com.