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World video travel guide
News • New Zealand • 2011-04-17
Record French wine sale benefits Christchurch
The latest in a long list of generous donations for the Christchurch earthquake relief fund has come from a bottle of French Burgundy that has sold for NZ$12,500 at a charity auction in New Zealand.
The price, paid by a New-Zealand based investor, is believed to be the highest a bottle of wine has ever fetched at auction in the country.
The bottle of 1971 Romanee-Conti, from the famed Burgundy wine region, was donated from the private cellar of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti vineyard owner, Aubert de Villaine.
Major donation
The record-selling wine was one of about 300 bottles donated from France and New Zealand’s famous Central Otago wine growing region for the Webb’s Fine Wine Auction.
A total of NZ$47,561 was raised, and will be given to the Red Cross for relief work in the city.
Simon Ward, head of fine wine at Webb’s, said the Romanee-Conti wine fetched so much because it was very rare and from an established label.
The fact that it came from a private cellar and had a known history would have added to the value, Ward said.
Kiwi - French relationship
De Villaine said he donated the fine wine, which was one of the few in his personal cellar, because he had a special relationship with New Zealand and wanted "to support our friends".
"I have myself a special relation with New Zealand where I had two times pleasure to ‘fish-fly’ in what is worldwide considered as the most beautiful rivers of the world," said Aubert de Villaine.
The reason for such an extraordinary level of support from Burgundy was because of the wine industry being a relationship-driven business, said Ward.
"Great friendships are often formed when New Zealanders go overseas to work within the wine industry and leave a lasting impression."
Kiwi harvesters
The owners of Domaine Dujac - another Burgundy winery - said they had also donated to the auction because of a special relationship with New Zealand.
"In the early days of harvests of Domaine Dujac, we could hire anyone we wanted to harvest - and we had a host of New Zealand volunteers. We found them to have terrific sense of humour and willing to endure the rigours of picking cheerfully," said Mme Rosalin of Domaine Dujac.
"In 1975 when our first child was born, one of the girls offered to stay on as an au pair. This started a long chain of young women who looked after the little Seysses for a few months each over a number of years. They are now all grown up and mothers themselves - I still correspond with several of them.
"Our donation is tribute to them. They were excellent ambassadors for New Zealand."
Domaine Michelot
Further support for Christchurch and a strong reference to the coming Rugby World Cup came from Jean Francois Mestre of the famed Domaine Michelot Meursault estate in Burgundy.
"After a memorable six months journey in NZ in 2009, I’ve been very shocked after the earthquake. I’ve been so welcomed on this island; I met many nice people there, they were very friendly and generous. I hope this auction will help inhabitants to recover," Mestre said.
"Be sure that during the Rugby World Cup I’ll be supporting very strongly the All Blacks. I chose this wine because it is like your rugby team, big, powerful and with a big personality."
New Zealand wines
New Zealand wineries that donated to the fine wine auction included Spy Valley Wines (Marlborough), Rippon Vineyard (Wanaka), and several well-known Central Otago vineyards: Felton Road (Bannockburn), Quartz Reef and Mondillo (Bendigo), Burn Cottage (Pisa Range), Northburn Station and Surveyor Thomson Wines (Lake Dunstan), Greylands Ridge (Alexandra Basin).
Stewart Elms, who planted the first vines at Felton Road and Rockburn Wines near Cromwell, also donated wine.
Background: Central Otago wine
Central Otago is the world’s most southerly grape-growing region and, at 45deg south, the area has a climate similar to Burgundy, the world’s top pinot noir region.
Central Otago has a semi-continental climate and experiences greater daily and seasonal temperature extremes than anywhere else in New Zealand. The area’s unique soil types have a marked influence on vine growth, the flavours of the grapes and the resulting wine.
Wine tourism is a major drawcard for the region, and the Central Otago Wine Trail includes 30 different wineries and vineyards offering tastings, tours, lunches and dinners.
The trail takes visitors through the spectacular landscape of the Gibbston region, Cromwell Basin, Bannockburn, Bendigo, Lake Wanaka and Alexandra-Clyde - with suggested itineraries breaking up what could, in total, take many days.
Central Otago is also famed for produce like cherries, olive oils, apricots and a variety of fresh and dried fruits, and saffron.
The region celebrates its world-class wine and food with a number of annual events including the Central Otago Pinot Noir celebration, Gibbston Valley Harvest Festival, Clyde Wine & Food Festival, Old Cromwell Vino & Victuals, and the Otago Wine & Food Festival which is held in Dunedin.
During Rugby World Cup 2011, a ‘Central Otago Pinot Experience’ will be held in Gibbston on 22 September - taking visitors to a number of wineries throughout the district to sample premium pinot noirs and aromatics, along with a winery lunch.
