Gibbston Valley marks 25 years of 'lifeline' vineyard

Gibbston Valley Wines will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first commercial grape harvest in Central Otago tomorrow.

In 1987, three companies produced wine including Taramea near Arrowtown, Gibbston Valley Wines and Rippon at Wanaka. Taramea survived only a few years but Gibbston Valley and Rippon went on to become international brands.

The 1987 Gibbston Valley wines were the first Central Otago wines on the market in May 1988.

Pinot noir, pinot gris and a "dry white" – a blend of muller thurgau and gewurztraminer – were released, a total of just 900 bottles.

Gibbston Valley Wines winemaker Christopher Keys said Alan Brady planted a vineyard in 1983, which produced the first commercial pinot noir in Central Otago in 1987.

"He's one of the pioneers of this region ... the whole industry propelled from the work of him and a couple of others."

QUALITY: Harvesting in action last year at the

Gibbston Valley Wines Home Block vineyard, the oldest at the winery.

It was produced from the 1.8 hectare Home Block vineyard, the first of eight now owned by the winery and one of the oldest in the region.

"It is special to us because of the age of the vines, and the incredible quality of pinot noir that comes from here.

"We make very limited quantities of wine from this site ... because the vines are old, their root systems are deep, and the fruit very complex."

It was a significant milestone for the region.

Tomorrow people would be invited to the winery to pick pinot noir grapes from the same vines that were used for initial picking for the first release 25 years ago, he said.

"It's [the vineyard] our lifeline and our history."

The vineyard was still in continous production and tomorrow they would also release the 2011 version of the pinot noir, Le Maitre, he said.

This would be followed by a lunch cooked by chef Mark Sage accompanied with flowing pinot noir, Mr Keys said.

Mr Brady would also "grace us with his company" to commemorate the occasion, Mr Keys said.

The Central Otago region now has about 2000ha of vines and more than 100 producers and this year's harvest is expected to be about 7000 tonnes. The industry employs about 400 people year-round and pumps millions of dollars into the local economy.

The celebrations would continue all year.