As a viticultural region Central Otago is rapidly gaining an international reputation as the place to be, especially for producing Pinot Noir. Sir Clifford Skeggs was in the first cluster to commit to this region on a large scale, and has thus secured one of the finest areas. He instinctively knew that this region could not only reinforce, but also substantially add to this country's international reputation for producing award winning, fine wines.

One of Pinot Noir's more telling features is it's transparent nature: any fault or failing in the site, climate, farming or winemaking will be painfully obvious in the final wine and no amount of talent or science can make up for what is already lost. That is why we carefully selected Bannockburn Heights as the home for our prestigious Akarua Pinot Noir.

Vines were first planted in 1996 and further vineyard development has progressed in the intervening period. A small vintage was produced in 1999 from the new Akarua winery facility and wine volume has steadily increased in line with ongoing improvements in vineyard productivity. The New Zealand domestic market takes a major portion of our wine but increasing demand from overseas distributors has seen healthy growth in this sector; United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Denmark, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia. This is complemented by our own Cellar Door, which is now even busier with the growing wine tourism trade that has arisen from the region's international recognition.

A desire for vineyard dining has given rise to a cafe and wine bar facility known as the 'Lazy Dog', located within the winery complex that adds another interesting dimension to the 'Akarua Experience'.