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Beetham family harvest day
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The oldest vineyard in the Wairarapa valley.  â€‹

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              Deep family heritage, pioneering spirit & worldclass wines.

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The Original Wairarapa Vineyard 

This is a Story Worth Hearing ...

That's early Wairarapa settler William Beetham in the image above, standing at the far right.  A shot taken on the day of harvest at the original Brancepth Vineyard, now Lansdowne Estate, sometime in the mid 1870s.

 

William planted Brancepeth to provide "Claret" for his homesick French wife, Hermance.  Sadly, the vineyard was ripped up around 1907, likey due to phylloxera. In any case, the game was up for winegrowing in the Masterton region - a prohibition was in place here between 1908 to 1946.   

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The current Lansdowne Estate was planted by Margaret & Derek Hagar in 1998.  They surprised the wine world by winning a Gold trophy for their 2010 Pinot Noir at the 2014 IWCS competition.  This is reason enough to ensure the vineyard continues.  The Hagar story is deeper than this however.  The vineyard played a vital role in nurturing a family through a tragedy.  

 

Read John Saker's piece on Lansdowne in Stuff ... The story behind the world's best pinot noir

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Vineyard Stats

Vineyard       

Lansdowne Estate was planted in 1998, on the site of the original Wairarapa vineyard Brancepeth Estate.  119m above sea-level. 

 

Pinot Noir, Syrah & Pinot Gris. Dry-farmed. The vineyard sits atop a natural watershed as the land drains East-to-West into the Ruamahanga.  The vineyard sits beside the Ruamahanga. Our vinesman Dylan makes good use of this over the summer months!

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Planted in north-south orientation.  2m row spacing with close-planting.  Protected from the worst of the prevailing winds. 

 

It is clear from vine health that the vineyard has been well maintained. As we come to know the location & wines it is clear there is a specific character to this place. Conditions seem to afford a lengthen maturation, harvesting a fortnight or so later than regional norms.

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