Ngai Tahu buys up grape country

By DITA DE BONI

Ngai Tahu has invested more than $9 million in prime Marlborough grape-growing land.

Ngai Tahu Holdings Corporation will not till the land itself, but has negotiated a joint venture with a local wine company, Giesen Holdings, to manage the vineyards.

The deal involves at least six vineyards with a total area of around 69ha northwest of Blenheim, from the Rapaura region through to Brancott.

The corporation has paid top dollar for the prime land, outlaying up to $137,000 a hectare.

The six vineyards supply grapes to several wineries.

However, they are not believed to be locked into secure contracts.

The wineries will revert to growing grapes for the Giesen wine label, run by Theo, Alex and Marcel Giesen.

The brothers will lease back the vineyards from Ngai Tahu, with the new joint venture more than doubling their present wine output.

The Giesens have previously bought grapes from local growers.

They are based in Burnham, south of Christchurch, where they own 30ha, with a further 74ha in Marlborough.

They say wine from the new grapes will be bottled in Burnham, although they have a winery in Blenheim.

Ngai Tahu Holdings chief executive Brian Kennedy said the tribe's commercial arm had been looking at opportunities in wine for the past two years.

"We see it as being a desirable investment sector, particularly in the Marlborough region, which has carved out a domestic and international reputation for excellence."

It is understood that Ngai Tahu Holdings is interested in increasing its land assets over and above the Giesen joint-venture acquisition.

Giesen Estate is a family-run winery established in 1981 by the three German brothers.

The company has built a sizable export business with its white varietal wines.

It exports around 80 per cent of its production.