Te Awa tops bidding

A Te Awa wine earned the highest bid at a Hawkes Bay charity auction.

A record $138,480 was raised at this year's Hawkes Bay Winemakers Charity Auction for Cranford Hospice in Hastings. Winemakers from the region donate bottles and barrels of wine for the auction.

This year, for the third year in a row, the highest bid for a single wine was paid for a Te Awa wine.

Te Awa's 225-litre barrique of 2004 Cuvee Sirius attracted fierce bidding from three syndicates, and the final bid was $9200. Cuvee Sirius is a blend of syrah, malbec, merlot and cabernet sauvignon and was blended specially for this year's auction.

The wine takes its name from Sirius, the brightest star in the sky.