IMMIGRANT'S VINEYARD

Roland and Lucienne van der Wal arrived in NZ in 1986, from the Netherlands. In February 2013 they purchased an established vineyard. Referring to their heritage they renamed the vineyard – Immigrant’s Vineyard.Our first wine was a 2014 Pinot Noir and in 2015 we added a Pinot Rosé, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Gris. While looking for a name for our wines, we turned to the bird life in the vineyard. One night we heard the distinctive call of the morepork – NZ’s only native owl. We learned the Maori name for morepork is Ruru and that in Maori legend the Ruru is a guardian and bringer of good luck. Henceforth our wines had a name – Ruru.

Antony Worch

Antony Worch came to New Zealand from the Alsace region in France with a master’s degree in viticulture and wine making. After working in France, South Africa and New Zealand, he settled in Alexandra, Central Otago. Antony is the chief wine maker at Alexandra Vintners.Using the fruit from our single vineyard in Alexandra, Antony creates beautiful elegant and fruit driven wines.